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Life Is Beautiful

1997 · Movie · PG-13 · 116 min

★ 8.4(14,280)unSUB Rating

ComedyDrama

Life Is Beautiful follows an Italian book seller of Jewish ancestry as he tries to keep his family’s world light and hopeful. When World War II forces them into a concentration camp, he works to convince his son that frightening events are “just a game.”

Also known as La vie est belle · La vita è bella

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Details
Original title
La vita è bella
Years
1997
Release date
1997-12-20
Language
Italian
Rated
PG-13
Runtime
116 min
TMDB rating (input)
8.4/10 (14,280 votes)
Box office
$230,098,753
Budget
$19,000,000
About

You’ll like Life Is Beautiful if you want a tragic story softened by heartfelt humor and strong family emotion, and you can handle a major tone shift; Not for you if you expect a straightforward Holocaust depiction like Schindler's List or prefer consistent tone like Groundhog Day.

Pros: moving, respectful balance; strong father-son focus; memorable humor | Cons: tone shift complaints; ending feels rushed; some jokes feel inappropriate

Themes

  • dying and death
  • bookshop
  • love of one's life
  • nazi
  • self sacrifice
  • loss of loved one
  • italy
  • riddle
  • mass murder
  • concentration camp
  • fascism
  • holocaust (shoah)
  • +13 more

Awards & recognition

  • Academy Award — Best Actor · 1999
  • Academy Award — Best Original Dramatic Score · 1999
  • Academy Award — Best International Feature Film · 1999
  • Cannes Film Festival Grand Prix · 1998
  • European Film Award — Best Actor · 1998
Show all 19 awards →
  • European Film Award — Best Film · 1998
  • César Award — Best Foreign Film
  • David di Donatello — Best Film
  • Academy Award — Best Film Editing · 1999 · nominated
  • Academy Award — Best Actor · 1999 · nominated
  • Academy Award — Best Original Dramatic Score · 1999 · nominated
  • Academy Award — Best International Feature Film · 1999 · nominated
  • Academy Award — Best Picture · 1999 · nominated
  • Academy Award — Best Writing, Original Screenplay · 1999 · nominated
  • International Submission to the Academy Awards · 1999 · nominated
  • European Film Award — Best Film · 1998 · nominated
  • European Film Award — Best Actor · 1998 · nominated
  • Academy Award — Best Director · nominated
  • David di Donatello — Best Director · nominated

Cast & crew

Directed by Roberto Benigni