To Be or Not to Be with Mel Brooks: DVD Cover

    To Be or Not to Be Director: Alan Johnson Cast: Mel Brooks, Anne Bancroft, Charles Durning, Tim Matheson

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    • DVD Release Date: 09/05/2006
    • Original Release: 1983
    • Rating: Rated PG
    • Sales Rank: 15,555

    Viewer Rating: (2 ratings)

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    • Overview
    • Editorial Reviews
    • Scenes
    • Customer Reviews
    • Cast & Crew
    • Full Product Details

    Features

    Closed Caption; Behind-the-scenes making of featurette; Character profiles and interviews with Mel Brooks, Anne Bancroft and Charles Durning

    Full Product Details

    Scene Index

    Disc #1 -- To Be or Not to Be
    1. Main Titles [:02]
    2. The Bronsky Theatre [2:06]
    3. A Secret Admirer [5:42]
    4. Naughty Nazis [:36]
    5. An Assignation [4:37]
    6. It's War! [1:07]
    7. Messages to Poland [8:06]
    8. Something Is Wrong [4:14]
    9. Nazi Headquarters [2:59]
    10. Sweetheart [:16]
    11. The Gestapo [7:45]
    12. Another Siletski [1:17]
    13. Sasha [5:14]
    14. Back to Nazi H.Q. [:08]
    15. An Imposter [2:45]
    16. A Command Performance [5:15]
    17. Another Suitor [7:02]
    18. At the Airport [2:41]
    19. Is This England? [6:09]
    20. End Titles [:52]

    Scene Index

    Editorial Reviews

    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 Shakespearean portion of his act. When the Germans march into Warsaw, the Bronskis and the rest of their troupe are forced into hiding (notably the homosexual Lupinski, played by Lewis J. Stadlen, who is forced to endure the humiliation of wearing a pink star). Flying for the Polish resistance in England, Sobinski asks kindly Professor Seletzky (Jose Ferrer) to deliver his "To Be or Not to Be" message to Anna. When Seletzky doesn't seem to recognize the name of Anne Bronski, Warsaw's biggest star, Sobinski suspects that something is amiss. Sure enough, Seletzky is a Nazi spy, heading to Warsaw to help Col. "Concentration Camp" Ehrhardt (Oscar-nominated Charles Durning) destroy the underground movement. Parachuting into Poland, Sobinski enlists the aid of the Bronski troupe to foil the Nazis. What follows is an uproarious series of disguises and deceptions, capped by Bronski's impersonation of Der Fuhrer. Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

    Customer Reviews

    • Viewer Rating:
    • Ratings: 2Reviews: 1

    To Be or Not to Beby Anonymous

    Reader Rating:
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    July 19, 2006: I haven't seen the original To Be or Not To Be Movie that starred Jack Benny yet but back in the 80's when I was a teenager I watched this Mel Brooks remake and though not my favorite of his movies I thought it was good and I enjoyed watching it and thought that Mel Brooks and his wife Anne Bancroft were both superb! I recently bought the Mel Brooks DVD boxset collection and this is one of the movies in the set and I'm glad to own it!