To Be or Not to Be

BFI Film Classics

by Peter Barnes

In To Be or Not to Be (1942), Ernest Lubitsch brought his legendary comic touch to the most unpromising life in Nazi-occupied Poland. In this study, Peter Barnes considers what it is to make comedy out of tragedy.

Genres: Film, Nonfiction, Essays

79 pages, Paperback

First published February 27, 2002

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. This entry is for the English playwright and screenwriter.

Reviews

[Meagan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The movie (original 1942 version w/ Jack Benny) is excellent. A very dark, and actually very funny, comedy.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are reading this, you are probably aware of the film and possibly a fan of it. You are also likely to be aware of other titles in the “BFI Film Classic” series. All the books I have read in the series seem to have been of a high standard, which I put down, in part, having a Series Editor and Series Consultants.

Peter Barnes’ book “To be or not to be” was published in 2002. Authors within the series have always been encouraged to give their personal views and prospective. However, I feel they were given slightly more scope in the early volumes, such as this on.

For me this is one of the stand-out volumes within the series. Peter Barnes cover the factual topics of the film and his professional expertise is insightful and interesting to read.

One may not agree with each and every one of his opinions. I found one of the many enjoyable aspects of reading this book.