Jeu dangereux

There is a famous review of this film by the late Sunday Times critic, Dilys Powell which begins 'Is the joke funny?'... what Miss Powell was getting at was that, given the horror of the Holocaust, it is appropriate to laugh at the Nazis. The answer is, ultimately, irrelevant to the viewing of this modest masterpiece.

Lubitsch was, by this time, coming to the end of an exquisite career that defined the nature of sophistication in 'light' cinema. 'To Be or Not To Be' skips lightly over all of the minefield of a subject like this and it is difficult or impossible to think of any other filmmaker who might have managed it (if you look at Mel Brooks' limp remake, you can see why).

In 1996, I presented a massive season of 'the greatest' films in Belfast for the centenary of cinema - 250 titles in 9 months. Of all of them, this was the film which got the greatest ovation - about 5 minutes with a nearly full house standing and applauding! They may have applauded for many reasons, but here are certainly some of them...

The very complicated narrative is presented virtually flawlessly and the comedy is never allowed to hold up the narrative. The principle actors - Carole Lombard (breathtakingly beautiful) and Jack Benny in particular, but many of the supporting cast as well - throw themselves into the affair with a gusto that is completely infectious. Apart from the satirical aspect of the story and the way in which Hitler and the Nazis are mercilessly ridiculed for their authoritarianism and the fear which is their only motivator, the film pokes gentle fun at the vanity of actors in a warm and happy manner. Finally, and most important, is the notion of farce. Farce rarely works in the cinema, but here it does, and in the grand manner - just look at how many times the situation regarding Professor Siletsky changes profoundly during the film - it is dizzying - yet the characters manage to come up with (often self-defeating or inappropriate) schemes on every occasion.

This is a wonderful work that, I have no hesitation in saying, is absolutely vital for anyone who wants to really understand the glory of the cinema. But to answer Dilys Powell's question... yes, the joke is deliriously funny.

This movie was made before while the US was still playin' both ends against the middle. Makin' huge profits while staying "neutral" The film was not allowed to be released until after, the US entered the war.

Easily the best of the screen versions. The cast is tight and the timing is impeccable. You can really tell that the cast believed in the film. Since America had not taken a formal stance at the time this went into production the producers, cast, and crew were really making something revolutionary and controversial. So much so that the making of this movie was not even mentioned on the Jack Benny radio program. Which is a major deal for those familiar with Old Time Radio, Jack's film career provided excellent material for comedy writers on the radio show, but also the radio show was an excellent opportunity to promote a movie. It is doubtful that this was a missed opportunity, what is more likely is that his sponsor or perhaps the network did not want to advocate a position.

This movie is wonderful for so many reasons. Not only is it hilarious, there is suspense, intrigue, and history. Another poster, mentions the Nazi's jumping out of the plane at the order of a radio transmission by Hitler. The thing to remember here is that the Nazi army was seen as an unstoppable war machine, so efficient, that soldiers would commit suicide if asked. This was less humor than it was to evoke fear of fascism.

Everyone remembers Bob Hope and his travels during WWII, well Jack Benny and Carole Lombard were no slouches either. After all they made this movie. Carole died in a plane crash along with her mother and twenty others returning from a war bond rally before the film was released. Jack went where few if any cameras or radio transmitters could reach. He could be found in the most remote parts of the world entertaining the troops. Not to take anything from Bob, he went there as well, he just had more photo ops.

Bottom line watch this movie--twice, maybe more, the dialogue is so quick and witty there is a good chance you might miss it the first time, them again it is worth at least to looks.

I'm not sure how many time I've seen it but it doesn't matter. Every time is like the first time. Carole Lombard in her last film before her untimely death is not just beautiful and impossibly funny but modern, profoundly modern. A performance that will still be relevant a hundred years from now. Jack Benny is perfect in what must be his very best film. Robert Stack, beautifully wooden, as usual, reports to duty with a delicious Lubitsch touch. As if all this wasn't enough, this film was made in 1942 and that in itself will give film lovers and historians a lot to tal;k about for centuries to come.

A number of interest points here. A brilliant premise. Material that was daring at the time, that one is amazed at what it got away with even if some of it may be an acquired taste. That it was the final film of the lovely Carole Lombard, who died far too young in a plane crash not long after with much more to give. And that it was directed by Ernst Lubitsch, a personal favourite of mine who had one of the most distinctive directing styles for any director often cited as "the Lubtisch touch".

Found 'To Be or Not to Be' a truly fabulous film, have seen many very good to masterpiece films recently (as well as inevitably some duds) and this stands out among the very best of them. What could easily have been tasteless and offensive, with what it was satirising and considering the time, turned out to be one of the funniest comedies seen recently and ever actually and wartime comedies have seldom been funnier or more original. It also contains some of the best work of all involved. In front of and behind the camera, am aware that sounds very cliched but to me it's true.

'To Be or Not to Be' looks great, immaculately yet atmospherically designed with a real sense of period and beautifully shot without being too glamorous. The music is neither too jaunty or low key, while Lubitsch's direction is one of 'To Be or Not to Be's' biggest stars in its sophisticated style that one can recognise from anywhere.

Regarding the script, it is intricate and full of sharp wit and hilariously quotable lines that as mentioned above in my first paragraph when talking about the material being daring. The opening gag is hysterical and one that one does not expect, while the running joke concerning Robert Stack as Maria's (played by Lombard) admirer is an example of a running joke that doesn't get old prematurely and doesn't get repetitive, dangers with running jokes. 'To Be or Not to Be' is not just non-stop hilarity though, there is also surprising pathos that one doesn't always get in comedy and is genuinely poignant. Affectionate and inspiring are further things to describe and never had any problem with the pace.

