"So they call me Concentration Camp Ehrhardt, eh?"

It opens in Poland, 1939. What the heck!? I thought this was a comedy! In fact, it is, and the first 5 minutes are the funniest opening of a movie I've seen in a long time.

Jack Benny and Carol Lombard are husband and wife actors. She is flattered by the attention of a young pilot. They arrange to meet while her husband does the "To be or not to be" monologue from Hamlet. Then the Germans invade and they end up involved in a plot by the Germans to discover information about the Polish underground. This gives the actors many times to test their abilities while providing Benny with opportunities to discover information about his wife's fidelity.

Right now it's free on a website called ShoutFactory. Very witty, highly recommended, and not to be missed.

Life does not cease to be funny when people die any more than it ceases to be serious when people laugh.
(George Bernard Shaw)

87

"Well, Colonel, all I can say is... you can't have your cake and shoot it, too."

So they call me Concentration Camp Erhardt.....

I think this has to be the funniest film I have ever seen. It was an early favorite of mine, and it gets better and better with each viewing.

"I'm going to meet Herr Siletsky at Gestapo Headquarters, and after I've killed him I hope you'll all be kind enough to tell me what it was all about!"

Por el simple inicio narrativo-frenético de la voz en off y el montaje de imágenes del lugar en Varsovia, ya te dan ganasde quedarte a ver toda la película, no importa cuánto vaya a durar.
Es considerada una de las mejores comedias de todoslos tiempos, pero a mi siempre me ha parecido una película muy triste, que si no fuera por esos diálogos filosos de Lubistch quedaría en un drama grande.

1080p Criterion

cinema’s existence as a whole can be justified by the “concentration camp erhardt” joke

it’s a bit silly and very jumbled, but it’s still a solid comedy with very unlikely subject material. wish that the base plot was a bit better formed, too much teleporting just to deliver punchlines. the editing doesn’t help either - some scenes are somehow completely out of sequence, it’s a bit of a joke 

hard to talk about the positives without just giving away the funny bits, but it’s really, really funny fairly consistently over its runtime

one of the best films i've ever seen, incredibly witty and humorous

great pacing

100/100
The hilarity of this film begins with the first scene and does not stop until the last. Every part of this film is just so well done. The writing is really quick witted and the direction is clear with Lubitsch choosing shots that show as much of the frame as possible while also moving the camera minimally. The acting is great with all of the actors, especially Carole Lombard, having pretty much perfect comedic timing.

All in all, this film is a screwball masterpiece.