No, the subject line does not refer to a lame band from the 90s, but rather, a comedy directed by Ernst Lubitsch in 1942 called To Be Or Not To Be. It's special not only because it's very funny, but also because it makes fun of nazis in their own time.Let's face it, it's fun to mock nazis and other extremely evil people (Dick Cheney springs to mind). Guy was very happy to snap up the last available copy of this movie from Amazon. It has now gone out of print. I haven't seen the Mel Brooks remake but I can't imagine it could be better than the original:
From IMDB: "In occupied Poland during WWII, a troupe of ham stage actors (led by Joseph Tura and his wife Maria) match wits with the Nazis. A spy has information which would be very damaging to the Polish resistance and they must prevent its being delivered to the Germans."
Josef Tura: Wait a minute. I'll decide with whom my wife is going to have dinner and whom she's going to kill.
Maria Tura: Don't you realize Poland's at stake?
Lieutenant Stanislav Sobinski: Have you no patriotism?
Josef Tura: Now listen, you... first you walk out on my soliloquy and then you walk into my slippers. And now you question my patriotism. I'm a good Pole and I love my country and I love my slippers.
Maria Tura: Well, I hope your country comes first.
Lieutenant Stanislav Sobinski: So do I.
Maria Tura: This is an emergency! War!
Josef Tura: Look, look, look, I don't know much about the whole thing... but is this Siletsky a real danger to Poland?
Lieutenant Stanislav Sobinski: A catastrophe!
Maria Tura: He must be taken care of!
Josef Tura: Then he will be taken care of.
Maria Tura: Well, who's gonna do it?
Josef Tura: I'm gonna do it.
Lieutenant Stanislav Sobinski: But how?
Maria Tura: Where?
Josef Tura: I'm gonna meet Herr Siletsky at Gestapo headquarters. And after I've killed him I hope you'll be kind enough to tell me what it was all about!
More funny quotes from To Be Or Not To Be can be found here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0035446/quotes
The Mel Brooks version stunk (by comparison, at least)! Too bad people didn't get really get Lubitsch's movie when it came out--but now it's acknowledged as a classic, anyhow.
ReplyDeleteYeah, but if it's a classic, why is it not available on DVD??
ReplyDelete(Or did I get that part wrong?)
Because people are philistines, the kids think an "old" movie is from before 1990, and the economy is in the crapper! I figured this might be my last chance to get my hands on it. Eep!
ReplyDeleteSincerely, Angry Grandpa
ReplyDelete(I forgot to sign my comment)
Aha hahahha!
ReplyDeleteWas I right that you ordered it from Amazon? I couldn't remember if it was Amazon or Best Buy.
Walmart had the last one! After I ordered it, the website said Out of Stock! :0
ReplyDeleteYou ordered something from Walmart?
ReplyDeleteIt's not like you're in the middle of Wyoming and there's no other store for miles...
Please, Guy, be more resourceful.
Walmart. Jesus.
It was the last copy of the dvd in the country! Does that not grant me an exemption? Is the prohibition on Walmart *that* strong?
ReplyDeleteI like Walmart!!
ReplyDelete