Animal Crackers

Starring:Groucho Marx, Harpo Marx, Chico Marx, Zeppo Marx, Lillian Roth, Margaret Dumont, Louis Sorin, Hal Thompson, Margaret Irving, Kathryn Reece, Robert Greig, Edward Metcalf, Ann Roth (II), Donald MacBride, Robert Allen
Director: Victor Heerman
Studio: Universal Studios
Product Type: DVD

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There will be a debate of which 2004 DVD collection of Marx Brothers films was better. This Universal release of the better known Paramount-produced films are the only ones starring all four brothers: Groucho, Chico, Harpo, and Zeppo. The Warner collection contains less-vital films, but is loaded with extras and commentaries. The Universal collection contains only 20 minutes of interviews from NBC's Today Show--interesting but short--with Harpo, Groucho, and Harpo's son Bill from the '60s and '70s. All of the films in this collection were released on DVD by Image Entertainment in 2000 and the prints look the same, which isn't necessarily bad; one just wishes a major restoration had been undertaken.

The films--packaged handsomely with a booklet--are essential Marx Brothers, their first five films made from 1929 to 1933. The least timeless is their first, The Cocoanuts, based on their Broadway hit. The film--one of the first full talkies--takes place in a hotel with owner Groucho out to grab every dollar. Animal Crackers is the brothers' first classic, a lickety-split comedy about an art theft being investigated by Groucho's alter-image, Captain Spaulding. For introducing youngsters to the work of Marx, Monkey Business is the best way. The shenanigans start right at the start as the brothers stowaway on a luxury liner. It's their first film that wasn't based on a play, as they endeavored to find new material. Horse Feathers gave them more fertile ground plus a sure-fire Hollywood director at the helm (Norman McLeoad). Their fantasia of college life includes the riotous football-game finale. Music, always a key part of their plays and films is given more weight here and includes Groucho's theme, "I'm Against It." Music is again key as the musicals of the era are spoofed in the brothers' undisputed masterpiece, Duck Soup. From a land called Fredonia, Groucho plays a slapdash ruler who rewrites the rules of governing, leading to a most memorable war with Sylvania (so war gets lampooned. too). Duck Soup also boasts the most famous Marx brothers sketch: Groucho trying to fool his mirror. --Doug Thomas

Description

Celebrate the 75th anniversary of the greatest comedy act in history with The Marx Brothers Silver Screen Collection. This essential DVD set features the legendary four Marx Brothers in five of their most acclaimed and best loved films - Duck Soup, Horse Feathers, Monkey Business, Animal Crackers and The Cocoanuts - the only five movies ever made with all four brothers together: Groucho, Chico, Harpo and Zeppo!

Customer Reviews:

Marx Brothers Collection.......2007-06-21

Still one of the funniest vaudeville acts ever to grace stage, television, or silver screen, The Marx Brothers pioneered an antic, anarchic style of gut-busting entertainment that left audiences of the 1930s howling with delight. Even today, the hilarious mix of song-and-dance routines like "The Monkey Doodle-Do" and "Shirt Song"--accompanied, of course, by Harpo's harp, Groucho's guitar, and Chico's expert ivory-tinkling--combined with the sheer nuthouse fervor of their adventures simply dazzle. In fact, "Duck Soup" was a political farce so extreme that Mussolini banned it . This "Silver Screen" set collects the Brothers' early, outré Paramount outings, the only films where all four funnymen appeared together. Will social satire ever be this goofy again?

The first 5 Marx Brothers Movies.......2007-05-27

This set contains the first 5 Marx Brothers movies - all done in the 1929-33period- one a year. All 5 contain Zeppo, which is a good thing because once Zeppo was let go, they'd always have a Zeppo=like character. All 5 movies, including Cocoanuts, contain a great deal of laughs.
Not that their next 2 films "Night at the Opera" and "Day at the Races" weren't great, but these are easily among the group's best. The later films concentrated a little too much on big production song and dance numbers- these are unfiltered Marx Brothers. Great support here from Margaret Dumont and Thelma Todd also. Watch these movies and you too will become a Marxist!

The four Marx brothers.......2007-05-12

After all these years they are still better then most modern comedies. I really enjoyed watching these old films I haven't seen them in a long time so it was a great treat. Its a great set to have and if you say comedy is your favorite genre this is a must. The only bad part of this set is the special features. In the special features it shows Groucho and Harpo on the today show doing a little interview then it goes into the 70's with Harpo's son on. They were fun to watch, but for a box set like this it should have had much more.

Great movies, OK box set.......2007-04-23

Definitely great movies deserving of five stars and more! These are the Marx Brothers' best films, including the great Duck Soup. Having read other customer reviews about how Universal "slapped" this set together, however, I was surprised how classy the presentation is on the surface. There is a nice booklet and an extras disc. What were they talking about? Well, the extras really are kind of lame. I mean, they are great, but they really have nothing to do with the films, and they are short -- just interview footage from much later. And truth be told, I didn't get any new information out of the booklet, either. So, if you are optimistic Universal will take another stab at this and invest more in remastering and providing extras that mean something, you might want to wait. I felt it was time for me to have these movies, and I couldn't find any evidence a new version would be forthcoming. I am not disappointed I bought this box set, which has some of the best comedies ever filmed. But Universal definitely did not go the extra mile. "Jamison, take a letter to my lawyer..."

