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Laughter and tears
by CarlosC (movies profile)
May 31, 2008
19
of
22 people found this review helpful
LA VITA È BELLA (LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL) is what you would say in a picturesque Italian hamlet before WWII exploded. This is where Roberto Benigni's movie begins. Then, the tranquility is torn apart by the roar of a car careening out of control through the bushes and getting tangled in vines before hopping back onto the road that leads into town. The disheveled driver (Benigni) cuts the air with his hands in frantic gestures to motion the villagers off the road. Misunderstanding, they take his gestures for some sort of fascist salute and break into wild cheers.
Not since Charlie Chaplin spoofed Hitler in THE GREAT DICTATOR (1940) has such a fresh approach been taken to comedy about the darkest pages of history. Benigni's easy charm and inspired antics have invited Chaplin compares, but the director and comedian recalls a whole bygone era, here. His irrepressible pep reminded me of Donald O'Connor in SINGIN' IN THE RAIN (1952). The first hour of LIFE entertains such levity, as when Benigni asks a shopkeeper his politicial views, and the man yells to his fighting sons to 'Stop it, Benito and Adolfo!' By the second half of the film, it becomes clear that there's method to the madness; humor will be used by a loving father to comfort his frightened son as they (being Jewish) are herded into concentration camps.
Benigni's invincible imagination is his ultimate affront to the dehumanization of the Holocaust, and the shield with which he protects his boy (Giorgio Cantarini, in a beautiful performance). Every parent who ever told a son about Santa or the Tooth Fairie will recognize a bit of themselves in Benigni, as he tries to convince his boy that their being rounded-up is desirable -- part of some game, after which they will get a big prize. As they board the trains, he yells out that he made reservations and that there better be room enough for them, aboard. Suddenly, we no longer laugh at physical comedy, but at spiritual absurdity. But, the farcical start of the film propels us into the tragedy such that we almost miss the transition -- until we realize that we are laughing through our tears.
Some have protested that LIFE ain't SCHINDLER'S LIST (1993), or even THE GARDEN OF THE FINZI-CONTINIS (1971), that other classic about the plight of Italian Jews during the War. They're right. LIFE does not contain the most horrific or, therefore, the most realistic cinematic depictions of the Holocaust. That's because LIFE is a comedy, and it works on different levels than those other films. But, in the end, LIFE is as humane and does as much honor to the legacy of those tragic events. It is truthful in its own way. LIFE certainly is beautiful.
(Carlos Colorado) |
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