At the Circus. 1939 MGM/Turner Entertainment.
Starring: The Marx Brothers (Groucho, Chico, Harpo), Kenny Baker, Florence Rice, James Burke, Margaret Dumont, Nat Pendleton, Eve Arden
Director: Edward Buzzell
Available as part of the Marx Brothers Collection from Amazon.
Circus owner Jeff Wilson (Baker) is in danger of losing his business to a crooked creditor named Carter (Burke) and his two accomplices Goliath the Strongman (Pendleton) and Little Professor Atom (Jerry Maren). Wilson's assistant Antonio (Chico) takes it upon himself to enlist the help of an attorney called J. Cheever Loophole (Groucho), as well as another circus performer, Punchy (Harpo). Carter and his men aren't the only ones looking to take over the circus; aerialist Peerless Pauline (Arden) has also aligned herself with them. Wilson is mugged in the animal car and robbed of $10,000 with only one witness: a gorilla. It's up to Loophole, Antonio and Punchy to save the circus as only the Marx Brothers can...and that does involve Groucho running rings around a slightly bewildered Margaret Dumont (who plays Wilson's wealthy aunt, Mrs. Dukesbury). Will the gorilla come into play?
One of the film's musical numbers is "Lydia the Tattooed Lady", which became one of Groucho's signature songs, and it also references Captain Spaulding from Animal Crackers. Buster Keaton also worked on the film, contributing various sight gags, which did not mesh well with the Marx Brothers' style of comedy. During an argument, Keaton told Groucho that he's only doing what he's being paid to do, and that "you guys don't need help".
Recommended, of course, but it isn't the greatest Marx Brothers movie out there.
Showing posts with label edward buzzell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label edward buzzell. Show all posts
Friday, November 27, 2009
Friday, December 5, 2008
Go West
Go West. 1940 MGM/Turner Entertainment.
Starring: The Marx Brothers (Groucho, Chico, Harpo), John Carroll, Diana Lewis
Uncredited Writer: Buster Keaton
Director: Edward Buzzell
Buy Go West with The Big Store at Amazon.
This is the movie that made me fall in love with the brothers Marx a few years ago, and it's not even their best one.
Groucho plays S. Quentin Quale, a confidence man looking to make his way out west, only to get duped by the brothers Joseph and Rusty Panello (Chico and Harpo) in a hilarious scene at a train station where the con man loses every penny. The Panello brothers are also looking to "go west", where they hear that you can literally pick up the nuggets of gold off the streets.
The main plot of the film involves a place called Dead Man's Gulch, whose main value is not gold, but a decent territory for an expanding railroad to build through, and how the fate of the land will affect the feud between two families, the Wilsons and the Turners. Not only that, but Dan Wilson and Eva Turner are deeply in love, making things even more complicated, and Dan hopes that the sale of Dead Man's Gulch will end the feud for good.
Go West ends with a hysterical chase scene involving a train. I have read elsewhere that the last fifteen minutes of the movie were sold separately in the early days of the home video market. The scene is actually worth the price of the film itself.
Very highly recommended. Back soon!
Starring: The Marx Brothers (Groucho, Chico, Harpo), John Carroll, Diana Lewis
Uncredited Writer: Buster Keaton
Director: Edward Buzzell
Buy Go West with The Big Store at Amazon.
This is the movie that made me fall in love with the brothers Marx a few years ago, and it's not even their best one.
Groucho plays S. Quentin Quale, a confidence man looking to make his way out west, only to get duped by the brothers Joseph and Rusty Panello (Chico and Harpo) in a hilarious scene at a train station where the con man loses every penny. The Panello brothers are also looking to "go west", where they hear that you can literally pick up the nuggets of gold off the streets.
The main plot of the film involves a place called Dead Man's Gulch, whose main value is not gold, but a decent territory for an expanding railroad to build through, and how the fate of the land will affect the feud between two families, the Wilsons and the Turners. Not only that, but Dan Wilson and Eva Turner are deeply in love, making things even more complicated, and Dan hopes that the sale of Dead Man's Gulch will end the feud for good.
Go West ends with a hysterical chase scene involving a train. I have read elsewhere that the last fifteen minutes of the movie were sold separately in the early days of the home video market. The scene is actually worth the price of the film itself.
Very highly recommended. Back soon!
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