Directed byNorman Z. McLeod Produced by Herman J. Mankiewicz(uncredited) Written byS. J. Perelman & Will B. Johnstone Starring Groucho Marx
Harpo Marx
Chico Marx
Zeppo Marx
Thelma Todd Music by John Leipold (uncredited) Cinematography Arthur L. Todd Distributed byParamount Pictures Release date 19 September 1931 Running time 77 minutes Country United States Language English
This is the third film that the Marx Bros. made, the one that features them as stowaways on a ship. The film is perhaps a bit more chaotic that the later Marx films but it still has some funny moments. Perhaps the most well known scene in this film is this one…
The only real downer in the film comes in the last fifteen minutes when Chico has his obligatory piano recital and Harpo plucks the harp. Then again these things happen in all Marx Bros. films and one can always press the fast forward button. You can at least be thankful that there is no lame crooner taking up screen time from the Brothers’ antics, which would happen when they went to MGM.
It is a great film although not quite as funny as Duck Soup.
It’s currently available from Target for less than $10 and has just been re-released by Universal as part of their Studio Classics range.
Directed byArchie Mayo Produced by David L. Loew Starring Groucho Marx
Harpo Marx
Chico Marx
Charles Drake Music byBert Kalmar
Harry Ruby
Werner Janssen Distributed byUnited Artists Release date May 10, 1946 (U.S. release) Running time 85 min LanguageEnglish
I finally watched this movie this morning. It was the last film that the Marx Bros. made together and it’s not their greatest of moments. The film does feature a fair bit of the Marx’s trademark humour but other than the hotel room scene, which drags on a little too long, there is nothing that they had not done in earlier films. There are no classic Marx Bros. moments here. The film is primarily about Nazis and stolen Jewish artworks that were hidden in the hotel Casablanca. The plot is a little disjointed and there seems to be a bit too much going on a lot of the time. The Brothers don’t really get too much time to do their gags justice, with the exception of the amusing hotel room scene that I previously mention. That’s not to say that it is a bad movie, it is still more entertaining than anything that Adam Sandler has made in the last decade or so. While it may not be as hilariously funny as Duck Soup or A Night At The Opera it is still very interesting and worth a look.
Directed by Norman Z. McLeod
