The Tiger and the Snow Details

The Tiger and the Snow

In 1997's LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL, Roberto Benigni found international success by accomplishing the seemingly impossible task of making a moving comedy set during the Holocaust. Nearly a decade later, he similarly uses Dante's INFERNO as a template to mold a romantic comedy around the early days of the Iraq war. The result is truly unique, managing to find humor amid the horrors of war while mixing in elements of a sweet love story--with Benigni's trademark manic persona at the center of it all.

Benigni is Attilio, a poet and professor at a university in Rome has recurring dreams in which he is to be married to a beautiful and mysterious woman. After attending a lecture by his friend, the visiting Iraqi poet Fuad (Jean Reno, THE PROFESSIONAL), Attilio finally sees the woman of his dreams in the form of Vittoria (Benigni's real-life wife, Nicoletta Braschi), a writer doing research for a book on Fuad. Vittoria resists Attilio's fawning attempts to seduce her before returning to Iraq with Fuad, where she suffers a head injury that leaves her unconscious in a bomb-damaged hospital. Fuad informs Attilio of her condition, prompting the lovesick poet to join the Red Cross to gain entrance to war-torn Baghdad. Learning that the hospital is severely lacking in supplies, Attilio makes his way through the equivalent of several circles of Hell to find medicine for his dream woman - encountering mine fields, directionally challenged camels, and suspicious American soldiers.

Starring	Jean Reno, Roberto Benigni, Nicoletta Braschi, Tom Waits, Emilia Fox, Giuseppe Battiston, Andrea Renzi, Mariella Valentini
Director	Roberto Benigni
Run time	DVD: 1 hr 50 mins
Certificate
Genres	Comedy, Drama, Romance, World Cinema
Language	DVD: Italian, Arabic, English
Released	Production year: 2005 To Rent: DVD: not available