Duck Soup

Plot synopsis:
The wealthy Mrs. Teasdale (Margaret Dumont) insists that Rufus T. Firefly (Groucho) be appointed leader of the small, bankrupt country of Freedonia before she will continue to provide much-needed financial aid. Meanwhile, neighboring Sylvania is attempting to annex the country. Sylvanian ambassador Trentino (Louis Calhern) tries to foment a revolution and to woo Mrs. Teasdale, and he tries to dig up dirt on Firefly by sending in spies Chicolini (Chico) and Pinky (Harpo).
After failing to collect useful information against Firefly, Chicolini and Pinky are able to infiltrate the government when Chicolini is appointed Secretary of War after Firefly sees him selling peanuts outside his window. Meanwhile, Firefly's secretary, Bob Roland (Zeppo), suspects Trentino's motives, and advises Firefly to get rid of Trentino by insulting him. Firefly agrees to the plan, but after a series of personal insults exchanged between Firefly and Trentino, the plan backfires when Firefly slaps Trentino instead of being slapped by him. As a result, the two countries come to the brink of war. Adding to the international friction is the fact that Firefly is also courting Mrs. Teasdale, and, like Trentino, hoping to get his hands on her late husband's wealth.
Trentino learns that Freedonia's war plans are in Mrs. Teasdale's safe and orders Chicolini and Pinky to steal them. Chicolini is caught by Firefly and put on trial, during which war is officially declared, and everyone is overcome by war frenzy, breaking into song and dance. The trial put aside, Chicolini and Pinky join Firefly and Bob Roland in anarchic battle, resulting in general mayhem.
The end of the film finds Trentino caught in makeshift stocks, with the Brothers pelting him with fruit. Trentino surrenders, but Firefly tells him to wait until they run out of fruit. Mrs. Teasdale begins singing the Freedonia national anthem in her operatic voice and the Brothers begin hurling fruit at her instead.
=== Mirror scene ===
In the "mirror scene," Pinky, dressed as Firefly, pretends to be Firefly's reflection in a missing mirror, matching his every move—including absurd ones that begin out of sight—to near perfection. In one particularly surreal moment, the two men swap positions, and thus the idea of which is a reflection of the other. Eventually, and to their misfortune, Chicolini, also disguised as Firefly, enters the frame and collides with both of them.
Although its appearance in Duck Soup is the best known instance, the concept of the mirror scene did not originate in this film. Max Linder included it in Seven Years Bad Luck (1921), where a man's servants have accidentally broken a mirror and attempt to hide the fact by imitating his actions in the mirror's frame. Charlie Chaplin used a similar joke in The Floorwalker (1916), though it did not involve a mirror.
This scene has been imitated many times; for instance, in the Bugs Bunny cartoon Hare Tonic, the Mickey Mouse cartoon Lonesome Ghosts, The Square Peg (1959), The Pink Panther (1963), and Big Business (1988). Harpo himself did a reprise of this scene, dressed in his usual costume, with Lucille Ball also donning the fright wig and trench coat, in the I Love Lucy episode "Lucy and Harpo Marx".
=== Other scenes and jokes ===
The climactic production number ridicules war by comparing nationalism to a minstrel show. One segment is a variant on the old Negro spiritual "All God's Chillun Got Wings" (and was reportedly considered for deletion for the film's DVD release, for fear of offending African Americans):
Shortly after, during the final battle scenes, "rightfully [...] called the funniest of all of cinema", Firefly can be seen wearing a different costume in almost every sequence until the end of the film, including American Civil War uniforms (first Union and then Confederate), a British palace guard uniform, a Boy Scout Scoutmaster's uniform, and even a Davy Crockett coonskin cap. Meanwhile, the exterior view of the building they are occupying changes appearance from a bunker to an old fort, etc. Firefly assures his generals that he has "a man out combing the countryside for volunteers." Sure enough, Pinky is wandering out on the front lines wearing a sandwich board sign reading, "Join the Army and see the Navy." Later, Chicolini volunteers Pinky to carry a message through enemy lines; Firefly tells him, "[...] and remember, while you're out there risking life and limb through shot and shell, we'll be in here thinking what a sucker you are." Thomas Doherty has described this line as "sum[ming] up the Great War cynicism towards all things patriotic".
