To Be or Not To Be with David Schwartz and Special Guest

This online film club offers a chance to see five of the great screen comedies, accompanied by live discussions. It’s not the same as sharing our laughter together in a theater, but it’s an experience we can enjoy together. Here’s how it works: curator and host David Schwartz has selected five films available for viewing on the Criterion Channel. You’ll watch the films at your own leisure, along with a video introduction by David Schwartz. Then you’ll be able to join us online on Wednesdays at 8:00 p.m. for a live discussion, including a conversation with a special guest and questions from the audience.

Ernst Lubitsch’s To Be or Not To Be

Lubitsch’s audacious comedy about a group of Polish actors performing Shakespeare in Nazi-occupied Warsaw during World War II is at once daring and delightful, with the bonus of starring Jack Benny in what is by far his finest performance, alongside the ever incandescent comedienne Carole Lombard.