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I've seen a handful of Dogme 95 movies and most (if not all) deal with rather weighty topics and are definitely not mainstream movies. 'Italian for Beginners' is listed as Dogme 12 in the list of Dogme movies. It's basically a gentle romantic comedy about a group of people who join an Italian language class in a Danish village. It is easily the most conventional movie I've seen from this group in terms of theme and content. It is also one of the best romantic comedies I've seen - ever.
Dogme 95 forces a set of rules on the film maker - filming must be done on location, only hand held cameras are allowed, no props whatsoever, no background music unless it's being played in the scene, the director must not be credited and many others. The net result of this is usually a movie that is raw and direct, decidedly unconventional, and by no means boring.
Applying this formula to a romantic comedy has resulted in a movie that has a very natural feel to it, is entirely free of cliches, does not rely on artificial situations to generate the comedy. The script is simple, yet engrossing. The characters are entirely believable, both in their grief and their happiness. The acting so natural that it is like watching the characters themselves and not an actor playing the character, a trick that is difficult to master.
The movie, in conclusion, is a short and bittersweet concoction that you should have no hesitation is tasting.
9/10
