The Marx Brothers Collection (A Night at The Opera/A Day at The Races/A Night in Casablanca/Room Service/At the Circus/Go West/The Big Store)

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When it comes to long-awaited treats like The Marx Brothers Collection, you can never get too much of a good thing. These seven comedies can't compare to the sheer lunacy of the five classics (The Cocoanuts, Animal Crackers, Monkey Business, Horse Feathers, and Duck Soup) that the Marx Bros. made for Paramount between 1929 and 1933 (available in The Marx Brothers Silver Screen Collection), but when uber-producer Irving Thalberg signed Groucho, Harpo, and Chico to an MGM contract in 1935 (by which time sibling costar Zeppo had become the team's off-screen manager), he knew just how to cure their box-office blues. As a result, A Night at the Opera and A Day at the Races were critical and commercial hits, lavishly produced according to the "Tiffany" studio's golden-age formula of glamorous set pieces and musical numbers combined with sensible plots that smoothly integrated snappy, well-written Marxian antics. Opera is the jewel of this set, with timeless scenes (the Stateroom, the Groucho-Chico contract negotiation, etc.) that rank among the greatest bits of silver-screen comedy... not to mention Groucho's flirtatious insults at Margaret Dumont's upper-crust expense.

A Day at the Races deserves near-equal acclaim ("Get-a your tootsie-fruitsie ice cream!"), but Thalberg's death in 1937 dealt a devastating blow, and the Marxes suffered from studio indifference, resulting in a succession of comedies that are timelessly enjoyable even as they fall prey to diminishing returns. By the time they made Go West and The Big Store, the Marxes were out of their element, and a few of the musical interludes indulge racial stereotypes that were common in the studio era. Despite this, these movies remain fresh and frantic, and Warner Bros. (holder of the RKO and MGM libraries) has done a marvelous job of packaging The Marx Brothers Collection to nostalgically approximate the filmgoing experience of the 1930s and '40s, with vintage shorts (Our Gang, Robert Benchley comedies, MGM cartoons, etc.) from the time of each feature's original release. Archival materials are slim but worthwhile (especially Groucho's 1961 interview with TV talk-show host Hy Gardner), and while Glenn Mitchell's commentary on Races is sparse and superficial, Leonard Maltin brings his usual superfan's enthusiasm and encyclopedic knowledge to bear on a full-length Opera commentary track. The new documentaries are somewhat redundant, but essential viewing for Marx Bros. neophytes. With all seven films presented in pristine condition, this is definitely a Marx Brothers Collection worth having. --Jeff Shannon

Description

This set includes seven of only thirteen Marx Brothers films ever made! Collection includes: "A Night at the Opera" (1935) - The Marx Brothers turn Mrs. Claypool's opera into chaos in their efforts to help two young hopefuls get a break. It contains the famous scene where Groucho, Chico and Harpo cram a ship's stateroom with wall-to-wall people, gags, one-liners, musical riffs and two hard-boiled eggs. "A Day at the Races" (1937) - Groucho stars as Hugo Z. Hackenbush, a horse veterinarian dispensing horse pills and quips with equal glee. Chico selling racing tips, Harpo destroying a piano to turn it into a harp and favorite foil actress Margaret Dumont make this thoroughbred comedy wall-to-wall hilarity. "A Night in Casablanca" (1946) - This parody of the Bogart/Bergman 1943 classic features the Nazis vs. the "nutsies" as the Marx Brothers foil Axis criminals when they find stolen jewels and paintings Nazis have hidden in a hotel. "Room Service"/"At the Circus" - These two films are combined on one disc to provide double doses of laughter. In "Room Service" (1938), Lucille Ball and Ann Miller provide comic co-star support while the Marx Brothers play producers trying to keep their show above water and a hotel room over their head. In "At the Circus" (1939) Groucho stars as professional shyster lawyer J. Cheever Loophole in the middle of big-top bedlam as the boys try to save the circus and look to Margaret Dumont for the money to do so. Groucho sings one of his famous songs, "Lydia the Tattooed Lady." "Go West"/"The Big Store" - Another Marx Brothers twin bill makes this a hilarious comedy "two-fer." In the first, the Marxmen "Go West" (1940) to the land of outlaws and Indians where the fun never stops and where they outwit a land grabber. In "The Big Store" (1941), Groucho plays Attorney Wolf J. Flywheel who with sidekick Wacky (Harpo) and bodyguard Ravelli (Chico) are investigating the shady dealings of a crooked department store owner. Bonus extras include commentary by Leonard Maltin.

