S5E06a - To Be Or Not To Be [1942] with Dara and Gary Jaffe

Returning guest Dara Jaffe and first-time guest Gary Jaffe join us for the first of two episodes on To Be Or Not To Be. In this episode, we cover the interplay between theatre and film, and of improvisation and comedy; the many dimensions of the film’s relationship with Jewish identities; the use of empathy and humanism as anti-fascist tools; Lubitsch’s self-reflexive approach to diegetic reality; the key character of Greenberg, and Felix Bressart’s performance; the history of performances of William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice; and the film’s influence on contemporary cinema.

Recorded at the Margaret Herrick Library in Beverly Hills, CA by Anna Citak-Scott.

Edited by Griffin Sheel.

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NEXT WEEK:

Peter Labuza returns for the second of two discussions on To Be Or Not To Be. For information as to where to find this film, check out our resources page.

WORKS CITED:

Production Code Administration notes on To Be Or Not To Be

Hollywood's Other Great Anti-Nazi Movie by Thomas Doherty

David Kalat’s Commentary on the Criterion Edition of To Be Or Not To Be

Adrian Martin’s Review of To Be Or Not To Be.

To Be Or Not To Be (A Jew) by Dorian Stuber and Marianne Tettlebaum