About

A touching story of an Italian book seller of Jewish ancestry who lives in his own little fairy tale. His creative and happy life would come to an abrupt halt when his entire family is deported to a concentration camp during World War II. While locked up he tries to convince his son that the whole thing is just a game.

8.6
6,946
Directed by

Roberto Benigni

Written by

Roberto Benigni (Screenplay)
Vincenzo Cerami (Screenplay)

Runtime

116 minutes

Country

Italy

Language

Italian

Tagline

An unforgettable fable that proves love, family and imagination conquer all.

Cast

Keywords

italy world war ii loss of loved one nazi love of one's life story teller dying and death concentration camp fascism mass murder riddle deportation self sacrifice jew persecution riding a bicycle national socialism concentration camp prisoner tragicomedy bookshop charade

Photos

Lists

#21 on IMDb top 250 IMDb

Awards

Oscar for Best Music, Original Dramatic Score Nicola Piovani

Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role Roberto Benigni

Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film

Oscar nomination for Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen Roberto Benigni Vincenzo Cerami