Lubitsch's direction is one of two particularly wonderful things about 'To Be or Not to Be'. The other is the simply sublime cast, showing Jack Benny at his funniest and Lombard being an absolute joy in all senses (found her touching too but a lot of it was to do with it being her final film and what a talent she was). Stack is amusing and charming and Stanley Ridges and Sig Ruman are great fun.

Altogether, fabulous. Even in films that fit in the "loved it" category, improvements can be pointed out in order to be balanced, but in the case of 'To Be or Not to Be' there is nothing to fault. 10/10

"To Be or Not To Be" doesn't trivialize the barbarity of the Nazi regime as much as it ennobles art and gives an aura of metaphysical importance to laughter, as the main characteristic of the reasonable person. It's precisely because Ernst Lubitsch could laugh at the Nazism that one shouldn't underestimate the sadness and terror that devoured his soul. One could say the same about Chaplin's "Great Dictator", more focused on the inner heroism of the little people while Lubitsch' movie is a love letter to artists, and the work of a true one.

Lubitsch grew up in Berlin and became an acting sensation after World War I before becoming one of the most promising directors of Hollywood. A precocious talent with a sense of sophistication that would be known as the 'Lubitsch touch', he was probably under the influence of that boost of creativity and flamboyance that made Berlin an artistic Mecca in the early 30s (like in Bob Fosse's "Cabaret"). His film opens on Warsaw, a more suitable place for free art once Germany surrendered to swastikas. And as if he anticipated the criticism over his subject, the story features a play named "The Gestapo" and satirizing the Nazis. During a rehearsal, the man playing Hitler (Irish actor Tom Dugan) delivers a hilarious and unexpected "Heil myself". The line gets cut by the director who makes it a matter of ethics not to make Nazis funny, much to the actor's reluctance.

Basically, Lubitsch asks us the question: should we sacrifice a good line for the sake of seeming decency? How many times haven't we felt the necessity to cross the barrier of good taste because it was so tempting. So the line is censored because of the risk of offending Hitler and when the Germans come on a day of September 1939, the play is cancelled once and for all. The situation resonates like Churchill's parable about war and dishonour, fearing the Nazis is the dishonourable attitude, even when meant to play safe, you're never safe with them, so let's just use your best weapon, guns or gags it doesn't matter. While I was wondering if Lubitsch would have been as loose on the Nazis if he knew about the Camps, I was hiding a chuckle because the line "so they call me Concentration Camp Ehrhardt" kept springing to my mind. Should I feel guilty?

No less than for any movie that dared to turn the subject into laughing matter, from Donald Duck's "Der Fuerher's Face" to "La Vita e Bella". It's because Nazis were human that their crimes were horrific, it's because they were human that they should be mocked. Art is the triumph of the intellect over the brutal force, the sensitivity over cynicism, it can be sophisticated and fancy but it can't really do without powerful sentiments, this is why the film makes a good use of Shakespeare's lines (borrowed from "Hamlet" and "The Merchant of Venice") and even more why it focuses on a married couple, the greatest actress of Poland Maria Tura (Carole Lombard) and her hammy husband Joseph (Jack Benny). The film opens with a sort of vaudevillian mood where Maria exploits her husband's "Hamlet" soliloquy to bring the handsome aviator Sobinski (Robert Starck) to her room, the running gag is not overused so Marie doesn't appear too cheap and Joseph too dumb.

There's a fine balance between the romance and the screwball situations and they all get along with the intricacies of a plot that involves a sinister but seductive spy named Professor Siletski (Stanley Ridges), who proposes Maria to become an agent. Meanwhile, the troop must absolutely capture the man, confiscate the documents that contain names of Polish Resistant members and get rid of the spy, and this is where their Nazi costumes get quite handy. So we see Jack benny and all his friends impersonating Nazi officers and even Selitski with variable effects, sometimes with the right timing, sometimes a delay force them to rewrite the script. In a sort of meta-referential nod to his own art, Lubitsch directs actors playing directors, actors and writers, proving that sometimes a good act can be a matter of life and death. Hammy too much and your cover is blown if not your head. Maria proves to be a more restrained actress so she can dodge the Nazis' flair, same can't be said about Joseph and Benny's antics endanger the film's credibility in their exaggerated audacity, the man pushes his luck so often it's a wonder how he did survive.

The film also suffers from a series of contrivances that happen all too conveniently near the end leading to a rushed climax only redeemed by the hilarious ending. Still, the real black spot in the film's legacy is of course the haunting of Carole Lombard's memory. The actress died in a plane crash a few weeks after the film's release, the USA had just entered the war and she was collecting bonds during a tour across America. In a way, she was a victim of that war though she lived far from the ruins and ashes of Poland, her death cut one of the most promising careers short and made Gable so inconsolable he joined the war too... I avoided that film for a long time because of that story, it had saddened me a lot even more because I happen to be afraid of flying.

I couldn't believe how many times she referred to flights during the film, the simple fact that she loved an aviator gives it an eerie feeling, it's just as if the film was doomed to be clouded by tragedy, individual and universal. However, and that might be the secret of "To Be or Not to Be", It's all fiction, it's not reality, the film was criticized when the war was still raging and now it's a classic, once reality is as dead as fiction, what remains is the essence of art.as