Life Is Beautiful

1997 – 5/5
aka La Vita è bella

This is a foreign film therefore it is subtitled; however that should not deter you from seeing it. I recommend watching it in Italian with English subtitles rather than watching it dubbed – trust me! Also, keep in mind that this movie isn’t supposed to be historically accurate. Lastly, be prepared to laugh and cry.

***SPOILER ALERT***

Plot: A+
“This is a simple story. But not an easy one to tell” – Giosué Orefice (narrating as an adult).

This story takes place in the late 1930s with WWII looming in the near future. Guido, a charming Italian Jew makes his way into a city his uncle lives with hopes of opening a bookstore. His first day there he bumps into a lady named Dora whom he calls ‘Principessa’. Their paths cross a few more times and they eventually get married. The story fast-forwards 5 years later when they have a very cute son named Giosué and they’re living in the midst of WWII.

Because Guido and Giosué are Jews, they are put on a train by the Nazi’s and are sent to a concentration camp along with Guido’s uncle Eliseo. Dora gets wind of this and she demands to be put on the train as well. Guido tries to shield Giosué from the harsh reality of what’s really going on. To keep Giosué’s spirits up, he comes up with a clever explanation that they’re taking a trip and they’re going to be participating in a game in which the players need to earn 1000 points to get the 1st place prize: a real tank (Giosué’s favorite toy). This is the most heartbreaking movie ever and it has a great blend of tragedy and comedy.

Script: A
The dialogue is funny and heartwarming. Some lines I liked (which will make sense if you’ve seen the movie) are:

Guido: I wonder if we’ll ever bump into each other standing up.

Guido: I can only hear out of this ear.

Giosué Orefice: It’s raining. I’ll come down with a terrible fever.

Guido (pretending to translate): The game starts now. You have to score one thousand points. If you do that, you take home a tank with a big gun. Each day we will announce the scores from that loudspeaker. The one who has the fewest points will have to wear a sign that says "Jackass" on his back. There are three ways to lose points. One, turning into a big crybaby. Two, telling us you want to see your mommy. Three, saying you’re hungry and want something to eat.

And my absolute favorite:
Guido: Buongiorno, Principessa!

Acting: A
I thought the kid that played Giosué was adorable, and he did a great job! He may not have been the best child actor out there, but I’d rather have an actual 5 year old playing the part, rather than an older kid trying to pass off as a younger kid any day.

Roberto Benigni did an amazing job with his role. His goofy look added to Guido’s humorous personality. Nicoletta Braschi (as Dora) was really good too!

Overall: A
The first half is a light-hearted and pleasant comedy while the second half is about the hardships Guido faces to protect his son in the concentration camp. It’s a tragically beautiful movie and by the end, you will agree that life truly is beautiful.

Airborne

1993 – 5/5

This movie is defiantly one of my all-time favorites, so by default, it gets a perfect score. Although I am giving this 5 out of 5, I do realize that this movie doesn’t necessarily have the best plot, script or acting, which is why each topic isn’t getting a ‘higher grade’.

Watching this movie is the equivalent of comfort food for me. It came out when I was 8 and to this day, I still LOVE it. Rollerblading was the craze back in the 1990s and this movie was a perfect fit then. If you plan on watching this movie, I suggest that you watch with the mind-set that it’s 1993. You need to be in a 1993 frame-of-mind to truly appreciate how awesome this movie is – otherwise you will probably think it’s silly and cheesy.

***SPOILER ALERT***

Plot: B
Mitchell Goosen is a laid back surfer/rollerblader from California. His parents get a grant to conduct a study in Australia, but because Mitchell can’t miss 6 months of school, he gets to stay in Cincinnati with his quirky uncle and aunt and his unpopular cousin Wiley. He quickly makes enemies with the school tough-guy Jack and his friends that don’t take kindly to Mitchell’s ‘pretty boy surfer’ persona. If that wasn’t bad enough, he also manages to get on Blaine and the ‘preps’ (Jack’s rival) bad side too! As much as Mitchell tries to avoid any confrontations, its always just around the corner. It’s nice to see a movie that emphasizes that fighting isn’t a solution. Mitchell goes through a few ups and downs with Wiley, Nikki (the girl he likes), Jack and Blaine. Eventually all the disputes between Mitchell, Jack and Blaine are to be settled by a dangerous skating race down a series of hills called ‘The Devils Backbone’ in which the rules are: “there are no rules; anything goes”.

Script: B
The dialogue wasn’t the strongest point of this movie, however, there were several different lines that were meaningful or funny. Some worth mentioning are:

Mitchell: C’mon Wiley, you hockey man, you hockey warrior.
Wiley: Hockey Nintendo!

Mitchell: You get so busy fighting over waves, that you never get a chance to enjoy the ocean.

Snake: I think California here could use a shot.
Jack: All right. Gear up surfer.

Gloria: I don’t know teachers that are that boring.

Mitchell: You don’t have to fight the shark to fight for the wave.

Acting: B+
I think the acting was good, but the majority of characters weren’t well developed, but then again, for a movie like this, I really didn’t think it was necessary. This movie showcased a young Seth Green and Jack Black when they hadn’t really established their acting careers.

Shane McDermott, the main character (Mitchell Goosen) did a good job with the role – he walked the walk and talked the talk. It was pretty obvious there was a body double for the surfing scenes but it seemed as if he did his own rollerblading stunts.

Seth Green as Wiley was where most of the comedy in this movie came from. His fashion show was really funny and the song choice Too Sexy was a great fit!

This was Jack Black’s film debut and up until now, every role he’s had hasn’t really changed from the character he plays in this movie. He too had a good comedic performance – “Did he just call you a piece of underwear?”.

Aside from the actors already mentioned, it was pretty cool to see the movie that launched several acting/film careers: Chris Conrad, Jacob Vargas, Britney Powell, ect.

Overall: B
One of my favorite old school movies. There were a few cracks and flaws in the storyline, but it’s easy to overlook them in lieu of being entertained. I thought it had a good soundtrack that suited each scene! The sound effects during the final race fit really well and I enjoyed it :P

One thing I haven’t mentioned yet which is a very noteworthy point is the skating itself! AMAZING!!! All the stunts were done really well: jumping off ramps, going down stairs, the half pipe, going up a wall, more stairs and the awesome street race at the end (dodging cars, the steep and winding roads)! The camera angles were really well done during the final race too!

An IMDB reviewer sums everything up by saying “Like a million movies before it, Airborne does nothing special, or even original. But it does have fun along the way, and the actors do pretty well with what limited story they had. It also sends a positive message that restraint can be cool. And that maybe fighting is not always the answer”.