Rating: 
Summary: My personal favorite among the Brothers films
Review: Not as polished as DUCK SOUP, this is nonetheless my favorite Marx Brothers film. This was their second movie; the first filmed in Hollywood, and records their final stage production. So in many ways, this is a transition film. ANIMAL CRACKERS and their first film, COCONUTS, made in 1929, also share the distinction of being perhaps the two oldest sound films that are still widely watched. The film is not perfect. There are many dead moments scattered throughout the film, though only when one of the Brothers was not onscreen. And because sound recording was still in its infancy, the sound is pretty dreadful. The voices all sound somewhat flat and thin, but Groucho, Harpo, and Chico more than make up for it. And for once, we shouldn't leave out Zeppo. Groucho and Zeppo have a great exchange where Groucho dictates a letter to be sent to his lawyer. Actually, Zeppo was very, very talented in his own right, but with the three older brothers having staked out their own forms of madness, he was left as the straight man. On Broadway, Groucho came down sick, and Zeppo put on Groucho's clothes, put on a grease paint mustache and eyebrows, grabbed a cigar, and no one knew it wasn't Groucho. ANIMAL CRACKERS is actually an outstanding showcase for all the brothers. Chico and Harpo team up for some of their best skits (including an utterly hysterical game of bridge), each has some great solo moments, and Groucho has dozens of his best and most famous lines. In fact, the movie probably contains half of the famous lines that we associate with Groucho, including the song that became his signature, "Hooray for Captain Spaulding." And Margaret Dumont is amazingly unflappable as Groucho's love (?) interest. Although is easily my favorite Marx Brother film, it is usually ranked somewhat below some of their other films. One reason for this lies in the fact that the film was not shown for several decades following its initial release because of a copyright dispute. When the Marx Brothers performed ANIMAL CRACKERS on Broadway, one night Harpo was running late when he reached the theater. Changing quickly, he inadvertently left off his knee length underwear he normally put under his tear-away tux for his first scene. At the point where the butler is supposed to take his cape, and the entire tux pulls away, Harpo was left there standing in only his jock strap. While he rushed offstage to put on the rest of his outfit, Groucho calmly adlibbed, "Come back tomorrow and he'll take the rest off."
Rating: 
Summary: Beware of the dreaded left-handed moth!
Review: Once you get past the opening song and dance number, this is a fine Marx Brothers' comedy. It has all the usual sequences found in their early Paramount pictures, and for my money they are of the highest quality. Groucho's entrance is superb as he refuses to pay the $1.85 cab fare from Africa, because his servant made the mistake of going through Australia. Groucho and Chico's two extended exchanges are priceless. The first is when they negotiate how much it would cost for Chico's band NOT to play at the party (considerably more if they also don't rehearse!). The second when they decide that the missing painting must be in the house next door, only to realize that there is no house next door (no problem: they'll build one!). Harpo's antics are all great, the standout being when he plays the dealer at the bridge game. I even enjoyed the "young lovers" subplot. Hal Thompson was fine and bland as the young man, and Lillian Roth is suitably mischievous as his romantic interest. My favourite sequence, however, starts with Groucho's Captain Spaulding rehashing the story of his jungle adventures (complete with the famous elephant-in-my-pajamas joke), and segues into Chico's piano number. The joke is that he can't remember the finish, so he keeps playing the beginning over and over. The confusion on Chico's face and the exasperation on Groucho's make for a great comic combination. There were some down moments, though. Groucho's ire towards Zeppo makes their scenes together uncomfortable (thankfully, the wooden Zeppo doesn't have much screen time). Harpo appears particularly violent throughout the film (upon his entrance he grabs a gun and starts shooting at everybody; later, he continually threatens to smack his female opponents during the bridge game). It depletes any favour he's gained through his charming innocence. And Chico sometimes can't help but laugh at his own clever jokes, which is an annoying trait on anyone. These are minor concerns though. Overall it's a grand stew of hilarious non-sequiters, puns, illogicalities, and funny faces. "Hello, I must be going" indeed!
Rating: 
Summary: A GOOD CHOICE TO SEE THE MARX BROTHERS ON ACTION.
Review: Some people consider "Animal Crackers" as the best movie in the Marx Brothers filmography. But most of the people, including myself, rather prefer "Duck Soup", however, "Animal Crackers" is one of those movies that will draw a smile in the audiences from beginning to end. For those who have never seen a Marx Bros. movie, this is a good starting point. In "Animal Crackers" the Marx brothers follow their classic comedic formula which brought them to stardom: the wacky brothers mess with every person around them while they provoke chaos and misunderstandings. Groucho as always, shoots funny and clever sentences so fast that his mouth looks like a machinegun, Harpo without saying a single word provokes rage among men, and fear among women, Chico delivers doses of anarchy and Zeppo tries in vain to calm down his insane brothers. "Animal Crackers" is a good comedy, and without a doubt the fans of the Marx Brothers will enjoy this movie even more. If you haven't seen a Marx brothers movie, this is a good choice, but the best choice would be "Duck Soup".
