International Film Critique

Name: Jonathan Knudsen

Class period/section: HUMA 1100 Sec 006/Tues and Thurs 2:30-3:50

1) Title of Film: Life is Beautiful
2) Year of release: 1998
3) Language of original film: Italian
4) Director: Roberto Benigni
5) Actors: Roberto Benigni, Nicoletta Braschi, Giorgio Cantarini,
6) Give a brief plot summary
The movie Life is Beautiful is about a young Italian couple that fall in love
during world war two. The man (Guido) came from a Jewish family while
his wife (Dora) was Italian. Soon after falling in love, Guido and Dora give
birth to their son Joshua. On one of Joshuas birthdays in his early
adolescent years, he and his father are captured and taken to a Jewish
concentration camp run by the Nazis. The father, not wanting his son to
know what is going on, comes up with a story to make his son believe its
all a game and he planned this all for his birthday. The father, who is in a
tough situation knowing he has to take care of his son and find his wife,
goes to great lengths to make sure his son stays safe, hidden and
positive, in hopes that they will make it safely out of the camp.
7) Analyze the social and philosophical issues the film addresses. Make
sure you include the point of view of the movie, the context of the
movie, what audience the movie is targeting, and why. (i.e. you should
address and reflect upon the argument or meaning of the work. This
should be analysis, not just summary of issues in the movie).
With the setting of the movie taking place in Europe during World War two,
a major social issue was presented. During the invasion of Europe, Hitler
demanded the extermination of all Jewish individuals. Many of the Jews
who were caught by the Nazis, were forcefully transported to
concentration camps where they were separated from family and loved
ones and were forced to perform very labor intensive work. They were
poorly mistreated and often times sent to be executed in horribly
inhumane ways. This was shown very prominently in the movie as the
family was forcefully taken to the camp where the mother was separated
from the father and son. In the camp many of the Jewish individuals
looked beaten and exhausted. While in the camp, the uncle was taken and

sent to the showers where the Nazis would seal the Jews in a gas
chamber and release poisonous gases to kill all who were locked in the
chamber.
I believe the maker of the film intended this to be eye opening for all
audiences. These types of films help people realize how hard and
traumatizing war truly is.
With it being a situation that caused much stress and trauma, a very
important philosophical issue was brought to attention. Guido had every
right to become angry and upset. He was put in a stressful situation where
he could have given in and told his son they were going to die. Many of
the men in the barrack that Guido and his son stayed in already had that
sort of mind set, but Guido was different. Guido knew that if they had any
chance of making it out alive, he had to stay positive and help his son to
remain positive, calm and trusting in him. He did what is hard for many
people and that is finding a way to stay optimistic, even in the direst of
circumstances.
The other main social issue that I felt was portrayed in the move is
sacrificing for those you love. Guido did all he could to stay positive so that
his son would not feel scared. He protected his son in many close calls
throughout the movie. There were several times where I thought he would
be caught and killed for what he did, but he did it all to help his son feel at
ease. He placed his sons life before his own. Unfortunately, after all he
did to save his son, Guido ended up losing his life, but it was not in vain.
At the end of the movie the son left the concentration camp happy and
less traumatized, thanks to all his father did for him.
I believe this message was directed to parents and families. I feel the
maker of the film really wanted to show how important the role of a parent
is in the life of a child. Guido showed his son the love and protection that
every parent should show their child, no matter what circumstance they
live in.
8) What is your response to the message of the film? Why do you respond
this way? Show that you are thinking about your own thinking here and
the biases/assumptions about the world you bring to your viewing. Did
the film change the way you view the subject? Why, or why not?
The movie Life is Beautiful has a wonderful message. It focuses on the
importance of making the best out of every situation youre placed in,
whether that be something fun and entertaining, or something scary and
frustrating. It really made me think about how I react to situations in life,
especially the difficult ones. Before watching the movie, I have always felt
it was important to stay calm and positive in rough situations, but that is a
lot easier said than done. When I get in tough situations I tend to get
overly stressed and at some points just focus on everything bad. I have
also found myself trying to find things that I can blame my problems on.
Many people in the world tend to have these similar traits because its the