The melodramatic exclamation "This means war!" certainly did not originate with Duck Soup, but it is used several times in the film—at least twice by Trentino and once by Firefly—and would be repeated by Groucho in A Night at the Opera and A Day at the Races. Variations of this phrase would later become a frequently used catch-phrase for Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny in Warner Bros. cartoons.
In another scene, the film pokes fun at the Hays Code. Due to the code, a man and woman could not be shown in bed together. The camera begins the scene in a woman's bedroom, panning across the foot of the bed. A pair of men's shoes are shown on the floor, then a pair of women's shoes and then four horseshoes. The camera cuts to a shot of the entire room: Pinky is sleeping in one bed with the horse, while the woman is in another bed.
The film's writers recycled a joke used in Horse Feathers in this dialogue with Chico:
Prosecutor: Chicolini, isn't it true you sold Freedonia's secret war code and plans?
Chicolini: Sure! I sold a code and two pairs o' plans!
The street vendor confrontations are also well-remembered pieces of physical comedy: Chico and Harpo harass a lemonade seller (comedy film veteran Edgar Kennedy), egged on by his irritation that they have stolen his pitch.
First, there is a scene involving the knocking off, dropping, picking up and exchanging of hats. Later, Kennedy (a much larger man) steals bags of Harpo's peanuts, and Harpo responds by burning Kennedy's new straw boater hat; in return, Kennedy pushes over their peanut wagon. Harpo responds by stepping knee-deep into Kennedy's lemonade tank, where he imitates a stereotypical Italian grape-crushing peasant; this drives off Kennedy's waiting line of customers.
Just before the Mirror Scene is the Radio Scene. Harpo tries the combination to the safe on a box which proves to be a radio, and it starts blaring the break-up strain of John Philip Sousa's "Stars and Stripes Forever". The music continues despite frantic efforts to silence, and finally destroy, the radio.
Harpo often doffed his hat on-screen, but Chico very rarely removed his Tyrolean hat, even when indoors. For a few seconds on-screen in the earlier scene, Chico's head is uncovered, revealing a wavy wig. Chico had already started going bald when the brothers appeared in their first Broadway production, I'll Say She Is, in 1924. All of the Brothers' natural receding-hairline patterns were similar, but Harpo and Chico covered theirs with wigs (Groucho would later sport an obvious toupee in the films At The Circus and Go West).

Tags: insanity, anti war, absurd, cult, satire

Review:
Many times their movies were vehicles for their vaudeville acts of funny lines, slapstick gags and musical talent.Two differences in this film than most others from the boys: 1 - Zeppo has a number of lines.
There are just tons of funny (and, yes, very dated) lines in this movie and having Duck Soup out on DVD making the sound clearer helps, too.
The Brothers simply deflate the pomposity of the whole deal.4) The fact that Zeppo is actually given something to do.Anybody who thinks the Farrelly brothers are the last word in comedy should be strapped to a chair and shown Marx Bros films over and over again, until they concede..
It has the Marx brothers at their very best, with rapid-fire laughs combining with a satirical "plot" that is very funny in itself, without getting in the way of the individual comedy sequences that are the real highlight of the film.
Their timing and material are as good here as they ever have been.The Marx brothers are still beloved today because when at their best, they treated their audience to a lot of riotous slapstick that cannot be watched without laughing, while at the same time rewarding their viewers for paying attention with a steady stream of puns, deadpan one-liners, brief sight gags, and other subtler humor.
The more you watch, the more you notice."Duck Soup" has a lot of their very best material, and everyone has their own favorite scenes, whether it is the mirror sequence, or Chico and Harpo giving their report to Louis Calhern, or the street vendor scenes, or ...
. The variety of comic settings and comic material is amazing, and when you add in the entertaining musical sequences (which again are particularly good in this one), it is a feast that never stops.Any Marx brothers fan has seen this one several times, and does not need to be reminded what great fun it is.
Director Leo McCarey directed this zany movie in which the Marx Brothers do their best to entertain their public.There are many interesting moments in the film, but the best sequence has to be the mirror scene in which Groucho, Harpo and Chico, dressed in the same costume are seen on either side of the looking glass following the other person's movements.
The great Margaret Dumont is simply one of the best actresses that ever worked with the Marx Brothers in their comedies.
Raquel Torres is a nice addition to the film playing the exotic Vera Marcal.The Marx Brothers do what they do best in "Duck Soup" guided by a director who knew what to do with them, Leo McCarey..