Loved the movies, disappointed in the extra features.......2007-04-14

I've always loved the five pre-code films of the Marx Brothers, and having them all together in this collection so that I can see any one or combination of them anytime I like is wonderful. "The Cocoanuts", their first film, was made in 1929. The Marx Brothers give a very atypically natural performance for a 1929 film, primarily because they were a vaudeville act prior to this and therefore had no experience working in the silent film era. "The Cocoanuts" and "Animal Crackers" feature musical performances from singers other than the Marx Brothers, but that changes in their last three Paramount films, with the brothers doing all of the musical performances themselves. Margaret Dumont, who played the society matron who is the object of some of Groucho's best jokes, doesn't appear in "Monkey Business" or "Horse Feathers" and her presence is missed. Most critics laud "Duck Soup" as the best of the Marx Brothers' films of this era, but my favorite has always been "Animal Crackers". I always thought it contained the best performances of any of the brothers - solo or in combination - of their pre-code films, and also that it had the most energy. "Duck Soup" is praised as a great political satire, and I love that film as much as the other Marx Brothers movies, but I think the boys got lucky on that one. The Marx Brothers' stock and trade were making fun of all kinds of so-called respectable institutions, so it would only make sense that they would get around to politics and war, as they did in "Duck Soup". The fact that it would be another 35 years after this film was made before Americans began to get quite cynical about their government's motivation in war in particular and overall competence in general just makes this movie look ahead of its time and underscores the Marx Brothers' comic genius, which is actually evident in all of their films.

The Marx Brothers had bigger hits than these early films, but I think I'll always prefer these pre-code classics. That is mainly because the Marx Brothers really needed an environment in which they could cut loose with their brand of outrageous comedy, without any worry of censorship, in order to do their best work. The only really disappointment in the set is in the extra features department. I guess I've been spoiled by the various Warner boxed sets that are chock full of goodies and extras, but it seems that Universal could have come up with more than a few trailers and three five minute interviews from the Today Show. However, the little booklet that comes with the set is interesting.

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Animal Crackers
Starring: Groucho Marx , Harpo Marx , Chico Marx , Zeppo Marx , and Lillian Roth
Director: Victor Heerman
Manufacturer: Universal Studios
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Similar Items:

Duck Soup
Horse Feathers
Monkey Business
A Night at the Opera
The Cocoanuts

ASIN: 6305078130
Release Date: 1998-04-08

Amazon.com essential video

This second Marx Brothers classic has Groucho playing Captain Spaulding (an inside joke pertaining to a renowned Hollywood drug pusher), whose song "Hooray for Captain Spaulding" became his signature anthem. Despite its staginess, it has some hilarious gags as the boys try to solve the mystery of a stolen painting among the high-society crowd. Some of the highlights include Groucho's African lecture about shooting an elephant in his pajamas, and a wacky card game between Harpo, Chico, and the always-gullible Margaret Dumont. The musical interludes here don't seem as awkward as in later films. It's really quite charming watching Chico and Harpo show off their graceful talents. --Bill Desowitz

Description

Those madcap masters of mayhem, the Marx Brothers, are at it again in this zany laughfest. When a valuable painting turns up missing at a party, Groucho, Harpo, Chico and Zeppo help find it--with outrageous results.

Animal Crackers: The Complete 1st Season

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Animal Crackers: The Complete 1st Season
Starring: Animal Crackers
Manufacturer: Direct Source Label
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Animal Crackers: Blockbusted
Starring: Animal Crackers-Blockbusted
Manufacturer: Direct Source Label
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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The Marx Brothers Box: Animal Crackers/ Duck Soup/Horse Feathers

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The Marx Brothers Box: Animal Crackers/ Duck Soup/Horse Feathers
Starring: Groucho Marx , Harpo Marx , Chico Marx , Zeppo Marx , and Lillian Roth
Director: Victor Heerman , Leo McCarey , and Norman Z. McLeod
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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Similar Items:

A Night at the Opera
The Marx Brothers Collection (A Night at The Opera/A Day at The Races/A Night in Casablanca/Room Service/At the Circus/Go West/The Big Store)
Laurel & Hardy (Sons of the Desert/The Music Box/Another Fine Mess/Busy Bodies/County Hospital)

ASIN: B00001O2GJ
Release Date: 1999-10-12

Description

Animal Crackers (1930, 97 min.) - In their second film, those madcap masters of mayhem, the Marx Brothers, are at it again in a zany laughfest. When a valuable painting turns up missing at a party, the Marx boys are right in the middle of it all, gumming up the works at every turn. As pseudo-adventurer Captain Spaulding, Groucho shoots an elephant in his pajamas and sings his classic song "Hooray for Captain Spaulding." "Horse Feathers" (1932, 67 min.) - The quintessential Marx Brothers comedy. The four brothers are at their manic peak in this uproariously anarchic parody of college life, including the funniest football game in the history of film. Also starring the luminescent Thelma Todd. And remember, the secret password is "swordfish." "Duck Soup" (1933, 68 min.) - The Marx Brothers are at their hilarious best in this insanely political satire. Groucho, Harpo, Chico and Zeppo too set international relations on its ear--and puts the audience in stitches--with their rapid-fire wit and comedic hijinks. English:Mono.

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Animal Crackers: Wild Wilderness
Starring: Animal Crackers-Wild Wilderness
Manufacturer: Direct Source Label
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Animal Crackers [Groucho Marx and Harpo Marx]

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Animal Crackers [Groucho Marx and Harpo Marx]
Starring: Harpo Marx
Director: Victor Heerman
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

A Night at the Opera
The Great Dictator (2 Disc Special Edition)
The Searchers (Two-Disc Anniversary Edition)
Manhattan
Being There

ASIN: B000EWDIQC

Product Description

Often considered their best, this second Marx Brothers movie revolves around a stolen painting and the sprawling estate of a wealthy dowager who soon finds Chico, Zeppo, Harpo, and, especially, Groucho turning her life upsidedown. Groucho croons his famous "Hooray for Captain Spaulding" and delivers many of his most famous quips in this film based on a play by George S. Kaufman.

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