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In this post I am going to make the case for “To Be or Not to Be” as the greatest WWII comedy. TBONTB was released in 1942. It was directed by the acclaimed Ernst Lubitsch and stars Jack Benny and Carol Lombard (in her last film before her death in a plane crash on a war bond tour one month later). Lombard told friends the movie was the most enjoyable experience of her career. Because of her death, the editor removed a line where Maria says “What could happen in a plane?” Benny’s movie career was going nowhere when Lubitsch contacted him. Lubitsch (who co-wrote the screenplay) had written the role with Benny in mind. He wanted Miriam Hopkins for Maria, but she was upset with playing second banana to Benny. Lombard heard about the role and wanting to work with Lubitsch, she contacted him. Benny was on board with her replacing Hopkins and even agreed to give her top billing. Lombard suggested Robert Stack for the role of the Polish pilot and was thrilled to work with him because she had been friends with him since they were teenagers. Lombard was so involved in the production that she was almost a co-director. Lubitsch was a Berlin Jew who left Germany after success in the German film industry. He found greater success in Hollywood which rankled Hitler. Footage of Lubitsch was used in the rancid propaganda film “The Eternal Jew.” It was nominated for an Oscar for Best Music.
The movie opens in Warsaw right before the Nazi invasion. Josef Tura (Benny) and his wife Maria (Lombard) are members of an acting troupe performing “Hamlet”. They have a typically dysfunctional acting-spouses relationship. Maria is having an affair with a dashing Polish pilot named Sobinski (Robert Stack) who comes to her dressing room each performance when Josef begins his “to be or not to be” soliloquy. Josef is very upset with this insulting distraction, resulting in the following exchange with Maria.
Josef: Someone walked out on me. Tell me, Maria, am
I losing my grip?
Maria: Oh, of course not, darling. I'm so sorry.
Josef: But he walked out on me.
Maria: Maybe he didn't feel well. Maybe he had to leave. Maybe he had a sudden
heart attack.
Josef: I hope so.
Maria: If he stayed he might have died.
Josef: Maybe he's dead already! Oh, darling, you're so comforting.
Poland is invaded and months pass via a montage of Polish resistance. Sobinski is flying for the Royal Air Force. He meets a Professor Siletsky who is supposedly connected to the Polish underground, yet does not know who Maria Tula is. Sobinski goes to his superiors with his suspicion and is parachuted into Poland to alert the resistance. He will enlist the aid of the acting troupe to get to Siletsky before he turns over a list of the Polish pilots’ family and friends. Josef and Maria will have to use their acting skills. Throw into the mix a visit from Hitler to see the play.
ACTING: A
ACTION: N/A
ACCURACY: N/A
PLOT: A
REALISM: N/A
CINEMATOGRAPHY: B
SCORE: A
BEST SCENE: when Josef gets out of a jam by shaving a corpse and putting a fake beard on it
BEST QUOTE: Bronski (dressed as Hitler): “Heil, myself”
“To Be or Not to Be” is a true classic, but that fact was not recognized at the time of its release. The timing had something to do with this. The public and critics were in no mood for a comedy about the Nazis. Jack Benny’s father was at the premiere and walked out when he saw his son wearing a Nazi uniform. Benny convinced him to reconsider and his dad ended up seeing the movie 46 times. The tragic death of Lombard also dampened enthusiasm for the film. Now that time has passed, the movie has taken its rightful place among the greatest comedies. AFI (American Film Institute) ranked it #49 on its list of greatest comedies. The only WWII comedy rated higher is “The Great Dictator” at #37. In my opinion, it is a much better film than Chaplin’s. It is certainly funnier. It is also less dated. The film holds up amazingly well. . In fact, it holds up better than Mel Brooks’ unnecessary remake. Sometimes classic is better, even if it’s black and white.
The cast is great. Lombard is at her best and she definitely goes out at the top of her game, sadly. Miriam Hopkins had been unhappy with the role because she felt Maria was just a foil for Josef’s one liners, but she was wrong because Maria is quite funny and holds her own. Benny was never better. His Josef is a ham actor and an egotist. Benny was clearly loving the role. He later said it was his favorite film. Robert Stack is well cast as the dashing young pilot. The rest of the cast are reliable character actors. They get some of the best lines. Nazi Colonel Ehrhardt is played by Sig Rumann. He had escaped from Germany before Hitler took power.
The dialogue is crisp and funny. The repartee between Josef and Maria is hilarious. "If we should ever have a baby, I'm not sure I'd be the mother." "I'm satisfied to be the father." I counted 24 times that I laughed out loud. There is taut suspense rare for a war comedy. There’s even a death that is not played for laughs.
It was considered daring to lampoon Nazis in 1942, so some wimps criticized its timing. It was slammed for being tasteless. A joke about concentration camps! Looking back at it, you could argue that it was one of the first black comedies. Laughter can be used as a weapon. The Nazis were ripe for being made buffoons. Lubitsch described the film as a farcical tragedy or a tragic farce.
