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| Title: DUCK SOUP Year: 1933 Rating: **** |
Heavily influencing comparably-modern classics from Mel Brooks' BLAZING SADDLES to Woody Allen's BANANAS (and even Charlie Chaplin's THE GREAT DICTATOR), The Marx Brothers' DUCK SOUP is by far their greatest movie... with a neatly constructed beginning, middle and end where their perfect straight-person Margaret Dumont forces the fictional country of Freedonia to hire Groucho Marx's Rufus T. Firefly to rule the land...
And while quiet/handsome brother Zeppo is ultimately wasted, once again as Groucho's note-scribbling assistant, and Harpo's role seems rather forced, mostly just cutting things with scissors, Chico, who becomes Groucho's more hands-on sidekick, is of almost equal importance to the quip-spouting, mustached leader...
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Groucho Marx and Chico Marx in DUCK SOUP
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Whose constant barbs are hit and miss, especially since there aren't enough reasons for the insults aimed at Dumont's character since... while not being perfect-looking... she's the one who made him president...
And that's where a wonderful villain in sublime actor Louis Calhern comes in... running an opposing country that wants to take over, he's not only far more deserving of insults but he proves a palpable menace for the brothers to have to work hard against, making DUCK SOUP not only a worthwhile political satire (although Groucho's really not that Mussolini-like, as supposedly intended) but a good story as well: the most important element in any comedy film.
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| Ducks in DUCK SOUP |
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| Louis Calhern and Margaret Dumont in DUCK SOUP |
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| Groucho Marx and Margaret Dumont in DUCK SOUP |
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| Louis Calhern in DUCK SOUP |
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Louis Calhern in DUCK SOUP with Chico and Harpo Marx
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| Groucho Marx in DUCK SOUP |
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| Groucho Marx with Zeppo, Chico and Harpo in DUCK SOUP |
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| Groucho Marx with Zeppo in DUCK SOUP |
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| Groucho Marx with Chico in DUCK SOUP |
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| Groucho Marx with Zeppo in DUCK SOUP |
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| Louis Calhern in DUCK SOUP |
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| Groucho Marx with Zeppo, Chico and Harpo in DUCK SOUP |
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| Zeppo Marx, Louis Calhern and Margaret Dumont in DUCK SOUP |
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| Zeppo Marx and Groucho Marx in DUCK SOUP |
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| Zeppo Marx and Groucho Marx in DUCK SOUP |
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| Zeppo Marx and Groucho Marx in DUCK SOUP |
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| Zeppo Marx and Groucho Marx in DUCK SOUP |
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| Harpo Marx and Groucho Marx in DUCK SOUP |
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Louis Calhern and Margaret Dumont in DUCK SOUP with Groucho Marx and Raquel Torres
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| Louis Calhern in DUCK SOUP |
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| Raquel Torres in DUCK SOUP |
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| Chico Marx in DUCK SOUP |
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| Opening with DUCK SOUP |
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| Groucho Marx with Zeppo, Chico and Harpo in DUCK SOUP |
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