August
8,
2005 The
Marx Brothers, Groucho, Chico, Harpo, Zeppo. To anyone who loves
to laugh, they are the masters. To aspiring comedians, they are
mentors. To anyone with a funny bone and a rebellious streak, they
are role models. For me, these are the greats. There are many wonderful
movie comedies, and many wonderfully funny comedians, but the Marx
Brothers tops them all. You've
done it, too, haven't you? Be honest. You've pulled out your favorite
Groucho lines on your blind date. "But you know why I was with
that other woman? Because she reminded me of you. Even you remind
me of you." Hmm. Maybe that's one to save for later in the relationship. You've
offered an annoying stranger your leg, and made silly faces like
Harpo. Deep down, you wish you had his courage to chase after every
pretty girl in sight. You wish you owned one of those magical trench
coats, that hide everything in creation. I'll
bet there are a a couple times you played piano like Chico, with
the funny expressions and trigger finger on the keys. What a perfect
time to practice your bad Italian accent, wink at the girls, and
tell that story about how you flew across the Ocean. And,
finally, you identify with Zeppo. Zeppo, the straight man, the
younger brother born into the family too late to properly fit in.
You know he's really the funniest one in the bunch, just like all
the quiet kids in the classroom. You'll get your chance, if but
for a moment here and there. There's
something about great movies, in their wit and romanticism and
imagination, that can make or break relationships. I once suggested
to a roommate that he should take his date to see Lawrence of
Arabia when it was playing one evening at the Heights Theatre (and
in 70mm, too). If you both disagree about the movie, I advised,
break up with her. There's no future between you two. Everyone
has a number of movies that are on their personal make-or-break
list. The Marx Brothers are on mine, right up there with Lawrence
of Arabia, 2001: A Space Odyssey, and Mystery Science Theatre
3000. The Marx Brothers are my heroes. They should be yours;
if they aren't, well, I don't know. I'm not sure I could really
trust you. My
personal favorite of the Marx Brothers' movies is Duck Soup, but
A Night at the Opera follows closely behind. Laugh for laugh, it's
very nearly as funny, and there are so many lines to memorize and
add to your vocabulary. These are the role models for comic anarchy
and total disrespect for authority. A
Night at the Opera is noticably different in tone than the earlier
movies for Paramount, and this is where the great division between
Marx fans resides. Those first five films have about as much plot
as a Bugs Bunny cartoon, and for many of us, this is sufficient.
Once the basic situations is established - the Marx Brothers stow
away on an ocean liner, Groucho becomes President of Freedonia
- we can get straight to the jokes and slapstick. For
many others, A Night at the Opera is the pinaccle of that other
style: the Marx Brothers in a Hollywood romantic comedy. Pure anarchy
is replaced with a structured storyline, and romantic subplots
between a pair of Hollywood starlets. The Brothers serve a purpose
beyond simply tweaking the rich and powerful; the anarchists reinvented
as guardian angels. The
man responsible for this change is the Irving Thalberg, the young
genius who possesed a Midas Touch during his years at MGM. While
a fan of the Brothers, he felt that their movies would be better
served with more disciplined scripts, stories with purpose. The
Brothers had ended their contract with Paramount after Duck Soup
failed to become a hit (their earlier pictures were all enormously
successful), and Thalberg offered to take them under his wing,
they jumped. Under
his watchful eye, A Night at the Opera was assembled with a team
of writers and Groucho, Chico, and Harpo (Zeppo retired from show
business after Duck Soup). Thalberg's best decision, and one that
the Brothers no doubt loved, was to take the show on the road,
and rehearse the comedy scenes on the vaudeville circuit. This
was a return to their roots, and enabled them to perfect their
routines. In
the movie, you notice that the jokes are perfectly timed for audience
reaction; you have time to laugh without trampling on the next
punch line. Naturally, it helps that the comedy is first-rate, and
so effectively integrated with the plot. Later Marx Brothers movies
failed to succeed on this point, and it's one notable reason why they
are so dull and witless (A Night
in Casablanca being the sole
exception). Some
of Opera's funniest moments are among the funniest ever seen in the
movies. Chico and Groucho debating the merits of a contract; Groucho's
dinner date with Margaret Dumont, the great comic foil and de-facto
fifth "Marx Brother"; the Brothers disguised as famous aviators, trying
to bluff their way out of a speech; a mad scramble of furniture
between two rooms, to the frustration of a policeman; and the climactic,
chaotic scramble at the opera house.
And,
of course, the greatest Marx Brothers routine of them all: the stateroom
scene. Ah, the stateroom scene! Any aspiring comedian who professes
ignorance deserves to be instantly gonged and send packing.
The same goes for the rest of you. |
