1931 Marx Brothers sillinessRating: 16/20
Plot: Grumpy, Bilbo, Dildo, and Flippo are stowaways on a ship heading for America. Between evading the ship's crew and being as obnoxious as possible, they are hired as body guards by rival gangsters. Despite the promise, monkeys have nothing to do with anything.
Pure, out-of-control zaniness abounds in this nearly plotless wankathon. The boys seem to thrive in this spontaneity, and it's great watching them have so much fun running around a boat, slowing down only to deliver some non-sequiturs or puns that nearly knock the wind out of you. I'd imagine that if a person likes the Marx Brothers, they'd like this movie even though it's not as great as A Night at the Opera or Duck Soup. The lack of musical numbers was a genuine relief after watching the last two which had too much singing. It is always great to see Harpo and Chico attack the harp and piano respectively though. Harpo gets the funniest bits (as usual?), the best dealing with his involvement with a puppet show. Chico, as my friend Anne McInslop would agree, is by far the sexiest of the Marx Brothers, however. I had a near religious experience (i.e. uncontrollable fits of giggling) while watching this, but I can't recall what I would have been laughing at.
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