Excellent movies in the most difficult sub genre

[Naphtali]

The most difficult sub genre in which to make effective motion pictures is World War II comedy (or should I have written any war comedy?). It is not a venue where humor flows from one's imagination. I specifically do not refer to comedies made during the war years, such as "The Miracle of Morgan's Creek" or the bazillion musical comedies cranked out to entertain during ugly times. However, the home front, whatever country constitutes home, is perfectly acceptable.

To illustrate what I want to isolate, here are three of the most entertaining World War II comedies.

"The Americanization of Emily" - 1964 (James Garner, Julie Andrews, Melvyn Douglas, James Coburn) is a black comedy, screenplay written by Paddy Chayefsky, about the European Theater of Operations during the time surrounding the Normandy invasion.

"Father Goose" - 1964 (Cary Grant, Leslie Caron, Trevor Howard) is an academy award winning (story and screenplay) comedy set in the south Pacific, circa 1942. While 1942 Pacific Theater would not appear to have much room for comedy, trust me. This is almost certainly Cary Grant's most effective performance.

"Hope and Glory" - 1987 (Sarah Miles, Ian Bannen, Sebastian Rice-Edwards) is John Boorman's semi autobiographical movie about his childhood in Great Britain during the war.

Are there other good ones?

 

[MisterCairo]

The most difficult sub genre in which to make effective motion pictures is World War II comedy (or should I have written any war comedy?). It is not a venue where humor flows from one's imagination. I specifically do not refer to comedies made during the war years, such as "The Miracle of Morgan's Creek" or the bazillion musical comedies cranked out to entertain during ugly times. However, the home front, whatever country constitutes home, is perfectly acceptable.

To illustrate what I want to isolate, here are three of the most entertaining World War II comedies.

"The Americanization of Emily" - 1964 (James Garner, Julie Andrews, Melvyn Douglas, James Coburn) is a black comedy, screenplay written by Paddy Chayefsky, about the European Theater of Operations during the time surrounding the Normandy invasion.

"Father Goose" - 1964 (Cary Grant, Leslie Caron, Trevor Howard) is an academy award winning (story and screenplay) comedy set in the south Pacific, circa 1942. While 1942 Pacific Theater would not appear to have much room for comedy, trust me. This is almost certainly Cary Grant's most effective performance.

"Hope and Glory" - 1987 (Sarah Miles, Ian Bannen, Sebastian Rice-Edwards) is John Boorman's semi autobiographical movie about his childhood in Great Britain during the war.

Are there other good ones?

"How I Won the War" starring Michael Crawford (pre-"Some Mothers do 'ave 'em" and "Phantom of the Opera") and John Lennon is an underrated film set in World War II North Africa. An anti-war themed film, it is most certainly considered comedic in tone.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061789/

 

[Marc Chevalier]

The most difficult sub genre in which to make effective motion pictures is World War II comedy...

And the most difficult subgenre within that subgenre is the Holocaust comedy. Italy's Life is Beautiful succeeded ... but a Holocaust comedy by Jerry Lewis never got beyond the planning stage.


.

 

[pipe23]

"What Did You Do in the War, Daddy" (1966) directed by Blake Edwards is one of my favorites, as is "The Secret of Santa Vittoria" (1969) directed by Stanley Kramer.
"Catch-22" (1970) dir Mike Nichols is another one. For Home Front action, the film "Whiskey Galore" (1947) is a howler.

 

[LizzieMaine]

"Stalag 17," the original POW camp dark comedy, has a lot of very subtle humor.

For the lighter side of the WW2 boot-camp experience, you can't do better than "See Here, Private Hargrove."

 

[Yeps]

And the most difficult subgenre within that subgenre is the Holocaust comedy. Italy's Life is Beautiful succeeded ... but a Holocaust comedy by Jerry Lewis never got beyond the planning stage.


.

I don't think that you can call La Vita é Bella a comedy. It starts out like a romantic comedy, then it fakes you out and says "just kidding, this is a depressing movie with Nazis in it!"

 

[dhermann1]

In the late 50's and early 60's there were a bunch of them, such as "Operation Petticoat", "The Wackiest Ship in the Army", and "Operation Madball" (with the late great Ernie Kovacs). You could also say that most of "Mr. Roberts" was a comedy. What else, "Captain Newman, MD"; I guess you could toss in the theatrical versuion of "McHale's Navy".
The thing is, most wars, all wars, conform to that great description (can somebody tell me where it's from?) that war is characterized by long periods of boredom, punctuated by short moments of sheer terror. For many people in service in WW II, the majority of whom never saw actual frontline, being fired on service, the war was almost entirely long periods of boredom. This kind of situtation will always lead to craziness of some kind.
Oh, and if you want to stretch it out to Korea, there's always M*A*S*H.
Most of these flicks paid the required homage to the real seriousness of the war with somebody getting killed or something, but still, there are a lot of funny moments in any war.

