Tiger and the Snow

This film has a similar feel to that of A Beautiful Life, but the story is completely different. Director Roberto Benigni demonstrates a man’s struggle to keep the woman he loves alive. He uses an actual event as the cause of his struggle. Even in the worst cases, Benigni manages to use comedy to look at the optimistic side of everything. Instead of giving up on the one he loves, he travels far and lies to beat the odds of her death. Also, he looks past the problems of mankind to see the beauty in life.
I remembered Children of Heaven and Babel when I saw this movie. Much of it is set in Iraq and religion and spirituality is brought up. The story of Babel is used to represent the reason for war between cultures. Many critics dislike his attempt to use comedy in the Muslim world, but I believe that he succeeds to bring a new positive perspective. Benigni brings optimism in the least likely places where many people such as the author Faud who gives his life up.
The title describes Benigni’s character Attilio. A tiger is usually not in a place where it snows, and a man does not go towards the place of danger but away from it. Attilio goes to an unlikely place where there is a war and the threat of death lingering nearby.
The film is also used to remind us about the innocent loss in wars. In the scene where he is in prison, we sympathize with him knowing he was an innocent bystander of war. The perseverance and achievements made by Attilio present life as full of miracles and surprises that come with love. Benigni pushes the idea of love back into a society where war ad politics have been pushing it out.