Probably the Marx Brothers' most famous comedy, "Duck Soup" is a hilarious and wacky slapstick comedy that even manages to take a stab at politics.
I can honestly say I wasn't given the opportunity to ever see it until recently, when I finally managed to watch it on Turner Classic Movies, completely uninterrupted.Although it is not consistently laugh-out-loud, tears-in-your-eyes hilarious, "Duck Soup" is very funny - and not quite as outrageous as I had expected.
There's a lot going on here, aside from silly physical humor.The Marx Brothers are great as usual and as usual Groucho steals the show.Ultimately if you've never seen this, you need to go rent it out right now.
Whether it has Harpo answering the phone, Groucho explaining his tax policy or Chico giving a detailed report of his weekly surveillance tactics ("On Wednesday we fool him: We no show up"), this is the epitome of the Marx Brothers movies.
'Duck Soup' was my first Marx Brothers film, and I'd be lying if I didn't say I was slightly disappointed with it.
Perhaps it was just my general ignorance, but it took me a very long time to work out which character was played by Zeppo, usually regarded as the "straight-man" of the group.The mirror pantomime sequence  first used in Charles Chaplin's 'The Floorwalker'  is a classic gag, and probably my favourite of the lot.
One favors the Marxes integrated into the traditional Hollywood formula: the excellent "A Night at the Opera"; the other insists it's the film where Hollywood is helpless while the boys unleash their anarchistic, trademark lunacy against conventions to new heights: "Duck Soup." I am in the latter group.The plot in a nutshell: The Marx Brothers go to war.The government of Fredonia has been mismanaged to the point that it must borrow $20 million from Mrs. Chester Teasdale to stay afloat.
By the time the short-wave radio cries "Help is on the way!" what follows will have you rolling on the floor!Duck Soup is the dazzling, frenzied, unrelenting, full-steam-ahead, no-holds-barred trademark brand of nose-thumbing, up-yours comedy that the Marx Brothers created in vaudeville, honed to razor sharpness in bus and truck tours, and finally exploded onto 1920's Broadway, making them national treasures.
But time and succeeding generations have elevated this film to one of the best movies in the annals of American film making.Within "Duck Soup" is a treasure trove of priceless routines.
To mention a few: Firefly's coronation and musical offering of how he'll run the country; Harpo and Groucho with a motorcycle and sidecar; Chicolini and Pinky's spy report to Trentino; Groucho's cabinet meeting; Harpo's phone conversation, the three (count 'em three) encounters with a lemonade vendor; three night-gowned Fireflys racing around the Teasdale mansion seeking the secret war plans, which leads to the legendary and Dali-like Mirror Sequence (Continuity be damned.
DUCK SOUP (1933) ****  Arguably the greatest Marx Brothers film (yes even with Zeppo!) and the most consistently funny tailor-made to each sibling's talents with Groucho in his image-defining role as Rufus T.
However, it was said to be one of the best comedies in movie history so I thought I should pay my respect and give this a try.Duck Soup was a short movie with only about 75 minutes but I couldn't help but to look at my watch when I was only 15 minutes into it.
Having never seen a Marx Brothers film before, I watched "Duck Soup" not knowing what to expect other than what the hype led me to believe.
There was Groucho, Harpo, Chico, and sometimes Zeppo, with Groucho being the best-known of the bunch due to his long career on the "You Bet Your Life" TV show and the "nose, glasses, and mustache" disguise based on his appearance.I didn't think "Duck Soup" was terrible, certainly not enough to prevent me from checking out another Marx Brothers film some time.
Partly to blame is the hype surrounding the film, which leads one to expect comic brilliance and intelligent satire, rather than the frequently abrasive gags to be found here (and the satire that is not to).After the unsettling title image of live ducks flailing about in what looks like a pot of steaming water, the quartet of Marxes soon makes its presence known.
Unfortunately, after this opening bit, the film fails to offer anything else on this level, nothing to make the work as a whole a perceptive social satire.After this comment was first posted, I gave the Marx brothers another chance when I watched "A Day at the Races," and was pleasantly surprised.
War seems inevitable.Starring the Marx Brothers and viewed as a comedy classic, I was expecting great things from Duck Soup.
