Rating: 
Summary: Fabulous Collection of Marx' Most Popular Years...
Review: For anyone who loves great timeless comedy, I can't think of a finer gift than this collection, period!The most complete collection of the Brothers Marx available (lacking only their classic Paramount quartet, and "Love Happy", Harpo's pet project, and the atypical film swansong of the brothers as a team), the package offers not only their biggest commercial successes ("A Night at the Opera" and "A Day at the Races"), but all the rest of their MGM output, as well as their RKO loanout, "Room Service", based on a Broadway hit which the studio adapted specifically for the brothers, and their 'comeback' film, "A Night in Casablanca" (made to help pay off Chico's gambling debts...but that's ANOTHER story!) While many film 'purists' will say the RKO films were the Marx' greatest artistic triumphs, the brothers, themselves, preferred the MGM films (particularly while under the guidance of Irving Thalberg), and the combination of Marx madness and MGM 'gloss' is hard to beat! Even the 'lesser' efforts ("Go West" and "At the Circus") have moments of sheer insanity, and their final film for the studio ("The Big Store") is nearly as good as "Opera" and "Races". I could go on, but the films are so good that they don't need any more of an endorsement than this: If you are familiar with Groucho, Harpo, and Chico, you'll already be ordering this collection; if you're not, I envy the hours of laughter and discovery you have ahead of you, when you purchase it!
Rating: 
Summary: These Are The Best Available To Warners
Review: ...because "Animal Crackers", "Duck Soup", etc. are owned by Universal who, if they follow the current pattern, will probably cram all 5 Paramount classics on 1 or 2 discs for $20. Until then, they are out of print.
Rating:
Summary: Good but not quite great...
Review: Fans of the Marx Brothers movies have had to wait a long time to finally see their heroes done justice on the DVD format. Image Entertainment released a now out-of-print box set a few years ago with simply awful transfers and no extras. Hopes were raised when Warner Brothers announced that they would be releasing their own box set this year. The good news is that the Warners discs feature excellent transfers of every movie with a solid collection of supplemental material. The bad news is that many of the Marx Brothers most famous and beloved early films, like The Cocoanuts and Animal Crackers are not included set. So what exactly does one get with this new box set? The first film in the set is A Night at the Opera, arguably one of the Marx Brothers best films of their career. It was the first film after they were pushed out of Paramount Studios because of the commercial and critical failure of Duck Soup. Opera was a huge hit and put the Marx Brothers back on the map. They wisely followed it up with another Thalberg collaboration, A Day at the Races. Sadly, Thalberg died suddenly before the movie was completed and the Marx Brothers films would never achieve the same greatness. No longer under the producer's protective presence, the Marx Bros. were effectively at the studio's mercy. They put them out to pasture metaphorically speaking. This may explain why the Marx Bros. made Room Service for RKO instead of MGM in 1938. At the Circus marked the Marx Brothers' return to MGM and is not one of their greatest moments but isn't awful either. Go West begins with a very funny scene in which Chico and Harpo milk Groucho out of most of his money. However, all three eventually appear in the Old West without any logical explanation on how they got there. Touted as their "first farewell film," The Big Store is a bit of a lackluster affair but does have its moments. Upon completion of The Big Store, Harpo planned to retire, Groucho was going to focus on his radio career and Chico was going to form a big band. However, after World War II they reformed to make two more films, one of which rounds out the box set--A Night at Casablanca. As one would expect, the bulk of substantial extras are on the discs for the Marx Brothers' most popular films, A Night at the Opera and A Day at the Races. Each DVD features several short films, some animated, some not and a theatrical trailer for each movie. Here are some of the highlights. The A Night at the Opera DVD features an audio commentary by film historian, Leonard Maltin. He lays it down right from the start that his track will not be a dry, academic analysis of the Marx Brothers' comedy. He delivers an enthusiastic commentary that is also informative. "Remarks on Marx" is a 33-minute look at the Marx Brothers' legacy. It not only explains where they got their nicknames but also examines their anarchic brand of comedy. A Day at the Races features an audio commentary by Glenn Mitchell, author of The Marx Brothers Encyclopedia. This is a vastly informative track as Mitchell talks at length about the backgrounds of actors Allan Jones and Margaret O'Sullivan. "On Your Marx, Get Set, Go!" is a look at the film and briefly explores the volatile relationship between the Marx Brothers and the film's director, Sam Wood. The extras on the Room Service disc are pretty slim. Aside from a vintage radio promo for Go West, there is little of relevance to the movie itself in the supplemental section. Fans of the Marx Brothers are in for a real treat with this box set that covers the last eleven years of their careers. The transfers for each film are fantastic and a definite improvement over the Image box set. While the extras tend to get slimmer and less relevant in their later films, the ones for A Night at the Opera and A Day at the Races are excellent. The audio commentaries, especially, are a must-listen for any Marx Bros. fan. One hopes that their early output of films will receive the same excellent treatment.
Rating:
Summary: HALF EMPTY OR HALF FULL?