Rating:
Summary: Good early Marx Brothers footage
Review: The Marx Brothers were legendary comics. THis film is much like most of there films with sappy romance, chopped up scenes, formulatic plots, bad music numbers, piano solos, harp solos, and HILARITY!!!! Groucho uses sharp puns while Harpo and Chico do there usual as trying to get Groucho in someway, with Harpo not hearing quite right. This is not quite Duck Soup, buy it is a good rent. The dvd looks wrather poor; it plays like a vhs tape.No menu, nothing. The quality is pretty comparable, and the sound just doesn't sound right. I was very lucky to borrow this disc from a friend, but it's almost impossible to find this on tape, let alone disc. Let me tell you, people: it's not worth it. I probably would never buy this film, but if you absolutely love it, buy the tape. If your worried about whearing it out, a new, much cheaper, much improved disc will be available for sale. Funny, if a little dated film. Thank you for taking the time to read my review and feel free to leave me a helpful/ not helpful feedback. God Bless America!
Rating:
Summary: Good early Marx Brothers footage
Review: The Marx Brothers were legendary comics. THis film is much like most of there films with sappy romance, chopped up scenes, formulatic plots, bad music numbers, piano solos, harp solos, and HILARITY!!!! Groucho uses sharp puns while Harpo and Chico do there usual as trying to get Groucho in someway, with Harpo not hearing quite right. This is not quite Duck Soup, buy it is a good rent. The dvd looks wrather poor; it plays like a vhs tape.No menu, nothing. The quality is pretty comparable, and the sound just doesn't sound right. I was very lucky to borrow this disc from a friend, but it's almost impossible to find this on tape, let alone disc. Let me tell you, people: it's not worth it. I probably would never buy this film, but if you absolutely love it, buy the tape. If your worried about whearing it out, a new, much cheaper, much improved disc will be available for sale. Funny, if a little dated film. Thank you for taking the time to read my review and feel free to leave me a helpful/ not helpful feedback. God Bless America!
Rating:
Summary: I shot an elephant in my pajamas...
Review: The Marx Brothers' second film, and probably their most underrated, "Animal Crackers" is a mandatory farse to own for any fan of wry wit. Laiden with puns, clever dialogue, and even legitimately funny physical humor, this is an easy addition to my top 5 funniest movies list. Admittedly it does contain a harp solo, but the Brothers do a fine job ignoring the plot to the benefit of the humor. One of the finest scenes is when Harpo and Chico are trying to steal the painting and and the latter requests a "flash;" Harpo proceeds to supply him with a fish, a flask, a flisk, etc... Margret DuMont is once again outstanding as the straight man, and a lovely complement to Groucho's antics.
Rating:
Summary: I shot an elephant in my pajamas...
Review: The Marx Brothers' second film, and probably their most underrated, "Animal Crackers" is a mandatory farse to own for any fan of wry wit. Laiden with puns, clever dialogue, and even legitimately funny physical humor, this is an easy addition to my top 5 funniest movies list. Admittedly it does contain a harp solo, but the Brothers do a fine job ignoring the plot to the benefit of the humor. One of the finest scenes is when Harpo and Chico are trying to steal the painting and and the latter requests a "flash;" Harpo proceeds to supply him with a fish, a flask, a flisk, etc... Margret DuMont is once again outstanding as the straight man, and a lovely complement to Groucho's antics.
Rating:
Summary: Way ahead of today's comedy efforts
Review: The zany interaction of the Marx Brothers is even greater than their individual talents. Music, comedy and adventure are combined in a wonderful variety movie that no one would dare produce today. Excellent "roots of Rock 'n Roll" scene where Harpo excells on his harp. An eye opener!
Rating:
Summary: Slow-paced, but still funny Marx brothers
Review: There were scenes during this movie that were a little too long, which is unusal for their Paramount films, but for example the secene where Groucho, Zeppo, and Margaret Dumont discuss the robbery gets old after a while, the same for the scene where Groucho and Chico discuss how to recover the stolen paintings. However the scene when Chico and Harpo change the paintings and the whole blackout bit is very funny, along with the bridge game. On the whole an ejoyable movie.
Rating: 
Summary: a disappointment, especially in sound quality
Review: This DVD was a dissapointment, especially in sound and video quality (what else is there?). I know that the film was a very early talkie, but I didn't find the quality of the sound and video any better than the earlier video versions I have seen. I was really look forward to seeing and hearing some of my favorite Marx Brothers bits, but the sound drops in and out inconsistently. I expected more from a higher priced DVD -- and there are no extras. I hope they do better when the eventually release "A Night at the Opera".
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