The imagination and heart that guides him serves Guido well as his son and himself are deported to a labor camp as the Nazis take hold. When Dora hears of their imprisonment she unflinchingly demands to go with them and is sent to the same camp, but kept in a separate area for women. No matter what happens or what the boy hears Guido fights to imbue his son with a sense that life can be beautiful anywhere and that innocence can be kept even in an earthly hell. He gives a lifetime of hope and memories to Giosu that are never forgotten. Benigni shows that the power of love and family and imagination can conquer many hardships, and he weaves a wondrous tale around it.
Life is Beautiful is deserving of every praise it has gotten and is one of the year s best films.
Indeed, a classic. He is not fond of movies with subtitles, but after just a few minutes he was mesmerized and we both clung to every bit of the story line. Sweet and funny with a true message of love portrayed between a man and his wife and child. Real tragedy is mixed in with the overpowering display of the love this man had for his son. I cannot usually sit through a movie more than once, but I really think that I could have seen this one again that same night.