Short but sweet. Spoilers ahead.

Rating: Null/10 (3 August 2004)

Clocking at 68 minutes, Duck Soup ended a bit too quickly for me.
I really enjoyed this film, shortcomings nonwithstanding: Very poor
editing in some spots, a couple of gags are poorly constructed or
are orphaned halfway through.
However, there are three great set pieces: The lemonade stand
(parts 1 and 2), the mirror scene (pure genius) and the war
sequence (packed with insane rapid-fire gags, Airplane!-style).
I find it amazing just how much Looney Tunes ripped off from
these guys. Having grown up with Looney Tunes, Duck Soup is, in
a manner of speaking, like going full circle and finding myself
home again.
Another thing I really like about Duck Soup (or any Marx Brothers
film) is Harpo, doing his silent movie character in a world
surrounded by sound. This creature from another era gives a
surrealistic depth to the comedy offered on screen.
It is said that Duck Soup's anarchic style is what makes it current
and relevant. I beg to differ. I rather think Duck Soup remains
timely because of "We God's chillun an' we got guns, so let's go to
war". Sounds absurd, doesn't it? Well, it's how it happens, isn't it?
How a people, any people, can be whipped-up into a war frenzy for
no excusable reason (such as Firefly's war-at-all-costs mentality),
is the ultimate essence of this film. The fact that Duck Soup does
this in an absurd manner makes the observation easier to digest,
putting up a mirror to us all without offending so easily with the
truth. The message, in some level, makes its' way through.
Tapping into universal truths and skewering them, Duck Soup was
timely when it was made, and remains timely today.