The others revolved around Groucho's quickfire wit and Chico and Harpo's slapstick comedy and Duck Soup is no exception.
Marx brothers who are considered as comedy giants in their times, gave wonderful performances in this film.
Some of Groucho's one liners are funny but on the whole I find the Marx brothers leave me cold in this movie.
Today's comedians are nothing compared to the likes of the Marx Brothers.These comedic forefathers worked harder to get a laugh in one film than today's comedians do in a career.Duck Soup is documented proof of this.They are in no less than top form here.We have Groucho,who delivers one liners with lightning quick speed,Harpo,who never uttered a word,but he never needed to,Chico,who supported Harpo with perfection,and Zeppo,who in my opinion was not particularly funny,but made a great straight man for the others.Last but not least,Margaret Dumont.Without her,the guys would have been somewhat less successful.She was practically a Marx "sister".Duck Soup has nothing to do with ducks.Duck Soup has nothing to do with soup.When you watch,you'll be too busy laughing to care.It's comedy at it's classic best.I'll end with my favorite line:"He may look like an idiot.He may talk like an idiot,but don't let that fool you.He really is an idiot.".
And in Duck Soup, the Marx Brothers do what they always do, manic comedy for the entire length of the movie.
If this film is Marx brothers at their best, I certainly won't watch their other movies.
And A night at the opera is way better than Duck Soup, Marx Brothers showed their comedy talent in A night at the opera.
However with such people is positions of power, anything could happen.Easily the best of the Marx Brothers' films, Duck Soup has the music and comedy that we expect from them but it also serves as a great satire on war, politics, religion, the justice system and many other targets from polite civilisation.
I saw this movie recently expecting something terrific,with a rating of above 8 on IMDb.This movie is an utter waste of time,especially today.Perhaps it has an anti-war message but you'd have to sit through the entire movie for that.You cant go for more than 10 minutes without hearing that dreadful anthem 'Hail Freedonia'.The only relevance I could see is Groucho Marx' resemblance to many of the tin-pot dictators of this day.And the 2 spies were unbearable,especially Pinky.It did have some good performances ,especially from Louis Calhern and Margaret Dumont.However most people wouldn't find this sort of slapstick appealing anymore.Don't bother watching it unless you're an avid fan of the Marx brothers.And if you do,Don't BUY THE DVD..
I saw it for the first time tonight and felt like I didn't get my money's worth.Lines that were clever in the Marx Brothers' other, even earlier, movies, fell flat here and there was lots of filler between.
Perhaps I've become jaded after too many M*A*S*H repeats - those with Alda doing Groucho - but I just viewed the DVD after a loooong break from Marx Brothers' movies and wasn't impressed.1933 was an interesting year for political satire but, as another commentator has pointed-out, Duck Soup is more a vehicle for standard Marx Bros routines than it is for incisive political commentary.I'm disappointed that it only made #85 on the AFI's top 100 movies, but not surprised.
These guys were the pioneers of the jokes and slapstick in the early days of film that would eventually become cliché; however in their time it was cutting edge and original.Someone else said that if somebody turned out movies like this in the '90's it wouldn't be funny or sell.
So in the same vein Duck Soup is a classic of the 30's, but not only that, it is a classic comedy in the annals of film history.The Marx Brothers just mesh really well together and the lines that are delivered were just hilarious, like when Groucho says, "You know you haven't stopped talking since you got here.
However once Rufus (Grougho) is placed in charge anarchy breaks out and the country winds up at war with its nearest neighbour Sylvania.This is the Marx Brothers finest contribution to screen comedy with Groucho on the form of his life with dialogue that is so sharp you suspect he may cut himself, he talks like he is afraid that if he stops speaking nothing may come out again, his performance is dynamic, fierce and fantastically bizarre.
The Marx Brothers have never been better, and there are so many hilarious moments (the lemonade stand, the mirror routine, the war scenes) one would probably die of laughter.
The story is simple enough; a fictional country ousts their leader in order to appoint Groucho as the head man in charge, leading to a war & the intro of Chico and Harpo; and I guess Zeppo was there, too.Too many funny lines and scenes to cover--Be sure to wash your neck, peanuts, Harpo jumping into the lemonade, the running gag with the sidecar, and the war at the end, especially Harpo grabbing Margaret Dumont's ass.
