The Marx Brothers at MGM

SparkieGojira · **SparkieGojira**

After storming out of Sun Coast after inquiring if the used MGM Marx Brothers box set was correctly priced, after seeing it sitting there for a year, I popped over to Borders to see what the same set was new. I sheepishly returned to Sun Coast and bought their dog eared set.

I'm very much a Duck Soup Marxist.... Although over the years there has been times when I suprised even me in how much pleasure I took from A NIGHT AT THE OPERA or A DAY AT THE RACES. I'm still not done with this box set, but I thought I would share some of my reactions of what I've seen so far...

THE BIG STORE is bad. You know you are in trouble when Harpo's solo is a major hi-light. But gosh the movie is growing on me. It's utter crap of course (Compared to the Paramount films or the first two MGMs).... but very well done crap. I even have to admire THE TENIMENT SYMPHONY for the pretentios bit of crap it is! The only point where the film really grated on me was in the lost children set piece. And when the skating Marx-doubles wore out their welcome.

Other than that, I think our three heroes had a chance to shine. Groucho and Chico seemed much more natural than in their apperance a few years before in...

AT THE CIRCUS

This one has maybe the worse songs in a Marx Brothers MGM Musical ever! TWO BLIND LOVES and the song that ultimately ends up equating the heroine to a horse made me sick!

"Swingali" was not so bad, even it seems now racisist. And I have no idea how that set would fit into the train car it apparently takes place in.

Groucho and Chico seem ill at ease through most of the film for some reason. I was reminded of a very old Chico and Groucho's half hearted performances in that TV pilot they made ages later. Anyone know why?

Both seem in far better form in what I gather was their second to last film at MGM GO WEST.
GO WEST is pretty darn good. Groucho and Chico seem as lively as ever in their scenes playing off each other. I would rank the "You love your brother, don't you?", "No, but I'm use to him." exchange among thier best lines!

I was also kind of impressed by GO WEST's steam locomotive chase finale. It had plenty of images I never would have thought I would ever see.... like a train demolishing a house and so on....

AT THE CIRCUS's gorilla man vs everyone on trapeze left me even more flabergasted.
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battra92 · **battra92**

Dude At the Circus is great if, for nothing else, Lydia the Tattooed Lady.
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