How Would Lubitsch Do It?

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

S5E05.75 - Ernst Lubitsch's American Comedy with William Paul

We return from our brief hiatus with our most in-depth episode yet, culled from five hours of discussions recorded over a period of several months with William Paul, author of the essential critical study Ernst Lubitsch’s American Comedy.
We discuss Paul’s friendship with frequent Lubitsch collaborator Samson Raphaelson, Raphaelson’s sometimes-harsh retrospective criticism of his own work, the linguistic tics that unite Lubitsch’s filmography, their methods of adapting obscure Hungarian plays, Raphaelson’s recollections of Alfred Hitchcock's very different working methods, and Suspicion’s shocking alternate ending.
Later on, we discuss the neuroscientific mechanisms of comedy, the biological purpose of laughter, the relationship of To Be Or Not To Be and the idea of “passing”, and engage in some record-correction as to whether or not the film was as controversial as is widely believed.
Edited by Brennen King and Eden Cote-Foster.
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Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify
NEXT WEEK:
Dara and Ryan Jaffe join us for the first 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:
Ernst Lubitsch’s American Comedy by William Paul

S5E05.5 - Preston Sturges and Sullivan’s Travels [1941] with Tim Brayton

Tim Brayton returns to discuss noted Lubitsch fan and disciple Preston Sturges and his 1941 meta-comedy SULLIVAN’S TRAVELS. We cover Sturges’ immense admiration of Lubitsch, the film’s immensely fascinating but perhaps frustrating relationship with its own status as a satire of its own form, Sturges’ political beliefs and moral compass, the value of communal viewings to comedic cinema, and much more.
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Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify
NEXT WEEK:
We’re taking a little break! See you in a few weeks for the last eleven episodes of Season 5, the end of our story.
WORKS CITED:
Romantic Comedy in Hollywood: From Lubitsch to Sturges and The Lady Eve (The Current) by James Harvey
Pursuits of Happiness: A Reading of the lady Eve by Stanley Cavell
Fast Talk: Preston Sturges and the Speed of Sound by Joe McElhaney
Preston Sturges: Success in the Movies by Manny Farber and W.S. Poster
Christmas in July (Review) by Adrian Martin

S5E05 - That Uncertain Feeling [1941] and Comedic Theory with Lance St. Laurent

UW-Madison PHD Candidate Lance St. Laurent joins us to discuss THAT UNCERTAIN FEELING, as well as some comedic theory. We discuss our mutual admiration for elements of this relatively minor divorce-and-remarriage-style comedy, Lubitsch’s attempts to tackle psychoanalysis and modern art, and the film’s production origins. Additionally, we go deep on comic theory: relief, superiority, and incongruity all have their day, and we discuss the ways in which comedy involves collaboration between an artist and their audience. Lastly, we apply all this to the Tom Green masterpiece FREDDY GOT FINGERED, because that’s germane.
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Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify
NEXT WEEK:
Tim Brayton returns to discuss Preston Sturges and THE LADY EVE. For information as to where to find this film, check out our resources page.
WORKS CITED:
Humour: A Short Introduction by Noel Carroll

S5E04.5 - Jack Benny is Not Appearing on This Show [1940]

This week, we present an episode of the SCREEN GUILD THEATER starring Ernst Lubitsch, Claudette Colbert, and possibly Jack Benny!
Originally aired on October 20th, 1940.
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NEXT WEEK:
Lance St. Laurent joins us to discuss THAT UNCERTAIN FEELING, as well as some comedic theory. For information as to where to find this film, check out our resources page.
WORKS CITED:
Ernst Lubitsch: The Radio Years (Forum Post) - A list of every Lubitsch-related episode of the Screen Guild Theater.

S5E04c - The Shop Around the Corner [1940] with Adrian Martin

Critic Adrian Martin joins us for our final episode on THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER. In our discussion, we deconstruct some of the film’s camera direction, discuss Lubitsch’s late-period style and his more subtle (yet still very much present) formalism, his structural methodology, his use of repetition, the dynamics between “art” and “craft”, and Lubitsch’s continuing influence.
We also, at long last, try to define the Lubitsch “touch”. Or maybe not.
Edited by Brennen King
We have a Discord!
Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify
NEXT WEEK:
We present an episode of THE GULF SCREEN GUILD THEATRE starring Ernst Lubitsch, Claudette Colbert, and possibly Jack Benny.
WORKS CITED:
Game Space and Play Time: A Partial History of American Screen Comedy (Lubitsch, Sturges, Tashlin) by Adrian Martin
Adrian Martin's Review of THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER
Innuendo by William D. Routt
Cinematógrafos - Edgardo Cozarinsky (Buenos Aires: BAFICI, 2010)
Acting Ordinary in The Shop Around the Corner - George Tolles

S5E04b - The Shop Around the Corner [1940] with Whit Stillman and Jose Arroyo

Whit Stillman and Jose Arroyo join us for our second episode on THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER. Whit discusses Lubitsch’s writing process, the ways in which the film is exemplary of the Hollywood studio system at its best, and his admiration for Pirovitch. Jose later joins us for a formal breakdown of the film’s final scene.
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Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify
NEXT WEEK:
Film critic Adrian Martin joins us for our final episode on THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER.
WORKS CITED:
Whit Stillman: Not So Long Ago
Stillman's Writeup on THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER for the New York Times
Jose Arroyo's Podcast Episode on SHOP and YOU'VE GOT MAIL

S5E04a - The Shop Around the Corner [1940] with Kevin Bahr

Kevin Bahr joins us for the first of our episodes on the greatest Jimmy Stewart-related Christmas movie of them all, THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER. In this episode, we discuss the film’s unusual structure, ensemble nature, each character’s arc towards self-improvement, capital, our shared admiration of Pepi, the film’s historical context, Samson Raphaelson’s screenplay, and the depths of the film’s darkness as well as the warmth that persists despite said darkness.
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Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify
NEXT WEEK:
Whit Stillman and Jose Arroyo join us for our second episode on THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER. For information as to where to find this film, check out our resources page.

S5E03b - Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder, & Ninotchka [1939] with Donald Brackett

Author Donald Bracket joins us to discuss NINOTCHKA, and in particular the collaboration between the film’s two writers: Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder. We cover their tumultuous collaboration from their first films to its sordid ending with the masterpiece SUNSET BOULEVARD, as well as the development of the screenplay for NINOTCHKA.
Edited by Griffin Sheel.
We have a Discord!
Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify
NEXT WEEK:
Kevin Bahr joins us for the first of our episodes on THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER.. For information as to where to find this film, check out our resources page.
WORKS CITED:
DOUBLE SOLITAIRE: The Films of Charles Brackett and Billy Wilderby Donald Brackett

S5E03a - Ninotchka [1939] with Griffin Newman

Actor and podcaster Griffin Newman joins us to discuss NINOTCHKA! We discuss Lubitsch’s stature in Hollywood, Greta Garbo’s incredible lead performance, Rouben Mamoulian’s musical remake SILK STOCKINGS, the early development of the script, Cary Grant’s possible involvement, the film’s mechanics as both a romantic comedy and geopolitical satire, the film’s relationship with the ideologies of the lead characters, the great Felix Bressart, and the Al Ruddy hagiography otherwise known as ‘THE OFFER’.
Edited by Griffin Sheel.
We have a Discord!
Listen on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify
NEXT WEEK:
Author Donald Bracket joins us to discuss NINOTCHKA and the film’s two writers: Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder. For information as to where to find this film, check out our resources page.
WORKS CITED:
Production Code Administration notes on NINOTCHKA