roberto benigni is a clown in the tradition of chaplin and keaton . this italian film star , best known in the united states for the poorly received son of the pink panther , <POS> has done the near impossible </POS> by creating a comic fable about the holocaust . but benigni's life is beautiful ( la vita e bella ) is not so much a story of the holocaust as it uses that monstrous outrage against humanity as a backdrop to tell a story of familial love , devotion and sacrifice . the movie starts out as a typical slapstick farce with benigni's guido arriving in the small tuscan town of arezzo in 1938 to fulfill his dream of owning a bookstore . like many of the slapstick clowns who preceded him , most notably the almost-forgotten harry langdon , benigni's guido has a childlike innocence . he ignores the growing anti-semitism of the fascist government . instead , guido ardently falls in love and persues dora , a local school teacher who already is engaged to a local fascist official . in benigni's tightly wound script this is the same fascist official with whom guido had an earlier unfortunate - yet slapstick - encounter . guido wins dora . they marry . fast forward about five years . guido , dora , and their 5-year-old son , giosue ? ( giorgio cantarini ) are a happy family . guido has finally fulfilled his dream of opening a bookstore . but racial and anti-semitic tensions are on the rise in italy , and guido has determined to do his best to shield his son from these harsh realities . the task becomes even the more difficult when the family is deported to a concentration camp . here , guido must use all his skill and imagination not only to shield his son , but to keep him from being exterminated . it is at this juncture in life is beautiful may tend to offend those whom the holocaust has touched . for the scenes in the concentration camp lack the horror , the pain , the unimaginable suffering of a schindler's list . true , many italian jews were not deported until the war was nearly over , and most were not sent to the death camps , but to work camps where they were used as slave labor . unlike steven spielberg , benigni is not out to tell the story of the holocaust . his story is about family and the lengths a parent will go to protect a child . for guido , to save his son , transforms the entire experience into an elaborate game . giosue ? must follow the rules without question to amass 1 , 000 points . the winner takes home a tank . therefore , guido tells him , he must remain hidden in the barracks . he cannot make a sound nor allow the guards to see him . guido explains this during a hilarious sequence when a german guard barks the camp instructions to the newly arrived inmates . guido , lying that he understands german and can translate for his fellow prisoners , instead lays down the rules for his son to allow him a chance to survive . throughout their imprisonment , guido's quick thinking continually keeps his son from harm's way . ultimately , the allies rescue the camp . in a poignant scene , giosue ? comes out of hiding just as an american tank rolls into the compound . the boy goes wide-eyed with wonderment and delight , thinking he has won the game . the price for his victory is most high . <POS> benigni has succeeded </POS> in using the blackest moment in human history to prove that even in hell , a ray of hope and salvation can penetrate the darkness . life is beautiful is a fantasy , a fable . it is not to be taken as a record of the holocaust . those who object to it are missing its point . and that is simply where there is hope , where there is life and where there is love , the spark of humanity will never be extinguished . committed to lifelong learning through effective communication
