Name: ______________________________________________
Period: ____________
Life Is Beautiful
Plot Summary: In 1930s Italy, a carefree Jewish book keeper named Guido starts a fairy tale life by
courting and marrying a lovely woman from a nearby city. Guido and his wife have a son and live happily
together until the occupation of Italy by German forces. In an attempt to hold his family together and help
his son survive the horrors of a Jewish Concentration Camp, Guido imagines that the Holocaust is a game
and that the grand prize for winning is a tank. Just like in Night, the movie centers around the relationship
of a father and son during the Holocaust.
Your Job: The film is in Italian, so you MUST watch carefully to read the subtitles in order to follow the
story. We will be watching the film for 2 days; at the end, you will be required to turn in these questions
for a grade! Because you must pay attention to the subtitles, be sure to focus—don’t let yourself
daydream or doze off! After the movie, you will be required to complete an assignment relating the
movie to our previous study of the Holocaust.
Helpful Notes: Guido Orefice—the father
Uncle Elesio—Guido’s uncle
Dora—the mother; “Princess”
Jospeh—the son
Dr. Lessing—Guido’s customer who loved riddles
AS YOU WATCH: Answer all the questions to help you follow the plot of the movie. You do not have
to use complete sentences—just jot down a quick answer for each question!
1. As the movie opens, Guido is driving with his friend Ferruccio. What is wrong with their car?
2. What is happening at Guido’s uncle’s house when they arrive?
3. What type of store does Guido want to open in the city?
4. When he can’t open the store, what does Guido end up doing for a job?
5. Gudio impersonates an inspector to get into the school where his “Princess” works. What was the real
inspector there to talk to the students about regarding their race?
6. Why are the “barbarians” harassing his uncle?
7. Dora is engaged when she and Guido meet, but she falls in love with Guido. How does Guido help her
escape her own engagement party?
8. When Dora goes into the greenhouse at Uncle Elesio’s home, it is important to realize that when the
scene continues you are to understand that years have passed, Dora & Gudio have gotten married, and
now have a son. What is their son’s name?
9. What does Joshua read on the sign out front of a store?
10. What is spraypainted on the front of their family bookstore?
11. On what day do the Nazi’s take Guido, Joshua, and Elesio away because they are Jewish?
12. What does Guido do while being transported to try to not have Joshua be scared?
13. What does Dora do so she is not separated from her family?
14. To what type of place were they all taken?
15. How does Joshua avoid being killed with the children?
16. What does Guido tell Joshua they are doing at the camp to get him to be good/hide?
17. Who is the doctor at the camp?
18. Guido thought that his old friend was going to help him escape from the camp. What did his “friend”
really want to talk to Guido about?
19. What happens to Guido when he was trying to get to Dora as the Nazis were trying to evacuate the
camp?
20. Where is Joshua during all of this?
21. What is the resolution of the film?