Amazon.com essential video: Absolutely one of the most hilarious movies ever made, this classic farce featuring the outrageous genius of the Marx Brothers is a chance to see some of their best bits woven together seamlessly in a story of high society, matchmaking, and chaos. In order to bring two young lovers together, brothers Groucho, Chico, and Harpo must sabotage an opera performance even as they try to pass themselves off as stuffed shirts. Featuring the classic sequence where Groucho piles as many people as possible into a ship's stateroom, A Night at the Opera is a deliciously zany romp worth watching again and again. --Robert Lane
Great package of hilarious comedy When the Marx Brothers came to MGM in 1935, boy wonder producer Irving Thalberg had the good commercial sense to package them in a genuine musical comedy. Their anarchic comedy may have been slightly better served in some earlier Paramount comedies but never were they better showcased than here, their most popular film because of the balance of entertainment on offer and the quality of the production values provided by MGM, the Rolls Royce of film studios at the time.
For those who know the Marx Brothers, there is little to say. Furthermore, there are lots of excellent Amazon reviews which can fill you in. For those younger people who may not know the team, do yourself a favour and watch this film. You may baulk at the love interest sub plot and the music but don't miss some of the very best comedy ever - the stateroom sequence is as hilarious today as it was when it first appeared. The Brothers were specialists at sending up pomposity and convention and setting them among the New York Opera set was inspired.
This lovingly produced DVD is a comprehensive package. The print is excellent and there is a beautifully paced commentary from Leonard Maltin. Maltin sensibly confines his comments to suitable background information and sheer pleasure at the delights on view. It was particularly interesting to learn that the film was cut when it was reissued during World War 2 when every reference to Italy was removed. I have never understood why the film starts so abruptly and now I do. I can't help but hope that the cut footage may one day re-appear.
There is a documentary too the best of which has clips of Kitty Carlisle Hart who played the romantic lead. Ms Hart was a very elegant elderly woman with excellent memories of the film and its subsequent elevation to genuine classic - delightful. Dom Deluise appears too and he is embarassing.
The package includes a Robert Benchley short which is droll and amusing and an Oscar winner. The other short is a promotion for the Trocadero restaurant and it is worth seeing singer Connie Boswell but the rest is awful. Last of all, there is a portion of a TV interview with Groucho in which he tells my favourite Marx Brothers story. Don't miss it.
This is an excellent package of a timeless comedy.
Classic Comedy!!! I happened to catch this on tv the other day and I thought it was pretty good. Groucho Marx is extremely funny! I need to see more of his material eventually, but that's another story for another time. Groucho plays Otis B. Driftwood, which was used in Rob Zombie's 'The Devil's Rejects' Groucho, Harpo, and Chico screw up an opera until Riccardo and Rosa become known. If you love classic comedy, you'll love A NIGHT AT THE OPERA!!!
The best film ever... The opera finale is the greatest comic scene ever put on film. Throughout, all aspects of human activity are reduced to absurdist rubble by the brothers. Economically told with musical scenes that are well integrated. Pay close attention to Groucho's sexual innuendo throughout.
NIGHT AT THE OPERA Certainly one of the finest Marx Brothers comedies, which are themselves among the finest Hollywood productions, with script by George S. Kaufmann. The three characters are admirably seconded by Margaret Dumont, the unflappable grande dame, and the great character actor, Herbert Gottlieb. Kitty Carlisle [Hart] and Allan Jones do a wonderful duet ALONE. It is no wonder that T.S.Eliot, when he met Groucho, could only talk about this film.
classic Marx............ For those of you looking for a great introduction to the brilliant physical comedy (as well as one liners) from the late, great, and legendary Marx Brothers, this film is for you! A NIGHT AT THE OPERA is nothing short of hilarious, as well as beautiful to listen to! This features soprano Kitty Carlisle, as a young opera star, who runs into the Marx Brothers along the way--or, specifically Otis B. Driftwood (Groucho Marx), a "hanger on" who continues to pursue an elderly socialite, Mrs. Claypool (Margaret Dumont). He and his rowdy crew of accomplices--er, assistants--help to bring the beautiful opera singer together with her lover, as well as with critical acclaim. What's more, some of the most beautiful and well-known opera arias are interspersed between the zany shenanigans (this includes "The Anvil Chorus" and "Miserere" from IL TROVATORE).
Some of the scenes from this film have often been replicated in films, as well as television, but no one does it quite as well as the Marx Brothers. They truly put the physical comedians of today to shame. There is a reason that A NIGHT AT THE OPERA has been the recipient of numerous honors on top film lists. Be sure to see it. I have no doubt that you will enjoy it!
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