To Be or Not to Be

19831983
PGPG
1h 47min

To Be or Not to Be (1983)

Official Trailer

Play trailer3:22

Comedy Drama War

At the onset of WW2, a Polish actor's family and the Polish Resistance help the troupe of a theatre escape Poland and the invading Nazis.At the onset of WW2, a Polish actor's family and the Polish Resistance help the troupe of a theatre escape Poland and the invading Nazis.At the onset of WW2, a Polish actor's family and the Polish Resistance help the troupe of a theatre escape Poland and the invading Nazis.

Director
- Alan Johnson
Writers
- Thomas Meehan(screenplay)
- Ronny Graham(screenplay)
- Edwin Justus Mayer(1942 screenplay)
Stars

See production, box office & company info

See more at IMDbPro

Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 6 nominations total

Videos1

To Be or Not to Be

To Be or Not to Be

Mel Brooks in To Be or Not to Be (1983)

Anne Bancroft in To Be or Not to Be (1983)

Mel Brooks in To Be or Not to Be (1983)

Tim Matheson in To Be or Not to Be (1983)

Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft in To Be or Not to Be (1983)

To Be or Not to Be (1983)

Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft in To Be or Not to Be (1983)

To Be or Not to Be (1983)

To Be or Not to Be (1983)

Mel Brooks in To Be or Not to Be (1983)

Anne Bancroft and Tim Matheson in To Be or Not to Be (1983)

Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft in To Be or Not to Be (1983)

Director
- Alan Johnson
Writers
- Thomas Meehan(screenplay)
- Ronny Graham(screenplay)
- Edwin Justus Mayer(1942 screenplay)
All cast & crew
See more cast details at IMDbPro

A bad Polish actor is just trying to make a living when what should intrude but World War II in the form of an invasion. His wife has the habit of entertaining young Polish officers while he's on stage which is also a source of depression to him. When one of her officers comes back on a Secret Mission, the actor takes charge and comes up with a plan for them to escape. —John Vogel <jlvogel@comcast.net>

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Taglines
- That is the movie!
Genres
Certificate
- PG
Parents guide

Trivia
During World War II, Mel Brooks served as a Corporal in the U.S. Army in France, where part of his duties included defusing land-mines before the infantry moved into the area. Brooks fought in the Battle of the Bulge in late 1944. Charles Durning, who plays the Nazi S.S. commander, Colonel Erhardt, was also a veteran of the Battle of the Bulge, and was present at the liberation of the Nazi death camp at Buchenwald.

Goofs
Anne Bancroft's character's name is Anna Bronski. However, it should be Anna Bronska because it is an adjectival surname and all adjectives in Polish have masculine and feminine forms. The endings -i and -y are masculine, the feminine equivalents of adjectival surnames end in -a.

Quotes
Announcer: Ladies and Gentlemen: In the interest of clarity and sanity, the rest of this movie will not be in Polish.

Crazy credits
At the end of the movie, each cast member comes and takes a bow, as they would for a stage play, while their names are on the screen.

Connections
Featured in An Audience with Mel Brooks (1983)

Soundtracks
Ladies
Music & Lyrics by Mel Brooks and Ronny Graham
Performed by Mel Brooks (uncredited)

Top review

9/10

Homage to Jack Benny

Actually, when interviewed about this movie, Mel Brooks said it was an homage to Jack Benny. And if you look, the Bronskis live on Kubelsky Street, Benny Kubelsky is Jack Benny's real name. There are many other touches that also show Brooks' love for the original. Anne Bancroft is a true treat. Her comedic talents shine, she was truly a rare actress, and will be missed.

It was well done, with Mel Brooksian flair, and respectful of the original. I won't add comments about the acting, there are so many pros and cons at this point, one more won't make a difference. But if you have some free time, see BOTH of the movies. It's not sacrilege to like them both.

helpful•22

5

kb2uoe
Dec 24, 2006

Release date
- December 16, 1983 (United States)
Country of origin
- United States
Languages
- English
- Polish
Also known as
- Sein oder Nichtsein
Filming locations
- Mayfield Senior School - 500 Bellefontaine Street, Pasadena, California, USA
Production companies
- Brooksfilms
- Twentieth Century Fox
See more company credits at IMDbPro

Budget
- $9,000,000 (estimated)
Gross US & Canada
- $13,030,214
Opening weekend US & Canada
- $1,020,958
- Dec 18, 1983
Gross worldwide
- $13,030,214

See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

Runtime
- 1h 47min
Color
- Color
Sound mix
- Dolby
Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1

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