Funny though generations away

Rating: 9/10 (17 December 2000)

I have finally seen this film (actually bought the DVD for $9 at the mall), and while I was raised on Monty Python & newer movies, I can honestly say that "Duck Soup" is as good as everyone says. You can't go into thinking as if you're going to see an Eddie Murphy movie or a modern (nastier?) movie. This movie was made in far different times from what we live in today; a divide that's wider than the almost 70 years that separates it from us. I believe there is even a racial joke or two about "darkies" to further date it. But other than that, Groucho is still the master of the one-liner & put-down and slapstick humor has never gone wrong since the first caveman slipped on a banana peel.
On another level, the film shows an evily sarcastic look at the politics of war (e.g. insults leading to war and mass destruction). From the similar era, the Gershwin's & George Kaufman gave us the musicals such as "Of Thee I Sing" and "Let 'Em Eat Cake" which also showed us the absurdity of war & politics (albeit at a more cerebral level than the Marx Bros.). But in this day and age of presidential "scandals" and trumped up election results it's refreshing to take a pause and think that 70 years ago people seemed just as willing to doubt their politicians and even war (especially since this film & the Gershwin musicals falling between two so-called "just" wars -- so that even Ira Gershwin had to rewrite "Strike Up The Band" to have less offensive lyrics for WW2).
Also, as a modern note, "Duck Soup" played a part in a great practical joke on latter-day politicians via "Spy" magazine. They called up various politicians in DC and asked them "What are you going to do about the ethnic-cleansing in Freedonia?" As you can expect, they fell all over themselves saying either "we should work hard to stop it, send troops" or "we should not get involved" etc. Nobody asked "Where is Freedonia?" which of course exists only in "Duck Soup!"