Ernst Lubitsch
Ernst Lubitsch (
January 28,
1892 â€"
November 30,
1947), was a
German-born
Jewish film director. His movies were witty and sophisticated, with a fine and malicious sexuality: in all of them there is the famous "Lubitsch touch", that is an unconventional way to make a picture, based on his sarcastic sense of humour and his scornful view of life.
Born in
Berlin, Lubitsch had turned his back on his father's tailoring business to enter the theater, and by
1911 he was a member of
Max Reinhardt's Deutsches Theater. His first film work came in
1912 as an actor. Gradually, he abandoned acting to concentrate on directing and in
1918 he made his mark as a serious director with
Die Augen der Mumie Ma (The Eyes of the Mummy), a tragic drama starring
Pola Negri. Lubitsch subsequently alternated between
escapist comedies and grand-scale historical dramas; he enjoyed great international success with both. His reputation as a grand master of world cinema reached a new peak after the release of his spectacles
Madame Du Barry (Passion, 1919) and
Anna Boleyn (Deception, 1920).
Lubitsch left
Germany for
Hollywood in
1922, invited by
Mary Pickford. She allowed Lubitsch to sign with
Warner Bros., where he established his reputation for sophisticated comedy with such stylish films as
The Marriage Circle (1924),
Lady Windermere's Fan (1925), and
So This Is Paris (1926). In
1928, when sound arrived in
Hollywood, Lubitsch joined
Paramount Pictures.
With his first talkie,
The Love Parade (1929), starring
Maurice Chevalier and
Jeanette MacDonald, Lubitsch hit his stride as a maker of worldly musical comedies (and got himself another
Oscar nomination). With the beginning of the sound era, he created witty and sarcastic dialogue, and malicious and bizarre comedic situations.
The Love Parade (1929),
Monte Carlo (1930), and
The Smiling Lieutenant (1931) were hailed by critics as masterpieces of the newly emerging musical genre.
But whether with music, as in
MGM's opulent
The Merry Widow (1934), or without, as in Paramount's delicious
Trouble in Paradise (1932),
One Hour with You (1932) and
Design for Living (1933), Lubitsch continued to specialize in sophisticated comedy. He made only one other dramatic film, an antiwar picture, titled
Broken Lullaby (aka
The Man I Killed, 1932).
In
1935 he was appointed that studio's
production manager and subsequently produced his own films and supervised the production of films of other directors.
In
1939, Lubitsch moved to
MGM, and directed
Greta Garbo in
Ninotchka, a satirical comedy in which the famously sullen actress' laughing scene was heavily promoted by studio publicists with the tagline "Garbo Laughs!"
Then he directed the delightful
The Shop Around the Corner (1940), with
James Stewart and
Margaret Sullavan as a pair of bickering coworkers in Budapest, each unaware that the other is their secret romantic correspondent.
Lubitsch went independent to direct
That Uncertain Feeling (1941, a remake of his
1925 film
Kiss Me Again), and the dark anti-
Nazi farce
To Be or Not to Be (1942),
Carole Lombard's last picture.
Lubitsch spent the balance of his career at
20th Century Fox, but a heart condition curtailed his activity. The last picture made by the director with his distinctive "touch" was
Heaven Can Wait (1943), an elegant and ironic comedy. The plot is about Henry Van Cleve (played by
Don Ameche) who presents himself at the gates of Hell only to find he is closely vetted on his qualifications for entry; surprised there is any question on his suitability, he recounts his lively life and the women he has known from his mother onwards, but mainly concentrating on his happy but sometimes difficult twenty-five years of marriage to Martha (played by
Gene Tierney).
In March of
1947 Ernst Lubitsch was awarded a special
Academy Award for his "25-year contribution to motion pictures". He died later that year in
Hollywood of a heart attack, his sixth. His last film,
That Lady in Ermine, with
Betty Grable, was completed by
Otto Preminger and released posthumously in
1948.
At Lubitsch's
funeral, fellow star director
Billy Wilder said sadly, "No more Lubitsch," and
William Wyler responded, "Worse than that. No more Lubitsch pictures".
Silent Films:
*
The Marriage Circle (1924)
*
Lady Windermere's Fan (1929)
*
The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg (
1927) - starring
Ramón Novarro and
Norma Shearer*
Eternal Love (1929)
Sound Films:
*
The Love Parade (1930) - musical
*
Monte Carlo (1930) - musical
*
The Smiling Lieutenant (1932) - musical
*
One Hour with You (1932) - musical
*
Trouble in Paradise (1932)
*
Design for Living (1933)
*
The Merry Widow (1934) - musical
*
Desire (1936) - Producer only
*
Angel (1937)
*
Bluebeard's Eighth Wife (1938)
*
Ninotchka (1939) - starring
Greta Garbo*
The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
*
That Uncertain Feeling (1941)
*
To Be or Not to Be (1942)
*
Heaven Can Wait (1943)
*
A Royal Scandal (1945)
*
Cluny Brown (1946)
*
That Lady in Ermine (1948)
*
*
Ernst Lubitsch's Gravesite
