Life is beautiful/La vita è bella

I tried to watch "Life is beautiful" at a friends house yesterday (Imdb link).

Of all the films she had at home that one seemed like the one we should watch (and it was also the only one she hadn't already watched). It is supposed to be a beautiful, rich story. Award winning story. We gave it a try, but after some thirty minutes we had to turn it off. :-/

What?

Three Oscar's and all. We both wanted it to be a good movie, something like Shindler's List or something similar. A drama with a comedy heart. Or something. I mean, if all the people awarding it points on Imdb think it's great, and it's won several Oscar's, it's got to have something right?

But at least I was quite happy when A suggested we'd watch another film.

What was wrong then? Well, to start with - too much focus on the director/leading role. Then too much Technicolor "pilsnerfilm" (slapstick) comedy, run in/out through doors, fall ass over etc etc. No character building at all, you didn't develop any feelings for any of the characters displayed during those thirty minutes. It was like a bad version of "Sound of Music". Weird.
It seemed as if the film was played in some form of fast forward move, the characters were moving too fast and speaking too fast. Then again, it was in Italian, so I suppose "fast" is a relative description.

Not a film suitable for two mothers with babies anyhow (not that the children were a problem during these first thirty minutes). We ended up watching "Girls just want to have fun" (from 1985!) instead, with Sara Jessica Parker and Helen Hunt. Talk about contrast! X-D
What did I like that film? Pretty good for a teenage-80's disco dance flick (e.g. don't watch it if you really do have another option). It worked for us, and the babies. 8-)