Shakespeare Does Hitler

Rating: Null/10 (9 March 2013)

A troupe of Polish actors impersonate Nazis in order to prevent the Polish underground from being captured.
Jack Benny used to joke on radio and TV about his movie career, especially The Horn Blows at Midnight (1945). But he never joked about this film. Though it's got a serious subject right on the eve of WWII, it's still pretty funny, especially when Jack pulls his egotistical, great actor bit. With all the Heil Hitlers and Gestapo boys running around, it's sometimes hard to keep up with who's who. Nonetheless, it's a clever screenplay having an actors' troupe impersonate Nazi's. Aside from TV's Hogan's Heroes (1965-1971), I don't know of any other show that risked making fun of the murderous Third Reich. It's a pretty tricky topic to begin with, but the production crew pulls it off.
Then there's Carole Lombard, on the eve of her tragic plane ride. But she's still delicious as heck. Plus, I could swear that silken gown she's got on for her tryst is all she's got on. My eyes were glued. Also, it's easy to catch a young, love-struck Robert Stack before he got out of the movie's second row and moved into the hard case cop on TV's The Untouchables (1959-1963). Note too, the unspoken Jewish subtext, with the names of many of the victims and Shylock's moving plea from Shakespeare. I don't know why the script made do with inference rather than a single overt mention of Nazism's virulent anti-Semitism. Maybe it's because that might sound like special pleading, regardless of the merits.
Anyway, it's still a pretty funny movie, and remains an offbeat one-of-a-kind. Besides Benny had a much better film career than he wanted to admit.