Monkey Business ***** (1931, Marx Brothers, Thelma Todd, Ruth Hall) – Classic Movie Review 2156

Director Norman Z McLeod’s expert and delirious 1931 comedy stars the riotous four Marx Brothers, who are on or near their best form in their hectic and often hilarious third film. It comes close to rivalling Duck Soup as their best movie. The Marxes are all at sea as loveably annoying, disruptive stowaways on a cruise liner on a transatlantic crossing  to America, who effortlessly upset everyone on board the ship with their daft antics.

They involuntarily get involved with a pair of feuding gangsters, who press them into service as tough guys, meanwhile desperately trying to evade the ship’s crew. Groucho pursues Lucille (Thelma Todd), the beautiful young wife of a gangster who wants to kill another mobster called Joe Helton (Rockcliffe Fellowes), whose daughter Mary (Ruth Hall) is being romanced by Zeppo. Eventually, on dry land in America, one of the gangsters kidnaps the other’s daughter and the Marx Brothers have to save the day.

It is fast-paced and amusing throughout, but the highlight is the especially inspired screwball stuff aboard the ship and the brilliant scene where they impersonate Maurice Chevalier to get through customs and immigration. .

Written by Arthur Sheekman, this is the Marx Brothers’ first original movie script, with the story written by the famous great humourist S J Perelman, Will B Johnstone and Roland Pertwee.

Also in the cast are Tom Kennedy, Harry Woods, Ben Taggart, Otto Fries, Evelyn Pierce and Maxine Castle.

The opening credits are painted on the sides of barrels, with the Marx Brothers hiding in barrels marked Kippered Herring.

http://derekwinnert.com/duck-soup-1933-marx-brothers-classic-movie-review-1405/

© Derek Winnert 2015 Classic Movie Review 2156

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com/