The Unknown Marx Brothers

Rating:
Summary: Hooray For Captain Spaulding!
Review: As a biography of the Marx Brothers, the documentary does a competent if not excellent job. There are numerous interviews with their few surviving friends and various Marx offspring. But if you're looking for an in-depth, detailed portrait of how they lived their lives, then I would recommend reading one of the numerous books that have been published on the subject (Harpo's autobiography HARPO SPEAKS! is particularly worthy, especially on their childhood and pre-movie period).

That said, where this program shines is when it displays various pieces of scratchy old footage. Whether it was seeing Harpo's first role in a recently discovered silent movie, or an elderly Groucho trading barbs with Bill Cosby, the clips here are gems. Included here is material shot for the aborted Marx Brothers 50's TV series which (if not for Chico's deteriorating health) would have featured Groucho, Harpo, and Chico as guardian angels (the theological implications of this are astounding). There are also a few of the commercials that Harpo did for Labatt's Beer. As his son points out in one of the interviews, they're the most surreal advertisements you're likely to see. The bulk of this footage (and the documentary itself) consists of their public and television appearances after their movie careers had ended.

The DVD also contains a few outtakes from Groucho's YOU BET YOUR LIFE television show. Relatively tame by today's standards (a sample, which was too raunchy for those early days of television: "You met your wife in the dark-room? Was she well developed?"), but funny all the same. Groucho's quick wit gets him into trouble with the overbearing censors of the era, and as a disapproving contestant on You Bet Your Life tells him, "That's going to be censored, Groucho." The despondent reply: "I know."

This isn't the place to go if you want to spend a couple of hours convulsed with laughter. But it is a wonderful, if light, look at the career of the Marx Brothers. The production of the documentary has a slightly cheap feel to it, and Leslie Neilson's narration is a little flat. But while it can't compete with the volumes of books written on the subject, it does do one thing that the prose can't -- show us the Brothers in action. And with material that you're not likely to have seen anywhere else, this is invaluable for any fan of the Marx Brothers.

Rating:
Summary: Could Have Been So Much Better
Review: I have seen all of the Marx Brothers movies except for Love Happy (which I heard was unfortunately not that great). I got this DVD for Christmas and really enjoyed it. It shows a lot of Marx tv segments, which are very funny and enjoyable. Unfortunately, even though there is a great deal of information, there is a lot that has been omitted which probably help improve the quality of the documentary. It mentions the Algonquin once, barely speaks of Zeppo or Gummo, and doesn't even discuss the movies that much either. It may say one or two things about The Cocoanuts and Animal Crackers, but says nothing at all about some films such as Monkey Business or Love Happy. Anothers thing is that it rarely even mentions the brothers personal lives. Overall it is a good DVD, but it is sadly almost as much of a dissapointment as it is a joy.

Rating:
Summary: Could Have Been So Much Better
Review: I have seen all of the Marx Brothers movies except for Love Happy (which I heard was unfortunately not that great). I got this DVD for Christmas and really enjoyed it. It shows a lot of Marx tv segments, which are very funny and enjoyable. Unfortunately, even though there is a great deal of information, there is a lot that has been omitted which probably help improve the quality of the documentary. It mentions the Algonquin once, barely speaks of Zeppo or Gummo, and doesn't even discuss the movies that much either. It may say one or two things about The Cocoanuts and Animal Crackers, but says nothing at all about some films such as Monkey Business or Love Happy. Anothers thing is that it rarely even mentions the brothers personal lives. Overall it is a good DVD, but it is sadly almost as much of a dissapointment as it is a joy.

Rating:
Summary: Hard for me to not give it 5 stars...
Review: I love The Marx Brothers, so it's hard for me to not give this 5 stars. Between the rare clips, the interviews, etc - I think it's a very good documentary.

Sure, like others have said here, there are some things which should have been included here that weren't. However, that's almost always the case with documentaries about entertainers.

What I like most about this production is that it was obviously made with a lot of love and respect for the brothers.

If you're a Marx Brothers fan, chances are very good that you'll enjoy this.

Rating:
Summary: A Big Fat Slab of Marx History
Review: I loved this DVD because it holds so much unseen stuff. Home movies of Harpo and footage from Groucho's television show and loads of other interesting bits. This DVD is a big fat slab of Marx history. It's the very darts. If you liked the Louvish Marx biog or the Kanfer Groucho biog, you're pretty much likely to enjoy this DVD.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful!
Review: If you loved seeing this on television, the DVD, with its added material is a must. Ultra-rare clips, great transfer-Marx Brothers fans need look no further!

Rating:
Summary: The Unknown Marx Brothers
Review: It started out strong...for the first ten minutes. It would bring up topics, but would not follow through with the complete story or visuals. More film footage is needed. Especially when Harpo talked at his retirement show. It had an out of order sequence of events. Also, it did not state when each brother passed away. Overall it was a big disappointment.

Rating:
Summary: Rare clips of the Marx Brothers in this PBS documentary
Review: This 1993 PBS documentary gets beyond the films of the Marx Brothers to look at not only their careers but their lives. Finally getting to see a clip of Harpo from the long-lost silent film he did in 1925 is the biggest treat, although there are lots of home movies and clips from television programs and commercials the brothers did after their film careers ended. Toss into the mix the standard interviews with family, friends and business associates to flesh out the details and "The Unknown Marx Brothers" provides an above-average look at one of the great comedy teams of all-time. If you are to the point where you can recite the entire "why a duck" routine from Coconuts" or can perform either part of the mirror sequence from "Duck Soup," then you should thoroughly enjoy this DVD, which also includes outtakes from "You Bet Your Life" and a feature that allows you to see additional film clips at key points during the documentary. This would make a nice double-feature with "A Night at the Opera" some weekend.

Rating:
Summary: Rare clips of the Marx Brothers in this PBS documentary
Review: This 1993 PBS documentary gets beyond the films of the Marx Brothers to look at not only their careers but their lives. Finally getting to see a clip of Harpo from the long-lost silent film he did in 1925 is the biggest treat, although there are lots of home movies and clips from television programs and commercials the brothers did after their film careers ended. Toss into the mix the standard interviews with family, friends and business associates to flesh out the details and "The Unknown Marx Brothers" provides an above-average look at one of the great comedy teams of all-time. If you are to the point where you can recite the entire "why a duck" routine from Coconuts" or can perform either part of the mirror sequence from "Duck Soup," then you should thoroughly enjoy this DVD, which also includes outtakes from "You Bet Your Life" and a feature that allows you to see additional film clips at key points during the documentary. This would make a nice double-feature with "A Night at the Opera" some weekend.

Rating:
Summary: Geart Documentary but Incomplete on DVD
Review: This is a great documentary, but the DVD has severly edited the documentary that was show on PBS. I have the whole documentary on tape and this is not it. The DVD leaves out the WWI years and a lot of the later films. Why? I don't know, but be warned, if you have seen the documentary before, this DVD is an edited version.