Movie Evaluation - life is beautiful

To me, a good movie should have a happy ending. I also believe that a great plot and story line is a crucial element of a good movie. The story must be believable, and I most definitely prefer true story over fiction. To know that someone actually went through the experience shown on the screen makes it more exciting. Most importantly, whether it is funny or sad, a good movie should give catharsis to the viewer when movie is over. I believe the movie “Life is beautiful” is a good movie that meets my standards.
I chose “Life is beautiful” because of the title. The title led me to believe that it was a feel-good movie, like a romantic comedy. Indeed the movie does have a love story in the plot. However, this movie is not really a romantic comedy, but it tells a story about the holocaust. The actor and the director of the movie, Roberto Benigni, did an excellent job turning a story based on the terrible historical event into a moving story in such cleaver and whimsical manner.
Among the movies that portray crimes perpetrated against the Jews of Germany during the Second World War, Steven Spielberg's “Schindler's List” probably is the most famous one. Usually, most holocaust movies are dark, gloomy, and sad; but ‘Life is beautiful’ has comedy and drama. After watching this movie, it made me think about sacrifice and love. Although the film has a comical overtone, many important issues are not treated in a lighthearted and comical manner. Beneath the funniness and humor, there are story of family attachment and tragedy of war. It made the sad emotions lingered for a long time. It is difficult to make comedy movie that is based on atrocious historical facts. Movies can easily be drifted far from the historical facts or be just plain awkward. The film does not directly show death in the gas chamber, nor any actual shooting scenes. Some may criticize that this movie didn’t respect the suffering during the holocaust. But, I believe that the director