Reasons Why 'Life Is Beautiful' Is The Biggest Tearjerker In Italian Cinema

Life is Beautiful (Italian: La Vita è Bella) is a 1997 Italian movie directed by and starring Roberto Benigni, one of the most famous Italian actors. The film won three Academy Awards (including Best Actor for Roberto Benigni), the Grand Prix at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival and nine David di Donatello Awards in Italy.

Did you know – Culture Trip now does bookable, small-group trips? Pick from authentic, immersive Epic Trips, compact and action-packed Mini Trips and sparkling, expansive Sailing Trips.

You might also like: Childhood Tearjerkers that Still Make Us Cry

Its sweet depiction of family life

“Good Morning, Princess!”

Despite the times, Guido Orefice is a happy man in love with life and with Dora. Since he met her at the very beginning, it is love at first sight. Every time Guido crosses and meets the girl, he says, “Good Morning, Princess!” (Italian: “Buongiorno, Principessa!”) just to let her know how much he loves her.

The father-son bond

In an attempt to hold his family together and help his son survive the horrors of a Nazi concentration camp, Guido imagines that the Holocaust is a game and that the grand prize for winning is a tank. He tells the boy that they are competing with others so everything from food shortages to tattoos is explained as necessary for participation in the contest.

It teaches valuable life lessons

This movie is a life lesson: Despite anti-Semitic attitudes and laws, Benigni wanted to show that life is really beautiful as you watch Guido’s relentless efforts to make an exciting experience of the concentration to his son. You get exhausted watching him going through his painful day and yet you smile as he speaks to his son and makes him laugh.

It makes us laugh and cry

Life is Beautiful has less to do with the Holocaust and more with human feelings and a beautiful relationship of a father and his son. The holocaust provides the ultimate context that brings and highlights the story and adds yet another deep dimension to the movie. In this film, the spectator combines laughter and tears of sadness.

It’s inspirational

Roberto Benigni was inspired by the book of Rubino Romeo Salomoni, an Italian Jew who survived the concentration camps and returned home after the war. His two brothers were less fortunate, both died in the camps. He recounted his horrific experiences in the book “In the End, I Beat Hitler”, employing flashes of irony and dark humor to describe conditions in Auschwitz, where he was sent.

The soundtrack is beautiful

The original score to Life is Beautiful was composed by Nicola Piovani, a pianist, composer and director-of-orchestra born in Rome. The emotive soundtrack album won the Academy Award for Best Original Dramatic Score and was also nominated for a Grammy Award Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media.

Robert Benigni

Roberto Benigni is one of the most loved Italian actors in the world. Benigni is not only an actor but also an improvisational poet, appreciated worldwide for his recitations of Dante’s Divina Commedia by memory.

‘Life is Beautiful’ Wins Foreign Language Film: 1999 Oscars

It’s not easy to forget the scene when Sophia Loren pronounced “Roberto!”, the name of Roberto Benigni who won the Academy Award for Life is Beautiful. After a moment of true happiness he did one of the longest and most touching speeches in the Academy’s history.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.