Italian for Beginners
User Score
9.2 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 10 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10

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  1. RichardP.
    May 3, 2002
    10
    One of the best movies I have ever seen.
  2. DanaF.
    Apr 23, 2002
    10
    Such a delight that in the midst of falling in love with it and its characters, I wept unabashadley while grinning like a fool.
  3. DrewJ.
    Apr 26, 2004
    10
    Magical experience, you can not come out unaffected.
  4. MikeG.
    Dec 11, 2002
    10
    Media reviewers seem to have missed the fact that it takes place during Advent, and is about the effect of a man of faith.
  5. ChadS.
    Mar 25, 2002
    10
    Dogma for beginners is more like it. Films shot on digital video are not known for its warmth and can sometimes be a test of viewer endurance. "Italian for Beginners" shocks you with its gentle humor and tenderness. That's not to say there isn't the requisite existential angst either, though. There's gobs. But this film is not unrelenting in its grimness like "The Celebration" or "Dancer in the Dark" were. Seeing these characters at Venice on vacation, and the physical Venice itself, through the digital video format make these Danes really look like tourists, and Venice, a tourist destination. There is a moment here, involving the Italian girl in love with an older man, that belongs in the canon of great romantic comedy moments. You may clap. It is so winning like so much of this amazing movie.… Expand
  6. RonG.
    Apr 18, 2002
    10
    Lone Scherfig makes you smile, laugh, cry and feel good after you watch this exquisite film.

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
77 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 28 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 28
  3. Negative: 1 out of 28
  1. Newsweek
    Reviewed by: David Ansen
    90
    Scherfig and her wonderful cast slyly transmute the quotidian into the magical. It’s like watching flowers bloom in a concrete garden.
  2. Baltimore Sun
    Reviewed by: Michael Sragow
    88
    Italian for Beginners, on its own small scale, is a one-of-a-kind movie: a baggy-pants spiritual comedy.
  3. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Michael Wilmington
    88
    This is a movie that doesn't depend for its effects on star performers or stylized wish-fulfillment sexuality but on realism, sharp observation and honest humor.
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