DUCK SOUP is a riotously funny, anarchic comedy from the Marx Brothers which is a send-up of government and international politics.
chaotic and hilarious, satire and exploration of absurd comedy possibilities, it is one of great Marx Brothers films.
The latter was my favorite as a child, and even after watching all Marx movies, they are still on par with Duck Soup for me.Duck Soup is a good comedy, but I don't think it deserves to be called the best of all time.
This is the greatest film the Marx Brothers ever made, and the funniest sound comedy I ever expect to see, because it turns them loose full force against the institutions of government and war, exposing them to such apt and merciless ridicule that the movie actually appears to be ABOUT something.
Not only is the humour a good feature of this film, but it was made well (especially for the time), it was acted very well (especially by Groucho Marx) and the plot was done well.
Firefly (Groucho Marx) and he makes things complicated for both Freedonia and Sylvania, with his rather odd manner (you will understand when you watch this film).
"Duck Soup" is the Marx Brothers' best movie and among the funniest movies of all time.
But when I came to this movie I really wasn't sure what to expect, as such i'll write this comment for those of you who have never seen a Marx Brothers film and hopefully it will encourage you to see it.First off yes of course it looks a bit dated (being over 70 years old!) but the restored DVD is better quality than expected.
Each Marx brother has a distinct personality and type of humour which sparks off the others, Groucho has the one liners, Chico the zaniness and Harpo the physical comedy and just plain weirdness, Zeppo is the straight man (who barely features in this his last film with the brothers).The plot is at times seems irrelevant just a framework to hang the zany gags off, but strangely there can be seen some definite commentary under the humour.
If you've never seen a Marx Brothers film before please do as it really will make you laugh like no other.
Groucho is such a cultural icon that, like Charlie Chaplin, he inspires warm nostalgic feelings in movie buffs even if you've never seen one of his movies.However, that said, I have to assume that "Duck Soup" is the Marx Brothers at their zaniest best, and it is very funny.
Marx Brothers Mania (Chico, Groucho , Zeppo & Harpo).
Duck Soup (1933) has to be the best Marx Brothers film.
One of the funniest films ever made, Duck Soup is total insanity and a fast pace by the Marx Brothers.
Best gags include the mirror act with Grouch and Harpo (redone on one of Lucille Ball's TV series with Harpo 20 years later); the lemonade sequence with Chico, Harpo, and Kennedy, and of course the bizarre war finale with the brothers and Dumont, who was one of the best comedy foils in film history.The usual Marx Brothers blend of skimpy plot, musical numbers and non-stop gags makes this the best of their films.
This movie is nothing different.What we have here is a laugh out loud comedy featuring the Marx Brothers at their finest.
"A Night at the Opera" by the Marx brothers was good, but "Duck Soup" was much better than the 1935 movie.
Nobody makes films like "The Marx Brothers", firstly may I say the plot is top notch, Groucho is on top form with his quips and gags.
The movie works almost like a cocktail of dreams and hallucinations on war (at least the last 20 minutes), and also features some of the best gags and jokes ever put to film.
I'm a big Marx Brothers fan and Duck Soup is considered their best.
Harpo and Chico as always form a perfect comic partnership, yet I do feel sorry for Zeppo, who as usual is left with too little to do.Duck Soup is the best loved Marx Bros.
Many people think the musical numbers hold up the story in the majority of the films -- in Duck Soup they help the plot move along; and who can forget the mirror sequence, possibly one of the finest examples of physical comedy?
DUCK SOUP is a consistently funny comedy that never slows down, and takes honors as the best of all the Marx Brothers' movies.
Duck Soup, the 1933 film featuring Groucho, Harpo, Chico, and Zeppo was a hilarious satirical look at a president/dictator's reign over his nation.
Duck Soup reminds me how great the "unfunny" Marx brother, Zeppo was, and how much I missed him in the later films.
Released in 1932, "Duck Soup" is surely one of the best Marx Brothers films, blessed with countless memorable lines and plenty of free-form comic insanity.The story takes place in the mythical country of Freedonia, where they are in need of a new leader.
"Duck soup" is another great Marx brothers comedy, just like "A night at the opera", " Animal crackers", and "A day at the races".
These days "Duck Soup" is generally considered the best of the Marx brothers comedies.
It was also the last of their films to feature Zeppo, who never really stood out much due to his role as a straight man to his brothers' zany antics.In this movie Groucho plays Rufus T.