Lubitsch Can't Wait: Philosophical Discussions on Ernst Lubitsch's Film Comedy

Ivana Novak (2014)

Overview

Ernst Lubitsch, a master of Hollywood comedy, is often overlooked in mainstream film theory. This collection features renowned thinkers and philosophers who position Lubitsch as a premier director of subversive cinema. They explore his perspectives on love and politics, connecting them to contemporary issues through Hegelian, Marxist, Freudian, Lacanian, and Deleuzian traditions.

Essays delve into the philosophical, political, and ethical dimensions of Lubitsch's late Hollywood work. Topics include love as theft, the ethics of style, and comedy during austerity in Trouble in Paradise. The collection also examines the nature of comedy, masochism, ideology in Ninotchka, the ethical gesture of comedy in To Be or Not to Be, and the revolutionary spirit of Cluny Brown.

Who it's for

• Students and scholars of film theory and history.
• Fans of Ernst Lubitsch's cinematic work.
• Readers interested in philosophy, politics, and comedy.

Key features

• Paperback edition
• Published by Wiley
• 240 pages
• ISBN: 9789616417846
• Published in 2014