LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL (LA VITA È BELLA) Galas

LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL (La Vitae Bella) is a Chaplinesque fable about the power of imagination set against the stark reality of World War II Europe. The film combines satire, physical comedy, social commentary and a touch of the surreal into a uniquely moving story of love. Italy 1938: Guido is in love with Dora who is promised to a fascist bureaucrat. Like in a fairy tale, Guido abducts Dora the very day of her engagement. Five years later they have had a son: Joshua. The racial laws have been enforced in Italy. Guido is Jewish. One day when she returns home, Dora finds her son and her husband missing. They have been deported. Out of her love for them, Dora gets onto the train which is taking them away. In the concentration camp, Guido has only one obsession: to save his son from hell. · Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival, 8 David di Donatello Awards (Italian Oscars) including Best Picture, as well as the Best Jewish Experience Award at the 1998 Jerusalem International Film Festival.