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Life is Beautiful

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Life is Beautiful
Robert Benigni 1997 film life is beautiful is set during World War Two Nazi occupation in Italy. The film portrays the life of an Italian Jew and the responsibilities he faces to maintain his relationship with his wife and son. Benigni highlights through filmic elements such as soundtrack, dialogue and setting that life is all about relationships, the title life is beautiful represents how life can be beautiful even in oppressive circumstances if you have quality relationships. The film is split into two distinct parts the first half depicts a romantic film where Guido and Dora meet and fall in a deep meaningful love. The second half depicts the struggles as an Italian Jew whilst being held captive in a concentration camp.

Responsibilities are heightened or made clear due to circumstances. Benigni constructs characters with embedded responsibility in particular responsibilities associated with father hood or parenting. The responsibilities of the father to protect his son are heightened due to the circumstances in which they encounter in the film. Guido is the sole protector of Giosuè throughout the entire duration of the life within the concentration camp, which gives him the sole responsibilities for the protection of Giosuè. In different circumstances his responsibilities would still be to protect his son but not as such as it is in the concentration camp. Guido is the only person stopping Giosuè from a near certain death. The film portrays this when Guido contrives a game in which he uses Giosuè age and innocence to trick him into believing everything was a game and that Giosuè would win a tank if he won it. Guido shows his heightened responsibilities as a father to protect his son by putting his own feelings and trauma aside to stay cheerful and upbeat in the most depressing of times. Guido is fully aware of the situation and that there is a extremely good chance he could die but due to his responsibilities to keep his son alive he keeps the game going.

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