Customer Reviews:

A lot of laughs here.......2007-09-11

This set features the 3 Marx Brothers - Zeppo had left by this time. The first 2 films they did after Zeppo left are both 5 star classics. "Night at the Opera" is famous for its stateroom scene and Chico selling Groucho all the racing programs he'll need in "Day at The Races" are true classics. "Room Service" was not specifically written for the Marx Brothers and it's really not that good for a Marx Brothers movie- 3 stars. "Go West", "At the Circus" and "A Night in Casablanca" are all pretty good although not great- all in the 3.5 to 4 star area, better than "Room Service" but not the equal of their earlier classics. One of the problems with these movies is that MGM put in too much (bad) singing and dancing and less Marx Brothers comedy into these movies. The Brothers were always funny but they were at their best when not weighted down by too many characters and songs that no one cared to hear.
All in all- 4 stars. Some great ones, some very good ones and one just okay movie here.

An honest to goodness classic comedy!!!!!!.......2007-06-14

If you want a good clean entertainment and a good laugh, and a classic fun, then the Marx Brothers are for you.

Classics.......2007-05-24

By today's standards, these films are fairly slow-paced in places. Even some of the jokes seem lame in contrast to today's vulgarity. But if you've never seen the Marx Bros at the top of their game, you've gotta see this collection. Fast forward through the occasional sappy romantic bits if you must. Savor the interaction between Harpo and Chico and Groucho. I promise you'll laugh.

still laughing.......2007-05-13

The best of the Marx Brothers comes alive into our living room . I laughed when I was a kid , and now when my Grandchildren come over , they want to watch the Marx Brothers, and I still laugh at their satire . It's as funny now as it was back in my younger years . I'm glad my Grandchildren love them , and I hope their Grandchildren love the Marx Brothers also . It's hard to find good clean entertainment now days , and these movies are classics . I recommend the Marx Brothers for anyone who needs a laugh , and an afternoon for good entertainment .
Dan F. Meacham

The Marvelous Marx Brothers Collection!.......2007-03-31

This collection showcases some of the Marx Brothers' biggest film hits. Kitty Carlisle (who was a guest on television's "What's My Line?" in the 1960s) does her own operatic singing in "A Night at the Opera." She is interviewed, with Dom DeLuise and others, in a DVD featurette included in this collection, and talks about that wild, wonderful association with the Brothers. An interview with Groucho Marx reveals the true story of what happened in producer Irving Thalberg's office when he made the mistake of keeping the brothers waiting too long for scheduled meetings! These movies are classics and give today's "movies" more than a run for their money! Well worth ordering, viewing, and treasuring forever.

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A Night in Casablanca 1946
You want a manager that doesn't steal money? Good day, gentlemen.
The last great one from the Marx Brothers
Should have been their swan song
"You schweinhund!"

A Night in Casablanca
Starring: Groucho Marx , Harpo Marx , Chico Marx , Charles Drake , and Lois Collier
Director: Archie Mayo
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0001HAIOA
Release Date: 2004-05-04

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A Night in Casablanca may not qualify as a Marx Brothers classic, but it's certainly the best of their latter-day comedies. "This picture is funnier than all but a handful of their earlier ones," wrote the usually cantankerous Pauline Kael, and she's right. The Big Store would have been the final Marx movie, but that disappointment, and an attractive new deal with United Artists, prompted the Marx trio to bring freshly anarchic energy to this post-war spoof of wartime intrigue, prompting Warner Bros. (producers of Casablanca) to threaten legal action over the title, to which Groucho responded, "I am sure that the average movie fan could learn in time to distinguish between Ingrid Bergman and Harpo." As it happens, Night bears only passing resemblance to the Bergman/Bogart classic, with Groucho playing the new manager of a hotel in Casablanca, where several previous managers have been murdered while a scheming villain (Marx regular Sig Rumann) plots to steal the hotel's cache of Nazi treasure. Chico and Harpo are up to their usual antics (including piano and harp interludes, respectively), and they all give Rumann the runaround in the film's funniest and most perfectly choreographed scene. The brothers made their final film together with Love Happy three years later, but as any fan will tell you, A Night in Casablanca was the last Marx comedy that mattered. --Jeff Shannon

Description

Marx Brothers comedy has them ferret out Nazi spies in a Casablanca hotel.

