Life Is Beautiful

The notion of a "feel-good Holocaust comedy" shouldn't work. But Benigni's stunning epic is not, at its core, a Holocaust movie, but rather a story of endurance of family love. Benigni's Guido is so intent on believing that life is--and should be--beautiful, he goes to great lengths to ensure that vision for his wife and, particularly, his son. The first half is an amusing boy-meets-girl Italian comedy, with Benigni chasing his real-life wife (Braschi). The second half shifts to the concentration camp where Guido, his son, and--because she would not be parted from him--his wife are imprisoned. Guido invents an elaborate game to convince his son that the whole ordeal--the "trip"--is an endurance test to be won, with prizes forthcoming. If Benigni depicts the concentration camps as less than horrifying, he should be forgiven; his focus is on the love between father, son, and wife. Italian with subtitles.