To Be or Not to Be (1983)

Brilliant outrageous comedy from the master
This brilliant farce, completed just as America entered the war due to Pearl Harbour, was as contraversial as it was clever. Ernst Lubitcsh, like Charlie Chaplin a few years earlier with "The Great Dictator", dared to set a comedy in and around the Nazis. Like Chaplin's film, it opened to mix reviews, offending both critics and the public and it was not a great success.

Given that premise, this is a brilliantly scripted and directed comedy set in Warsaw at the outbreak of the war. An acting troupe outwit the Nazis's plan to destroy the underground. The plot is outrageous and hilarious. Jack Benny plays the leading actor and it is no co-incidence that he wishes to play Hamlet because he is a ham himself. Benny is beautifully paired with the gorgeous Carole Lombard as his flirtatious wife. This was Lombard's last film before she tragically died in an air crash. She was at the height of her powers. There are many great supporting actors but Sig Rumann as Concentration Camp Erhart is a standout. Surely he was the basis for the Colonel in Hogan's Heroes. The film was successfully remade as a musical comedy by Mel Brooks many years later but this version is the best.

The print of the film is OK and the DVD contains 2 short films starring Benny; the first, made in 1930 stars him as a conventional comedic leading man and is mildly amusing and the second is war time propaganda. The DVD is OK value but better if purchased as part of the Comedy Classics set.

Laughing to Ease the Tensions (but heighten the sense of responsibility) in the Face of War
In the midst of World War II, before the Americans had entered into the fray, Ernst Lubitsch made what appears on the face of it an oxymoron: a light-hearted comedy about the Polish Resistance to the Nazis. (The film was released just after Pearl Harbor, but had been in the works while the United States continued to stand on the sidelines.) Of course, while it does end up being quite funny, the film has a much more serious subtext -- about the responsibilities of Hollywood (and of the United States) in the face of the increasing dangers faced by countries across Europe.

An acting troupe in Warsaw prior to the Polish invasion is planning a production to expose the dangers of Nazism, when they are shut down for fear of angering the Germans. Their practice in portraying Nazis, however, becomes extremely valuable when they are needed to keep information regarding the Polish resistance out of the hands of the Gestapo. The story is very clever, and played with panache by a delightful cast of characters lead by Carole Lombard and Jack Benny.

What makes the film especially interesting, apart from being a fine Lubitsch comedy, is the film's message to the audience and to other filmmakers about the responsibilities and limitations of the artist during wartime. The director of the Polish acting troupe wants them to make a serious play about Nazis; the actors want to make it into a comedy. Still, their actions proceed from a false perception of their safety -- it is easy to criticize the enemy when he is not at the gates. As I take it, the message of the film is that artists (both actors and filmmakers) should not be afraid to use their unique talents in the service of war, and should not be afraid to risk their lives and repuations, and that their power and potential should not be underestimated. A further message seems to be that humor and satire can be more effective than serious propaganda. An enjoyable film in its own right that also provides a valuable window into a period of American and world history.

a true underrated classic.......
I am a great fan of one of the rightful kings of comedy, the late, great Jack Benny. He is featured at his wry best, here, along with the stunningly beautiful Carole Lombard--the last film she made before she tragically died in a plane crash. The title is based on the famous "To Be, Or Not To Be" soliloquy in William Shakespeare's HAMLET. A troupe of actors in Nazi-occupied Warsaw must get by on their ability as thespians to elaborately (and effectively) disguise themselves, as well as adapt new identities, in order to fool the occupying troops. Jack Benny is hilarious and Carole Lombard is gorgeous and charismatic. Don't miss out on this.