La Vita e Bella (Life is Beautiful)...Dramatic, and Comedic.

Although Jackie Chan is known for his hilarious combination of slapstick comedy mixed with his non-stop action martial arts, Chan has also been hailed as the Charlie Chaplin of today's Hong Kong cinema. Some believe that the musical genre in films was the death of slapstick comedy, and to a larger degree this is true. I assert that "the end" of slapstick comedys has not entirely arrived and even more inventive types of slapstick are accuring in other parts of the world outside of Hollywood cinema. Being that I have never been able to tolerate slapstick comedy, like that of Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton, I am one of the toughest critic you'll find when faced with reviewing a film within slapstick genre. While saying this, I have one movie in mind: Life is beautiful... a film by Roberto Benigni(1998).

La Vita E Bella opening scene



This film is genius. Benigni uses the perfect amount of comedy coupled with drama in telling the story of one man and his family, which is affect by the Holocaust. Yes, this film is a tear jerker, but you'll find yourself laughing and crying at the same time. I never knew slapstick could be so entertainingly fulfilling until I was able to get my hands on La Vita E Bella. Even in scenes that are disturbingly tragic, Benigni draws from laughter to carry out a scene.

The anvil Scene