To Be or Not to Be

Friday, January 20 - Sunday, January 22, 2017

35mm print!

“Like Ninotchka, Lubitsch’s comedy was developed from an idea by Melchior Lengyel: an anti-Nazi satire set in World War II occupied Warsaw, centering on the resistance of a Polish theatre company and the ham antics of its narcissistic husband-and-wife stars (Benny and Lombard). It was criticised at the time for its alleged bad taste, but Benny, Lombard and script are all hilarious; while Lubitsch gets much mileage from the idea of role-playing, and his particular directorial tic of timing every conceivable gag around entrances and exits through doorways. It’s certainly one of the finest comedies ever to come out of Paramount, the allegations of dubious taste missing the point of Lubitsch’s satire – not so much the general nastiness of the Nazis as their unforgiveable bad manners.” –Time Out (London)

Screening as part of Autocratic for the People: an Unpresidented Series of Star-Spangled Satires

  • Country USA
  • Year 1942
  • Running Time 99 minutes
  • Director Ernst Lubitsch

IFC Center does not generally provide advisories about subject matter or potentially triggering content in films, as sensitivities vary from person to person. In addition to the synopses, trailers and other links on our website, further information about content and age-appropriateness for specific films can be found on Common Sense Media, IMDb and DoesTheDogDie.com as well as through general internet searches.