not a film about war but a great exploration of a community force. not a film about Shoah but one of wise trips in the heart of beauty of an special universe. traditions and stories, precise- delicate characters and the big idea, a travel, a challenge, meditation about the origin and about the best solution. a film who reminds the spirit of Central Europe in inspired manner. it is not easy to define it. it is not Life is beautiful by Benigni. it is not a kind of parable. only a film about life. out of definitions or frames. a film in Mihaileanu's spirit about small and fundamental pieces of existence. nothing real surprising. nothing only seductive. only a support for reflection about the ingenuity and human force of survive.

It is difficult to review this movie without giving anything away – and giving away about this movie would be a crime. If you, dear reader, have an interest in "Train of Life" and haven't watched it yet, I can only recommend that you stop reading now (and start watching).Shlomo, the village idiot of some small Jewish hamlet in Eastern-Europe has a vision of Germans appearing and deporting all the villagers. Under Shlomos guidance, the villager's decide to buy a ram shackled train, dress up as Nazis and rather deport themselves (needless to say, not to any concentration camp but rather to Palestine). On their way, they have to avoid many obstacles – like German soldiers, resistance fighters who want to blow up the train, the dressed up "guards" suffering from a form of Stamford-Prison-Experiment-syndrome, a communist revolt among the passengers and the question whether it's kosher to celebrate the Sabbath wearing German uniforms. Last but not least, a group of gypsies (whose village-idiot had a vision of Germans deporting the gypsies, who would rather deport themselves to Egypt by dressing up as Germans and stealing a train). And yes, there is a happy – of sorts.Have to admit that I hesitated to watch "Train de Vie" for a while. Why? Well, I'm German and there are many moments in the life of a German where he/she is simply sick and tired of hearing, seeing or watching anything about Nazi-Germany, the holocaust, etc. Yes, the war has been over for some times, yes, the Fuehrer is dead (thank god) and yes, those bastards won't come back, at least not in our lifetime and not if my generation can help it.A good friend convinced me to watch it, claiming that "Train de Vie" is by no means your average War-movie; in fact, it wasn't like any other movie I had watched before. So I heeded the advice, watched and, what can I say, it has been on my personal top-10-list of favorite movies ever since. To point out one highlight would be unfair; the film is full of highlights. However, my personal favorite line comes, when the "deportees" try to master the German language, being explained that German only copies Yiddish, albeit without the Yiddish humor (and whether the Germans are aware that their language is imitating Yiddish). This reminded me when I overheard a young skinhead chatting with his mate, complaining that there was "something not kosher about his shiksa (girlfriend)", who apparently went a little "meschuggah" at the time."Train de Vie" has often been compared to either "Life is Beautiful" or "Black Cat, White Cat". No problem with that since Begnini's film is one of the few who has dared to make a movie about the holocaust in a comedic context and Kustaricis gypsy-farce has a similar life-affirming yet almost chaotic spirit – but that is where the similarities end. Few films are capable of combining doom and gloom so well with a life-affirming spirit. The humor of "Train de Vie" is as warm as it is witty, and it is as witty as it is black. As if director Radu Mihaileanu had combined the French farces of the 1970's with the typical Jewish humor (if there is such a thing) a la Ephraim Kishon.Last but not least, let me point out the excellent soundtrack by Goran Bregovic (who also composed the score for "Black Cat, White Cat". I love the soundtrack of "Black Cat, White Cat" but here Bregovic has outdone himself. Not an easy feat.Remember: in the end, the entire story is true – as it happened through the eyes of the village idiot.One of the rare cases when I give a film 10 from 10.

This movie is a comedy, no doubt about it: is has comic stereotypes. It's romanced. I laughed. But this film also has epic dimensions, even if they are imaginary. Over the millenia, we are the witnesses of a new Exodus. God leads His people out of harm's way once again. Moses is now a young lunatic, but in his madness he is wiser than all others. The fate of the Jews links at one point with that of the Gypsies. It had to: both are known in history for their thirst for freedom, both had their Exodus(from Egypt to Canaan; from India to the far corners of Europe), both died heavily in the Nazi concentration camps. For all of them who died in the death-camps, this movie is a prison break: it is their share of freedom post-mortem given. They deserved to escape and to reach the Promised Land, but history allows this only in our imagination: they died in Auschwitz-Birkenau, Bergen-Belsen, Dachau, Buchenwald, Ravensbrück, Sachsenhausen, Natzweiler and in many other. Everyone has the right to try to reach a Promised Land, or a Moby Dick to hunt, or a Holy Grail to find: because they were denied such rights in reality, this imaginary Exodus brings justice even if it's late. This is the main idea of the film: justice for the innocents.

The film Train de vie is a story about how to cope in a time of horror. It is essential to never loose your humour and imagination even in time of war. To stay sane and alive you can turn to insanity. A great paradox but what in life isn´t. I think that we need new ways to look att the holocaust. The hole story is dependent of the end without the ending Train de vie would be rather distasteful i can admit to that. But the ending makes you stop and think and realize that everything you´ve just seen is a figment of the narrators imagination. Constructed by him for his own mental survival. I think that this is a warm and wonderful film, much because of that it is open for many interpretations. Plus the music is absolutely great!