Ernst Lubitsch, 1932
8.0
a delightful comedy about a pair of thieves scheming every which way they can. i must admit that i've been skeptic about those old pleasant and witty comedies from the twenties and thirties. but i stumbled upon a showing of this particular film on PBS a few months ago and was simply enthralled by the short glimpse i'd caught. then a couple of weeks ago i had the pleasure of watching Heaven Can Wait and was blown away by the timing and down-to-earth sophistication of Lubitsch. anyway, this seems to be more about Lubitsch's style than of this one particular film, but please do rest assured that this is one charming, smart film. and it weaves many intricate character plots but Lubitsch keeps it all moving ever so smoothly along. it's quite a breath of fresh air, really. and the performances do not feel dated at all, but are rather surprisingly dynamic and quite knowing. modern, actually.
Posted by Anonymous | 3:21 PM
