IT CAME FROM THE BOTTOM SHELF!

I have long been a fan of Ernst Lubitsch’s romantic and satirical comedies, with Trouble in Paradise (1932) and To Be or Not to Be (1942) being particular favorites.  However, to be honest, before Kino Lorber announced that they would release Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife on Blu-ray, I had never heard of Lubitsch’s 1938 film.  Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife is a title that is rarely discussed today, and that’s a pity, because it is an absolute delight.  What’s more, it packs more laughs in its 85-minute running time than most romantic comedies made prior to the directorial run of Preston Sturges.

Set on the French Riviera (mostly through back projection), the story concerns an American tycoon, Michael Brandon (Gary Cooper), who has a “meet cute” with Nicole Loiselle (Claudette Colbert), the daughter of a destitute Marquis (Edward Everett Horton), over the purchase of a pair of pajamas.  He just wants the tops.  She just wants the bottoms.  The sleepwear purchase goes fairly smoothly compared to other negotiations between the couple, especially when Nicole learns that Michael was previously married seven times, followed by seven quick divorces.  Although attracted to the multi-divorcee, Nicole is determined to teach the spoiled matrimaniac that there are some things that his millions can’t buy.

Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife is a bit of an anomaly in Lubitsch’s filmography.  While most of his movies involved romance and battles between the sexes, this is the only time Lubitsch made a film that can truly be labeled “screwball.”  The film is faster, a bit more biting, and loonier than the director’s other films.  Some of the director’s biggest fans consider Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife to be lesser Lubitsch, and some critics have knocked the film as not being as sophisticated as the director’s other efforts.  Personally, I disagree.  Lunacy and sophistication are not mutually exclusive.  While Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife may be cheekier than other Lubitsch titles, it is no less clever.

First amongst the movie’s superlatives is the snappy script by Charles Brackett and Billy Wilder (with uncredited contributions by Lubitsch).  The screenplay expertly tiptoes around the limits of the production code, while remaining subversive and suggestive.  More importantly, the dialogue contains numerous “laugh out loud” lines — more than any other Lubitsch film I’ve screened.  This was the first teaming of Brackett and Wilder, who would find greater acclaim with their next screenplay for Lubitsch, Ninotchka (1939).  Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife was an excellent start for a writing team that would continue to collaborate into Wilder’s directorial career, through Sunset Boulevard (1950).

The cast is equal to the material on the page.  Gary Cooper uses his natural stiffness to great comic effect and is allowed to break out a smirk or two; and Claudette Colbert is more than his match in terms of comedic chops and sexiness.  They are aided by top supporting talent (any film that boasts both Edward Everett Horton and Franklin Pangborn can’t be bad), and a scene-stealing performance by a baby-faced David Niven.

Taken altogether, Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife is a richly rewarding comedy that deserves to be better known.  The film is one of my most enjoyable first-time watches of 2020, and the new Blu-ray release from Kino Lorber Studio Classics is one of my favorite discs to come out this year.

USA/B&W-85m./Dir: Ernst Lubitsch/Wr: Charles Brackett & Billy Wilder (Based on a play by Alfred Savoir, adapted in English by Charlton Andrews)/Cast: Claudette Colbert, Gary Cooper, Edward Everett Horton, David Niven, Elizabeth Patterson, Herman Bing, Warren Hymer, Franklin Pangborn, Armand Cortes, Rolfe Sedan

For Fans of: If you love the screwball comedies of Preston Sturges, I think you’ll also find this particular Lubitsch film to be especially appealing.  I’d also encourage fans of both Ernst Lubitsch and Billy Wilder to check out this lesser-known title in their filmographies.

Video: Kino Lorber Studio Classics will release a Blu-ray of Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife on March 31st. While there is no mention of a new restoration, the picture looks fantastic.  There are a few random scratches or speckles, but the image is sharp, bright, and silvery, with authentic film grain.  It may not be absolutely pristine, but it’s awfully close.  The DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 mono is also quite clear, and both the dialogue and bouncy score sound terrific.

Special Features include:

• A new audio commentary by film historian Kat Ellinger, which is extremely entertaining and informative.  She mentions that she is working on a book on screwball comedy, and based on this commentary, I can’t wait to read the book.
• The original theatrical trailer for Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife, as well as bonus trailers for Since You Went Away (1944), The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935), Beau Geste (1939), Separate Tables (1958), Man of the West (1958), and A Foreign Affair (1948).

Streaming: At the time of this review, Bluebeard’s Eighth Wife was unavailable to stream on any of the major subscription services.  It was also unavailable to download as a digital rental or purchase.

More to Explore: Several of Ernst Lubitsch’s classic comedies have already made the leap to Blu-ray, including Design for Living (1933), Ninotchka (1939), To Be or Not to Be (1942), Heaven Can Wait (1943), and Cluny Brown (1946).  You can’t go wrong with any of them.

Trivia: The play that served as the source material for Lubitsch’s film was adapted during the silent era as Bluebeard’s 8th Wife (1923), starring Gloria Swanson.  The silent version did not include the “meet cute” involving pajamas, as that particular idea sprung from the fact that Billy Wilder slept in pajama tops without the bottoms.  Unfortunately, no prints of the 1923 version are known to exist.

For More Info: For more information on Ernst Lubitsch and his career, I’d recommend Scott Eyman’s biography Ernst Lubitsch: Laughter in Paradise and Joseph McBride’s film study How Did Lubitsch Do It?