To Be or Not to Be (1983)
Average Rating: 6.1/10
Reviews Counted: 16
Fresh: 10 | Rotten: 6
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: 7.2/10
Critic Reviews: 5
Fresh: 3 | Rotten: 2
No consensus yet.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.6/5
User Ratings: 2,880
My Rating
Movie Info
Mel Brooks and his real-life wife Anne Bancroft play Frederick and Anna Bronski, musical comedy stars in 1939 Poland. The highlight of the Bronskis' act is Frederick's imitation of Adolf Hitler, but he is forced to eliminate this turn for fear of offending the Nazis. Meanwhile, Anna enters into a harmless flirtation with Polish bomber pilot Andre Sobinski (Tim Matheson). The pilot's nightly signal to visit Anna in her dressing room is "To Be or Not to Be," spoken by Bronski during the
Dec 16, 1983 Wide
Jan 25, 2005
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Cast
-
Mel Brooks
Frederick Bronski -
Anne Bancroft
Anna Bronski -
Charles Durning
Col. Erhardt -
Tim Matheson
Lt. Andre Sobinski -
Christopher Lloyd
Capt. Schultz -
José Ferrer
Prof. Siletski -
George Gaynes
Ravitch -
George Wyner
Ratkowski -
Jack Riley
Dobish -
Lewis J. Stadlen
Lupinski -
RONNY GRAHAM
Sondheim -
Ivor Barry
Gen. Hobbs -
Scott Beach
Narrator -
Earl Boen
Dr. Boyarski -
Henry Brandon
Nazi Officer -
Max Brooks
Her Son -
George Caldwell
Gestapo Guard -
Paddi Edwards
Pub Waitress -
John Francis
British Intelligence Ai... -
James Haake and Scamp
Sasha and Mutki -
Henry Kaiser
Gestapo Officer -
Zale Kessler
Bieler -
Ron Kuhlman
Polish Flier -
Curt Lowens
Airport Officer -
Eda Reiss Merin
Frightened Jewish Woman -
Wolf Muser
Desk Sergeant -
John Otrin
Polish Flier -
Estelle Reiner
Gruba -
Tucker Smith
Klotskis Klown -
Ron Diamond
Pub Bartender -
Spencer Henderson
Klotskis Klown -
Terence Marsh
Startled British Office... -
Leeyan Granger
Lady -
Phil Adams
Airport Sentry -
Ian Bruce
Klotskis Klown -
William Glover
Maj. Cunningham -
Blane Savage
Polish Flier -
-
John McKinney
Elite Guard Officer -
Raymond Skipp
RAF Flight Sergeant -
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All Critics (16) | Top Critics (5) | Fresh (10) | Rotten (6) | DVD (6)
Bancroft's sustained delights are not matched by Brooks, who seems to be trying too hard.
Johnson may not quite have Lubitsch's lightness of touch, but he puts an excellent cast through their paces with great verve, and the charm is as potent as ever.
Top CriticBrooks combines a backstage musical with a wartime romance and comes up with an eclectic comedy that races off into several directions, usually successfully.
Ssmashingly funny.
I can't remember another film that took so little care with the details of ambience: the cruddy sets and flat, underworked sound track drain any sense of life from the project.
The plot is much the same as in the Ernst Lubitsch original, with everything played for laughs and Brooks at his funniest in impersonations of Nazis. What's missing is the relevance of the 1942 film, released while Germany occupied Poland.
A very well-executed farce, and Brooks' most underrated movie.
Superfluous remake of the Lubitsch classic is OK on its own merits, but no more.
Kind of a dud.
This movie has its moments; but it is not as funny as the Jack Benny original; Brooks for all his wit, is no Ernst Lubitsch.
Brooks and his comedic cohorts bring their brand of high-strung mockery to Alan Johnson's flavorable farce...relentlessly riotous!
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Foreign Titles
- To Be or Not to Be (1983) (DE)
- To Be or Not to Be (1983) (UK)
