Many of the glowing reviews here are a bit puzzling in that they praise this movie's 'satire'. I saw very little satire here worth noting; the entire opening act was a series of increasingly shrill set-pieces with scant laughs in between. People who see this as satire poking fun at patriotism or whatever are, I think, reading too much into it.
But then something happens. The movie starts to get funny! It's all in the momentum; situations of absurdity begin to build and spiral out of control, even culminating in Hitler. I'd say the second half provides more laughs then can be found in any other individual Preston Sturges film, and indeed, any comedy made after the 1980s.
But then something happens. The movie starts to get funny! It's all in the momentum; situations of absurdity begin to build and spiral out of control, even culminating in Hitler. I'd say the second half provides more laughs then can be found in any other individual Preston Sturges film, and indeed, any comedy made after the 1980s.