Vita gazette – On March 21, 1999, Roberto Benigni with “Life is Beautiful” brought Italy three Oscars (best soundtrack by Nicola Piovani, best actor and best foreign film) That evening, Sofia’s cry of joy will always be memorable Loren who, in announcing the award for best foreign film, also pushed by some of her colleagues in the audience as we hear from the videos, said, while announcing La Vita è Bella as the winner: “And the Oscar goes to…ROBERTOOOOOOO!!!! ”

There are really many moments that have made the history of cinema. Suppose we want to mention one of the most iconic moments that took place on stage, or rather, in the seats of the Academy. In that case, the most exciting is Roberto Benigni’s reaction to the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film for Life is Beautiful, which also won the Oscar for Best Actor that night. Already being the only male performer to receive the Academy Award for best leading actor in a foreign language film is a reason to go down in history, but that’s not why Benigni made himself memorable that night, for Italy and the whole world.

“And the Oscar goes to Roberto Benigni

After hearing his name following the fateful phrase “and the Oscar goes to…” Roberto Benigni climbs into the theatre seats, including the one occupied by Laura Dern and Steven Spielberg, to the notes of the film’s extraordinary soundtrack. Incredulous and happy, risking falling, he rejoices in front of an audience that is moved, amused and even surprised. That’s not all because, with his unfailing smile, Benigni leaps up the steps that lead to the Academy stage, where Sophia Loren is ready to hand him the statuette. Loren also entered a history that evening and enthusiastically shouted, waving the envelope with the name of the winner: “Roberto!”. Memorable is the long embrace between the two, Benigni’s bow while applause invades the Kodak Theater and the moving speech of the actor and director in broken English.

On March 21, 1999, Roberto Benigni’s Oscars for Life is Beautiful thus entered the hearts of thousands of Italians, Hollywood stars and all over the world, a moment that is still unique and unforgettable after 21 years.

Benigni’s memorable speech

“Thank you, Sophia! I leave the Oscar here, but I want you! This is a moment of joy, and I would like to kiss you all because you are the picture of joy. It is wonderful to be here, it is as if I have dived into an ocean of great generosity. All this is too much! Your generosity is like… hail. It’s like a hail of kindness and gratitude. And I’d really like to thank everyone who made the film, and without whom I could never have ‘flown’ with this film; the producers and screenwriter, Elda Ferri, Gianluigi Braschi, Vincenzo Cerami, Nicola Piovani, Vittorio Cecchi Gori, thank you so much for what you have done. And I would also like to thank my parents in Vergaio, a small village in Italy. They gave me the most beautiful gift of my life: poverty. And I want to thank them forever. Thank you, mom and dad! I want to thank you too for your love because if I’m here, it’s because people loved my film; it’s always a matter of love. I want to dedicate this award to them, to the true protagonists of this film, those who are not here and who gave their lives in such a way that today we can say that ‘Life is beautiful’. I kiss Giorgio Tantarini, the child in the film, and since we talked about love, Dante said: ‘The love that moves the sun and the other stars’. Love is like a deity ; if you have faith, like all deities, it will come sooner or later. This is why I want to dedicate this award to Nicoletta Braschi”.