Customer Reviews:

A Night in Casablanca 1946.......2007-08-12

Groucho (1890-1977) , Chico 1887-1961 , Harpo 1888-1964...Uh-oh ! it's the Nazi vs. nutsies when legendary Marx Brothers foils Axis criminals during A NIGHT IN CASABLANCA . As the manager of the hotel swirling in intrigue , Grochy is up to his fake mustache in joyful if unfilled Lechery. Chico -heywatzamatter-becomes Groucho's bodyguard by self-decree. Harpo , pantomime's clown prince, says more whistle and gestures tahn most comics say in pages of dialogue . When this 1946 film began production Warner Bros. threatned suite saying the title infriged upon the studio's famed CASABLANCA . Groucho fired back: *You probably have the rights to use the name WARNER, but what about Brothers ! Professionaly , we were before you were* .Hight Quality Transfer . Recommended

You want a manager that doesn't steal money? Good day, gentlemen. .......2007-02-18

Beatrice Rheiner: I shall be in the Supper Club.
Ronald Kornblow: The Supper Club?
Beatrice Rheiner: Yes. Will you join me?
Ronald Kornblow: Why? Are you coming apart?

The Marx Brothers remain one of the greatest comedy teams the world ever had; and they work hard in this film to keep their reputation. A Night In Casablanca holds your attention and the comedy remains worthy of all five stars. Lisette Verea shines as the Nazi femme fatale in on the plot to transport Nazi loot to a place where the former Allies forces could never reach it; and Sig Ruman turns in a very convincing performance as the inept Nazi spy who couldn't get his shoes tied even if you did it for him while he simply watched.

At first glance the film appears to be based upon the Warner Brother classic entitled Casablanca; but aside from taking place in a hotel in Casablanca the similarities diminish greatly. Groucho Marx plays Ronald Kornblow who takes a job as manager at the Casablanca hotel; Kornblow is unaware that the three previous managers have been murdered in just the last six months. Soon after, however, a hotel worker named Corbaccio, played so ably by Chico Marx, finds out that Kornblow could be murdered, too; and he essentially enlists himself as Kornblow's bodyguard. Meanwhile, the Nazis, led by Nazi spy Heinrich Stubel who masquerades as Count Pfferman, go after much more than Kornblow. The Nazis desperately want stolen treasure hidden in the hotel so they can abscond with it. Can Kornblow, with the help of Corbaccio and Harpo Marx playing the Nazi spy's valet Rusty, thwart the Nazis and prevent them from getting the stolen treasure out of the hotel Ronald Kornblow manages? Will Lisette Verea as the campy Nazi femme fatale Beatrice Rheiner seduce Kornblow so that Stubel can murder Kornblow, too?

The quality of The Marx Brothers' comedy deserves five stars, too. Harpo does a great "collapsing building" gag; and Groucho's one liners will always make you laugh. Harpo even gets a wonderful opportunity to play the harp!

I will not give anything away here, folks, but suffice it to say that the choreography is superlative in Heinrich Stubel's hotel room when he and his Nazi followers want to pack their things to run away with the stolen goods. The ending fight scene at the airport stuns you to the degree at which you couldn't take your eyes off the screen even if you were paid very good money to do so. In addition, the cinematography is excellent; the airport scenes show great forethought and clever planning. The film is in glorious black and white; and I think black and white suits this picture more so than color ever could have. Indeed, black and white serves to add a cracked and campy romantic quality to what is already a hilarious picture. Excellent!

A Night In Casablanca also introduces the song entitled "Who's Sorry Now?" This song went on to become a classic; and the song also subtly refers to the people who are really sorry at the end of the picture.

Unfortunately, the DVD extras don't relate to the film. However, they are enjoyable. There's the short entitled So You Think You're A Nervous Wreck and, of all things, a Bugs Bunny cartoon!

Overall, A Night In Casablanca shines as one of the last great comedies by The Marx Brothers. Fans of The Marx Brothers will love this picture as they laugh their way through it. People who enjoy screwball comedy will also enjoy this movie.

The last great one from the Marx Brothers.......2006-01-03

After a couple of real duds in the early 1940s, the Marx Brothers scored again with this crazy lark about Nazis and hidden jewels in a hotel that Groucho manages. Previous hotelkeeps have been bumped off by Nazi thug Sig Ruman as he attempts to recover stolen jewels and art treasures hidden in the basement, but when Groucho takes the job and hires Chico and Harpo (who runs a camel taxi service) to help him out, Ruman doesn't know what he's in for. Not even vamp accomplice Lisette Verea can work her charms on the boys. Much of the humor sparkles and the picture is right up there with their classics from the '30s. Originally it was supposed to be a spoof of the Bogart-Bergman classic CASABLANCA, but that being small potatoes for the Marxes, they decided to take on the whole war-inspired, melodramatic romantic comedy genre instead. Their last great picture and lots of fun to watch.