Review: While I share the disappointment of all the best Marx Brothers not being present in this boxed set, I must point out 2 things. First, it's good to finally have any Marx Brothers movies released and readily available on DVD. And second, if the ones most people are whining about were released together in the first boxed set, who would buy the second? Case in point, how many of the 3 different boxed sets of James Bond DVDs do you thing MGM would have moved if they had released all of the Sean Connery films in the first set? Be happy that this set contains 7 of 13 movies that the Marx Brothers filmed and that the next boxed set should contain the final 6. Then you'll have to find something else to snivel about. So, is the glass half empty or half full? You decide.
Rating:
Summary: WOW! THE BROTHERS NEVER LOOKED SO GREAT!
Review: A superb set with sparkling new video transfers from Warner Brothers make this a must-have for collectors. To me, the Marx Bros. were the greatest comedy team to ever hit the screen, and their greatest films are the highlight of this set (A NIGHT AT THE OPERA and A DAY AT THE RACES). Both films have had their share of wear and tear over the years, having been shipped off to theaters for decades. Previous versions have looked O.K., but these DVD's are the best the films have probably looked in decades. I'm very impressed. The extras are marvelous, too. Especially the new documentaries.
How wonderful to see Kitty Carlisle share her experiences working with the boys. A true treat!
Rating: 
Summary: GREAT SET! THESE FILMS HAVE NEVER LOOKED BETTER!
Review: If you love the Marx Bros., you're going to be in heaven with this boxed set. I know I am. This package has been beautifully assembled, and these films, all of which I've seen countless times in theaters, and owned on both VHS and Laserdisc, have NEVER LOOKED BETTER. Experts within the film community, such as Robert A. Harris (who is known for his restoration work on films such as NAPOLEON and LAWRENCE OF ARABIA) have praised this set, pointing out that the earlier Marx Bros. films were reissued so many times (in the era when there were not high quality duping stocks) that the film elements became worn. Every time I saw A NIGHT AT THE OPERA in the past, it looked particularly ragged. This is no longer the case! WB has done a remarkable job here with not only A NIGHT AT THE OPERA, but ALL the films in the collection looking, and sounding better than ever before. Given the age and history of these films, it is amazing what the wizards at Warner have done. The supplementary materials are a delight. A festival of fun cartoons, shorts and two new documentaries that are well-produced and quite fascinating. The commentary on OPERA by Leonard Matin conveys his trademark enthusiasm, and is quite informative. The commentary on RACES by Glenn Mitchell is a little more on the academic side, but highly entertaining. You can't miss with this first-class release.
Rating: 
Summary: DISAPPOINTING TRANSFERS RUIN THIS BOX SET
Review: After a career in Vaudeville and a film tenure at Paramount Pictures, MGM signed Groucho, Chico and Harpo to a studio contract under the inspired tutelage of Irving Thalberg. Thalberg so believed in the comedic genius of The Marx Brothers that he fashioned two lavish spectacles, "A Night At The Opera" and "A Day At The Races" to showcase their formidable talents. Unfortunately, with Thalberg's premature death came budgetary restrictions a la Louis B. Mayer. It seems Mayer and Groucho had a disagreement while Thalberg was still alive. Mayer never forgot it. Thus the production values on "The Big Store", "A Night in Casablanca", "Room Service, "Go West", "In The Circus" lag behind the Thalberg masterpieces.
THE TRANSFERS: In a word - INCONSISTENT. "A Night At The Opera" is the worst of the bunch. Suffering from a host of age related artifacts (including nicks, chips, scratches, dirt) the video quality is also hampered by significant edge enhancement, aliasing and pixelization. Contrast levels are poorly balanced in many of the scenes taking place inside the opera house. Film grain and digital grit are glaringly present in long shots. Close-ups fair slightly better. The audio is also poorly balanced for a strident sounding Mono - particularly with the operatic sequences - they are shrill on the ears and rather painful to listen to - even at low listening levels. "A Day At The Races" fairs marginally better on all accounts than "A Night At The Opera" - though every problem I have previously mentioned applies here as well. The remaining films in the collection are remarkably cleaner than these two - presumably because they received less play time and, as a result, were better preserved. The rest of the films feature a nicely balanced gray scale, solid blacks, remarkable clarity and fine detail throughout.
EXTRAS: Two very comprehensive documentaries - one with Kitty Carlysle, as well as a host of short subjects, both live action and animated. There's also a thoroughly engaging audio commentary for "A Night At The Opera" and "A Day At The Races".
BOTTOM LINE: More was, and should have been, expected from Warner Brothers for this box set. It isn't enough to simply give us the Marx Brothers on DVD. We want them in mint condition!
Rating: 
Summary: SHOULD HAVE HAD BETTER FILMS
Review: The 1st "Marx Brothers Collection" from Amazon did not have ONE film- which they neglected to tell! This one leaves out THE BEST of their films!
Rating:
Summary: I love the marx brothers
Review: I was so happy when I got the box collection at Best Buy tonight . I wanted to get this because I love the movies of the marx brothers & they are so funny. I just can't wait for the other ones to come out soon in a collection.
Rating:
Summary: 3 movies are better than none.
Review: I think A Day at The Races is their best movie, and Go West is very good and very underated. A Night At The Opera is considered by a lot of people to be their #1 movie, I rate it #3 on this set. The other 4 movies are so so. Just happy to have Marx Brothers on DVD.
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