I absolutely LOVED this movie. Benigni is brilliant!
Although this is dubbed into Spanish; the original is in Italian, and it shouldn't too difficult to find a copy with subs in your language hard-coded in as this is one of the most famous movies of all time. (60 on the top 250 in the world).
In this scene, Barcarolle plays as he attempts to "magically seduce" his love interest. He keeps saying, "Look at me Princess, I'm here. Turn, turn, turn." lol
And the following scene is heart-breaking. For those who haven't seen this movie, it was set during WWII when the German were rounding up Jews in Europe. Benigni plays Guido, an Italian Jew, and falls for Dora (Nicoletta Braschi).
She is wearing the stripes because she refused to be separated from her husband and son when they were taken, and he is reminding her of past loving moments.
His devotion and determination to constantly win her heart carries her through even until his untimely death, and the charming wit of the script pulls at the heart strings in such a way that the emotion and warm-hearted, light comedy transcends the language. You are left with a feeling that goodness exists in us all, and that tears are a reward for those who can see it.
Ironically, this story brings many elements from Benigni's real life to the stage, as his father had been detained in a concentration camp at one time and the actress playing the lead role is, in fact, his real-life wife.
Beautiful story, script, direction, approach of the material, and cast. One of my favorites! :)
In regards to the musical piece, Barcarolle (from The Tales Of Hoffmann) written by Jacques Offenbach.The term "barcorolle" (also barcarola, barcarole), in fact, denotes a Venetian folk song sung by the gondoliers. In classical music there are two famous barcarolle, one of them being this particular one by Offenbach (the other by Chopin). Originally titled, "Belle nuit, ô nuit d'amour," this barcarolle features in the 2nd Act of the Opera, "The Tales of Hoffman" (Les contes d'Hoffmann).
The Barcarolle has also been featured in many movies, like this one and the recent 2011 film, "Margaret.",