Should have been their swan song.......2005-05-29

Of course, this could never compare to their first 7 films, but even considering the general sub-par/hit and miss quality of their post-1937 features, it is pretty good. It is a bit startling at first to see how old the three of them look; of course they were already middle-aged when they made the move from vaudeville to silver screen, and they weren't senior citizens in this film, but the visible aging is still a bit of a shock to behold. Apart from that, it's a very solid enjoyable story, a former Nazi having taken on a secret identity in postwar Casablanca and the efforts made to expose and bring him to justice, with the slight sub-plot of the young soldier Pierre (another bland Zeppo replacement) who knows about the hidden treasure this Nazi has, and that proving it will prove he acted patriotically during the war by crash-landing the plane instead of flying the loot over to South America like he'd been ordered to do at gunpoint. Maybe not as inspired or sharp as their earlier films, but there are some delightful magical moments here, many of them borrowing from gags they'd done years earlier. It should have stayed that way, a poignant swan song and summing up of their entire career, one last magical hurrah, instead of being followed by 1949's abysmal 'Love Happy.'

"You schweinhund!".......2004-06-25

A NIGHT IN CASABLANCA is a film more famous for the correspondence it allegedly provoked (there's a possibility that the entire thing was a publicity stunt) between Groucho Marx and the Warner Brothers' legal department (WB stated they had a claim on 'Casablanca'; Groucho countered with a claim on 'Brothers') than for any of the gags it contained. I think this is a pity as, while it certainly can't compare to the Marx Brothers at their height, it isn't an awful film. In fact, taken on its own merits, it's quite good.

The first thing that struck me when I put on this DVD (this was the first time I'd seen the film) was how much older the Marx Brothers themselves looked, particularly Harpo. His character was always a sort of ageless clown and seeing wrinkles sort of spoilt the illusion for me. On the other hand, Groucho actually looks more in character at this age. It gives him easier access to his "dirty old man" routine, which he played perfectly.

Despite the title (and apparently the original intentions of the filmmakers), the movie doesn't have much to do with the more famous film with a similar name. The action centers in and around a hotel rather than a nightclub (Groucho is now the manager after the last few died under mysterious circumstances). The search is for treasure instead of travel papers. And, of course, instead of Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman as the romantic couple, we have bland Zeppo-replacement and bland Zeppo-replacement's bland girlfriend. Well, we can't have everything.

While most of the secondary cast is uninspired, it is nice to see Sig Ruman and his eye-popping indignation back again after his stints in A NIGHT AT THE OPERA and A DAY AT THE RACES. His over-the-top, sputtering reactions almost make up for the lack of Margaret Dumont. In the sequence where he's trying to pack his suitcases and trunks while the Marx Brothers invisibly impede his progress, he helps turn a great scene into a classic one.

The joke writing in this movie is quite strong compared to some of the other MGM Marx features. In particular, Groucho's one-liners are at full strength; I have this movie on in the background while I type up this review, and I'm catching hilarious little jokes and double entendres that I missed the first time around. And while some of the gags have the hint of unoriginality about them, there's enough that's fresh. Sure, the scene of Harpo pantomiming that Groucho was about to be blackmailed by a femme fatale had already been done in A DAY AT THE RACES, but they wisely don't use the same lines to fuel the jokes (although strangely they do use the same music: both Groucho seduction scenes feature Johann Strauss' "The Blue Danube"). The same is true for the crowded dance-floor sequence that mimics the crowded stateroom scene from A NIGHT AT THE OPERA. Same premise, but different funny jokes.

The DVD extras are nothing special. I suppose someone must be enjoying the vintage cartoons that they're putting on these Marx Brothers DVDs, but that person isn't me. The extras aren't important anyway; unfortunately, they don't add anything to the experience. Picture and sound quality are both excellent for a film of this age.

This movie may come from the less celebrated portion of the Brothers' career, but to my surprise I really enjoyed it. No film can go wrong that features a scene of Harpo Marx grinning madly at the controls of an airplane. If you go in expecting DUCK SOUP, then you might be disappointed. But if you take it for what it is rather than what it isn't, you'll find a film that's funnier than most.

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