 

[Mr E Train]

Inglourious Basterds, although not purely a comedy, is pretty funny.

And for a Vietnam POW movie, Rescue Dawn has a surprising amount of laughs.

 

[Widebrim]

"Stalag 17," the original POW camp dark comedy, has a lot of very subtle humor.

Which, of course, partly inspired TV's "Hogan's Heroes."

 

[Mr E Train]

Which, of course, partly inspired TV's "Hogan's Heroes."

They should have just called it Those Wacky Nazis!

 

[pipe23]

I'd like to see this "Stalag Luft" with Stephen Fry, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108210/

 

[Carlisle Blues]

The Great Dictator (1940) Charlie Chaplin, Paulette Goddard,Jack Oakie.

"First released in October 1940, it was Chaplin's first true talking picture, and more important was the only major feature film of its period to bitterly satirize Nazism and Adolf Hitler.

The film is unusual for its period, as the United States was still formally at peace with Nazi Germany. Chaplin's film advanced a stirring, controversial condemnation of Hitler, fascism, antisemitism, and the Nazis, the latter of whom he excoriates in the film as "machine men, with machine minds and machine hearts".

 

[Widebrim]

The Great Dictator (1940) Charlie Chaplin, Paulette Goddard,Jack Oakie.

"First released in October 1940, it was Chaplin's first true talking picture, and more important was the only major feature film of its period to bitterly satirize Nazism and Adolf Hitler.

The film is unusual for its period, as the United States was still formally at peace with Nazi Germany. Chaplin's film advanced a stirring, controversial condemnation of Hitler, fascism, antisemitism, and the Nazis, the latter of whom he excoriates in the film as "machine men, with machine minds and machine hearts".

Great film...

 

[Carlisle Blues]

You Nazty Spy! 1940 The Three Stooges. It was the first Hollywood short film that openly satirized Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany, months before Charles Chaplin's controversial feature film, The Great Dictator.

Moe Howard became the first American actor to portray/imitate Adolf Hitler in this film. Curly also portrays Benito Mussolini.

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[Atomic Age]

I'm a huge fan of "1941", but I may be alone in that! LOL

Doug

 

[Panache]

Mr. Roberts has a lot of great humor in it and is a favorite of mine.

Cheers

Jamie

 

[Tomasso]

[YOUTUBE]Stvw6O3lsAE[/YOUTUBE]

 

[Cigarband]

In the genre of "Homefront" comedies circa 1940s:

"The More The Merrier" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036172/

"Without Reservations" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039110/

"Hail the Conquering Hero" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036891/

"Mr. Winkle Goes To War" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0037095/

"Hollywood Canteen" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0036922/

Post War 1950s Comedies:

"The Tea House Of The August Moon" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0049830/

"Don't Go Near The Water" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050327/

"Wake Me When It's Over" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054455/

"Imitation General" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0051767/

"Operation Mad Ball" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050805/

"You're In The Navy Now" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044224/

"Kiss Them For Me" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050599/

1960s Comedies:

"Cry For Happy" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054772/

"Captain Newman M.D. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056903/

"The Horizontal Lieutenant " http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056079/

 

[Carlisle Blues]

Hi Diddle Diddle (1943), starring Pola Negri, Adolphe Menjou, Martha Scott, Dennis O’Keefe, Billie Burke, June Havoc, Walter Kingsford, Barton Hepburn, Bert Roach, and Lorraine Miller. Produced by Andrew L. Stone Productions.

This was Pola Negri's penultimate appearance in movies.

This movie is remarkable in that it is an anti-WWII propaganda movie that uses comedy as it's vehicle to convey it's message. In fact, "The idea presented in Hi Diddle Diddle is that the war was getting to be so all-consuming that it was taking precedence over everyday life, to the point that the American people couldn’t really do anything without it hinging upon “the war”. Indeed, this was very much a dissenting opinion, all of this was cloaked in humor and stated subtly, with the most overt statement being in the movie’s opening prologue, which is: “This is a factual and authentic document based on the actual conditions existing in the world today. It is admittedly propaganda. It is a picture with a purpose. ‘TRY TO FIND IT’.”

The film uses various tools to reach the audience including that which is shown in the youtube clip below, where most of the main cast end up in Pola’s apartment and do a purposely painful, off-tune Tannhauser sing-along that sends Wagner and his family running for the hills within the wallpaper itself.

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[HadleyH]

Masterpiece of war/comedy it wasn't , but it had its moments! "To Be Or Not To Be" (1983) with Mel Brooks.


quote from the movie:

"Vat do you mean you haven't got proof? Dat is not excuse! Arrezt zem! Vat? Vere? Vy? VEN ??? From now on ven in doubt Arrezt them! Arrezt them! Arrezt them! Zen shoot zem and interrogate zem! Oh, you are right! Just shoot zem!" lol