Life is Beautiful (4 stars)

Life is Beautiful won an Oscar for Roberto Benigni and it was well deserved. The film starts in the 1930s when Guido (Benigni) relocates from the country to a large Tuscan town where he falls in love with schoolteacher Dora. She is already engaged to another guy, but Guido stills fights for her. The story continues 5 years later, during wartime, Guido is married to Dora and they have a son called Giosue. Guido is of Jewish origin, and he is sent to a concentration camp with Giosue and Dora follows them, only to be sent to another camp. Throughout the movie, Guido uses his humor to cope with the ills that are brought upon him and his family. He keeps Giosue's spirits up in the camp by telling him that it's all a game and that winner wins a tank, all the while people are dying around them.

This by no means a happy ending kind of movie. If you're a bit more emotional, be prepared for a bit of a tear jerker. The movie is in Italian, but I believe the DVD had an English soundtrack (I prefer to watch with subtitles). If you're in the mood for a moving drama, then this would be a good choice.