A tale of overwhelming optimism
and the power of love, a sad story told in the refreshing tone of
slapstick comedy. Roberto Benigni's Academy award-winning film
'Life is Beautiful' conveys the painful horrors of the holocaust,
despite the light mood, which, like a superficial membrane, conceals
a subject that has been chewed over and over again by many movies
using a serious tone.
 Guido
(Roberto Benigni) is an Italian Jew, who is just overly happy
to be alive, jumping and prancing around, he pulls many tricks and
even manages to pull a beautiful woman Dora (Nicoletta Branchi)
for his wife. Every thing seems happy for the small family, which
soon includes son Giosue (Giorgio Catarini). The second
part of the movie takes a serious turn (serious in Benigni's world
includes acting silly, making faces, practical jokes on murderous
German soldiers etc). The family is transported to an unnamed concentration
camp, where Guido manages to hide his son and make him believe that
the camp is nothing but a game and the winner will be rewarded with
a real tank at the end. After a series of near misses, Guido finally
manages to get killed, but manages to save his son, by hiding him
in a box (makes you wonder if all Germans are fools or only fools
are recruited in the army). The son eventually gets a ride on a real
tank. After all, dads are always right.
The main theme of the movie is the portrayal of the undying love for
his family, shown in contrast to a symbiotic friendship, like that
with the German doctor who saves him only for his personal advantage.
At the end the movie is more like an emotional fairy tale, with some
not-so-realistic portrayal of the holocaust. One would wonder how
the little boy was able to hide along with his father in the camp
when all the other children were isolated and killed or how he is
able to pull off far too many security breaches (using the public
address system or running into the women's camp) in the German camp.
One should be able to over look these facts, given that the movie
maker is trying to be give a positive paint to the holocaust, the
same fact that brought him disfavour among many, who argued that holocaust
is nothing to joke about.
Final word - a movie worth watching if you are ready for a serious
movie in light tone, and yes, you can take your mom and kids too.
TENALI
- A REVIEW
Kodambakkam (in Chennai). Yes. Certainly, this was the country's film
capital. Many might rise up in indignation. "Bollywood", they cry,
"deserves this title". But, Kollywood (if we can call it so) was definitely
the film capital.
In this comedy, titled Tenali, Kamal Hasan plays the role of
a person afflicted with many phobias.
Panchaboodham (played to perfection by 'Delhi' Ganesh )
is a psychiatrist. Young Kailash (Jayaram), also a psychiatrist,
is the darling of his patients. So, in a plot to bring Kailash down,
Panchaboodham sends his unmanageable patient Tenali Soman to
Jayaram, to drive him mad. Tenali makes friends with the doctor's
family, falls in love with his pretty sister, drives the doctor mad,
but cures him in the end. And all is well that ends well. (Much like
the storyline of the Richard Dreyfus starrer 'What about
Bob').
 A.
R. Rahman's six songs are good, but the duets come and go without
making any impact on the viewer. Touted as the twenty-fifth movie
of director K. S. Ravikumar, Tenali disappoints the audience
with its weak storyline. Story and logic take a backseat and the scenes
are propped up with slapstick comedy dialogue.
Kamal has used the Srilankan Tamil dialect for the first time. He
even takes a dig at lady Television anchors who cannot speak Tamil
well. Jyotika plays the romantic lead, opposite Kamal. She
is her usual enthusiastic and vibrant self and looks good in the song
and dance routines. Jayaram has essayed his role well. Meena makes
a guest appearance towards the fag end of the movie and provides a
dramatic twist. The performances of Delhi Ganesh, Shahul Hameed
and Devyani are worth a mention. A mouse makes a brief
guest (?!) appearance, in a fight scene.
On the whole, a run-of-the-mill movie, but worth watching if you are
a Kamal fan.
For more on Kamal Hasan, check out our Film
personalities section.
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