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Happy as Lazzaro

Play trailer Poster for Happy as Lazzaro PG-13 2018 2h 5m Fantasy Sci-Fi Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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91% Tomatometer 92 Reviews 81% Popcornmeter 250+ Ratings
Lazzaro, a good-hearted young peasant, and Tancredi, a young nobleman cursed by his imagination, form a life-altering bond when Tancredi asks Lazzaro to help him orchestrate his own kidnapping.
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Happy as Lazzaro

Happy as Lazzaro

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Critics Consensus

Happy as Lazzaro uses a friendship's ups and downs as a satisfyingly expansive canvas for a picture rich with thematic and cinematic depth.

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Critics Reviews

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Amy Taubin Film Comment Magazine 08/27/2019
Alice Rohrwacher follows her beguiling The Wonders (2014) with the no less lyrical and even more fabulist Happy as Lazzaro. Go to Full Review
Erika Balsom Sight & Sound 04/07/2019
In the wide, green eyes of actor Adriano Tardiolo, Rohrwacher finds a gaze that sheds all cynicism, a guileless anchor for her devastating exploration of the false promise of progress and the elusive possibility of collective happiness. Go to Full Review
Simran Hans Observer (UK) 04/06/2019
4/5
Rohrwacher's eye for gestures is revealing of class, pride, humour, and values. Go to Full Review
Diana Tuova Spotlight on Film 08/12/2024
4.5/5
Philosophical, enigmatic and moving, Happy as Lazzaro may start as this...drama about one family’s dominion over poor working people..., but, by the end, it proves to be so much more than just a tale about the swindling and corruption of the innocent. Go to Full Review
Diego Batlle Otroscines.com 08/01/2023
4/5
Even though the ending, overwhelmed with too many allegories and religious symbolism, doesn't measure up to the rest of the film, Happy as Lazzaro ratifies this filmmaker as one of the most valuable in contemporary cinema. [Full review in Spanish] Go to Full Review
Manu Yáñez Otroscines.com 08/01/2023
5/5
This work makes us aware of the evils of our present and provides us with the tools to defeat them. [Full review in Spanish] Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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T M @RT55749265 10h Too long perhaps. But a fine political and social allegory. The exploitation of the poor and needy. The exploitation and cruelty towards the innocent and naive. Mortality,history,futility. All themes are explored. One could even add biblical prophecy if one were so inclined. A must watch film possibly. See more Laura H @RT47170333 Nov 24 Thought-provoking film open to interpretation. Overlong and takes its time. Fairytale or fable? Depressing. See more g j @g.username 05/09/2025 Mopey, meandering and mostly dissatisfying See more Alec B @Alec97 01/05/2024 You'd never expect a movie that features both social commentary and magical realism to feel this grounded and reserved and yet Rohrwacher finds a way to pull it off. Even more impressive is that the mid-point of the movie features a number of startling twists in the narrative that happen organically. See more Eric P @wchevres 10/03/2023 A contemporary version of Candide (or, at least, indebted to Candide, a youth's journey, an innocent/fool's journey, both wry and sweet). Beautifully filmed, well executed all around. See more isla s @RT89656869 09/01/2022 I really liked this film. I found Lazzaro a quite endearing figure - he's a quiet, introverted type and he has a sort of naive charm to him - he with the large (and seemingly un-blinking) eyes. I felt frustrated by those who chose to exploit him (if but only mildly) and indeed, exploitation is certainly a relevant theme in this film, as well as tolerance perhaps. I liked/respected the simplicity aspect of it. It has a positive feel about it. I thought its good as a piece of social commentary. Its quite a charming film in general, I thought and so I'd recommend it. See more Read all reviews
Happy as Lazzaro

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Movie Info

Synopsis Lazzaro, a good-hearted young peasant, and Tancredi, a young nobleman cursed by his imagination, form a life-altering bond when Tancredi asks Lazzaro to help him orchestrate his own kidnapping.
Director
Alice Rohrwacher
Producer
Carlo Cresto-Dina
Screenwriter
Alice Rohrwacher
Production Co
Ad Vitam, KNM, ZDF Arte, Arte France Cinema, Tempesta, Amka Films, Pola Pandora Filmproduktions, RSI-Radiotelevisione Svizzera
Rating
PG-13 (Thematic Elements|Brief Violence)
Genre
Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Drama
Original Language
Italian
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 30, 2018
Runtime
2h 5m
Aspect Ratio
1.66:1