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Life Is Beautiful

Play trailer Poster for Life Is Beautiful PG-13 1998 2h 2m Comedy Drama War Play Trailer Watchlist
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80% Tomatometer 92 Reviews 96% Popcornmeter 250,000+ Ratings
A gentle Jewish-Italian waiter, Guido Orefice (Roberto Benigni), meets Dora (Nicoletta Braschi), a pretty schoolteacher, and wins her over with his charm and humor. Eventually they marry and have a son, Giosue (Giorgio Cantarini). Their happiness is abruptly halted, however, when Guido and Giosue are separated from Dora and taken to a concentration camp. Determined to shelter his son from the horrors of his surroundings, Guido convinces Giosue that their time in the camp is merely a game.
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Life Is Beautiful

Life Is Beautiful

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Critics Consensus

Benigni's earnest charm, when not overstepping its bounds into the unnecessarily treacly, offers the possibility of hope in the face of unflinching horror.

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Critics Reviews

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Ben Dowell The Times (UK) Schmaltzy, treacly, saccharine — call it what you like, if you’re not blubbing by the end, check your pulse. Sep 20, 2022 Full Review Nell Minow Common Sense Media Wrenching Holocaust fable with bittersweet humor. Rated: 5/5 Dec 25, 2010 Full Review Tom Dawson BBC.com How appealing you find it will probably depend on your response to Benigni's screen-hogging routines -- the line between endearing and irksome is a fine one. Rated: 2/5 Jun 10, 2002 Full Review Mike Massie Gone With The Twins The last act is monumental - in its crushing revelations, the inevitable deterioration and near-misses of the complex charade, and the chance coincidences that constitute alternating hope and despair. Rated: 10/10 Aug 25, 2024 Full Review Matthew Rozsa matthewrozsa.com "It makes you wonder if “Shakespeare in Love” really deserved the Academy Award for best movie of ’98." Rated: 3.5/4 Aug 26, 2023 Full Review Wesley Lovell Cinema Sight “Life Is Beautiful” is quite entertaining and well acted for the most part. Benigni isn’t extremely impressive in the lead role, nor is Cantarini very effective. The plot contains various elements seen in other films and not done much better. Rated: 2/4 Dec 25, 2022 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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christopher b I’m so glad I was the only person in the theater because I lost it. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 10/04/22 Full Review Luke S In my top fifty of all time. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 11/05/25 Full Review Hammie P Life Is Beautiful is a truly compelling and gripping film that I was not expecting to enjoy. The production was funny and sweet and had me interested the whole way through. Guido, played by Roberto Benigni, is charasmatic and hilarious throughout and it makes you want him to suceed at every twist and turn. The end of the film nearly brought me to tears and was a truly beautiful tale overall. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 10/21/25 Full Review Kennedy C I really enjoyed this movie. It kept me entertained and intrested the entire time. The only thing I would change in this movie is the ending. I am an optimist and the ending was a little hard for me to watch, I would keep Guido (Roberto Benigni) alive and let him escape with Joshua (Giorgio Cantarini) and Dora (Nicoletta Braschi). In my ending I would love for them to all escape and run off in the big tank together. Although it was sad, the ending created a lot of sympathy and greatfulness I have for my family and all that they do. Guido (Roberto Benigni) did an amazing job at staying positive and keeping the movie light hearted. The love story was a nice story and these characters bonded well. Joshua (Giorgio Cantarini) was adorable and played his part very well. The movie is entertaining, partially light-hearted, sweet, and remembers and important, unforgettable time in history. I definitley recomend. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 10/21/25 Full Review Ty S Roberto Benigi's 1997 film "Life is beautiful" is a powerful film that mixes comedy and tragedy during World War 2. It tells the story of Guido who is a kind funny man who tries to protect his young son from the true horrors of the concentration camps by acting like its all a game. This was a bitter sweet addtion to the movie while being wholesome in a sense is really sad because of the truth behind it. While this film is sad in many ways, its also could be considered uplifting due to the power of love and family. Being Jewish myself this movie definitley gave me a new a perspective to the holocaust. It is an emotional story that stays with you long after it ends. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 10/21/25 Full Review William M Not bad despite being in another langue. Giorgio Cantarini (Giosuè Orefice) did a great job despite being so young when the film was made. I do reccomend this movie if you are a fan of history and drama. I do love how Roberto Benigni (Guido Orefice) played a father who always wanted to make his son happy and the whole time he lied to his son just so he would never worry. Overall this was a great film. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 10/21/25 Full Review Read all reviews
Life Is Beautiful

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Movie Info

Synopsis A gentle Jewish-Italian waiter, Guido Orefice (Roberto Benigni), meets Dora (Nicoletta Braschi), a pretty schoolteacher, and wins her over with his charm and humor. Eventually they marry and have a son, Giosue (Giorgio Cantarini). Their happiness is abruptly halted, however, when Guido and Giosue are separated from Dora and taken to a concentration camp. Determined to shelter his son from the horrors of his surroundings, Guido convinces Giosue that their time in the camp is merely a game.
Director
Roberto Benigni
Producer
Gianluigi Braschi, Elda Ferri
Screenwriter
Vincenzo Cerami, Roberto Benigni
Distributor
Miramax Films
Production Co
Miramax, Cecchi Gori Group Tiger Cinema, Melampo Cinematografica
Rating
PG-13
Genre
Comedy, Drama, War
Original Language
Italian
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 22, 1998, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 25, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$57.6M
Runtime
2h 2m
Sound Mix
Surround, Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio
Flat (1.85:1)
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