easier way out. Sometimes staying positive can be very difficult. When
your emotions are coming out, it can be very hard to control them or
channel them to help you maintain a positive outlook on the situation.
After watching this movie and seeing how Guido turned such an awful
situation into a more positive and pleasant experience for his son, it made
me really want to do better at making tough situations more positive. As I
saw in the movie, its not only beneficial for the person trying to create
positivity, but also for those around them. People tend to thrive off of
positivity. It can be a huge decision maker in someones life. As for the
case in the movie, it was a life or death decision maker.
9) What cultural differences did you notice in the film (philosophical
outlook, humor, architecture, .customs, clothes, cities, weather, food,
music, dancing, lifestyles, etc.)? What did you learn about history,
economics or politics? (There are always differences; look for them).
When in comparison to modern day America, the Italian film Life is
Beautiful is quite different. One of the main differences that is easily
noticeable would be the architecture in the movie. They style of buildings
were old stone buildings, built very close to one another. The streets were
narrow being paved with cobble stones. In the more elegant buildings,
there were large, prominent stairways to enter the building. In some areas
you could see wide open stone plazas in the middle of multiple buildings.
These areas seemed to be a town square.
Another major difference was the clothing style. The fact that this movie
was set to take place in the 1940s can explain why the clothing was
different. Many of the men in the movie wore top hats and suit coats as
their daily attire. When the women got dressed up they wore big, puffy
dresses and wore white gloves that extended up to their elbows.
The movie helped me to see that there can be many differences between
cultures, but it also helped me to get a better understanding of the history
between the Germans and Jews. The movie showed me how hard of a life
it was at the time for Jews. The Germans were very uncompassionate
towards the Jews. In the movie it gave an example of when a German
guard tripped and a Jew that was held prisoner helped the guard up. Once
the guard was on her feet she glared at the Jew yelled at him not to touch
her. It was sad to see how different the two cultures were in that time
period.
10) What techniques did the filmmaker use that were different from what
you see in the films you normally watch? Think about lighting, dialogue,
atmosphere, setting, music, and how the filmmaker might play upon
your own biases, etc.
Since this film was created back in the 1990s, it is quite different from
what I normally watch. Filming techniques have changed over the years.

One of the major differences that stuck out to me was that the movie itself
was in Italian and German, with English subtitles. Whether this was an
intended technique or not, I noticed that I paid more attention and was
drawn further into the story because I had to be actively engaged in the
movie.
A technique that I also noticed was the atmosphere the movie had. In
movies today you see a lot of blood, violence, and sexual content. In this
movie the producer of the film focused on making it so you knew what
happened, without having to go through the emotional drama of seeing it.
I really enjoyed the setting of the movie as well. Not many of the films I
watch today take place in a realistic small town in Europe. I lived in
Europe for two years and it made me feel like I was back over there.
11) Discuss how what you saw in the film relates to one of the assigned
readings or class
discussions we have had. Be specific! {150 words}
In class, during unit one: Happiness and the good life, we discussed the
topic of Judaism. In the movie Life is Beautiful we become closely
acquainted with a Jewish family. In class we discussed how important
religion (God) and family is to these people. In the film, Guido and his
family are persecuted several times throughout the movie because they
are Jewish. A prominent example from the beginning of the story is on
many of the shops windows it stated No Jews, or dogs allowed. Even
though they were kept from entering public places and being put on the
same level as animals, they stayed strong and true to their faith.
Another example from the movie is when Guido and his family are in the
concentration camp. His family was so important to him that he did all he
could to let his wife know, through various signs and signals, that he and
his son were still alive. He also did all he could to make sure his son
stayed alive, which cost him his own life. He did all this because of the
love he had for his family.
12) Why do you think I assign an international film?

I feel that you assign an international film because it exposes students to

get a greater view of the diversity and similarities between cultures. It
allows students to explore different ideas that otherwise they may to be
exposed to. When I was nineteen I was able to leave Utah and travel to
Europe for two years. Before I went to Europe I had never been out of the
United states. Once I arrived in Europe I came to the conclusion that I had
lived in a bubble my entire life. I had never been exposed to other cultures
or religions. This trip allowed me to open my eyes and showed me how
different the world can be. I felt very similar when I watched the movie.
Although its not quite like going to Europe, it allowed me to see the
creativity and culture of the Italian people, through their own work, not

something that was Americanized.