“Take two turkeys, one goose, four cabbages, but no duck, and mix them together. After one taste, you’ll duck soup the rest of your life.” That’s the explanation that Henry “Groucho” Marx gave for the title of the 1933 Marx Brother’s gem.
Duck Soup is slightly over 80 years old, yet it’s a very refreshing and brilliant film by any standards. It is a testament that sometimes you can make people laugh without sex jokes, fart jokes or puking gags -not that I have anything against it, but it does get a little old at times, especially if it’s overused-. Duck Soup relies on all four Marx Brothers at what they do best to make audiences laugh.
Duck Soup is set in Freedonia, a country in high debt that is also the target of a revolution secretly sponsored by its rival neighbor Sylvania, particularly by its Ambassador in Fredonia -Mr. Trentino- who intends to marry Mrs. Teasdale, a wealthy Freedonia socialite who in the very first scene of the film lends $20 million dollars to Freedonia’s government under the condition that controversial Rufus T. Firefly -played by Groucho- is appointed leader of the country. In Duck Soup Groucho delivers one of his best performances: he is hilarious and always on the spot with his well-timed one-liners, as he tries to cope with an inept cabinet, a Secretary of Defense who happens to be a Sylvanian spy, his personal driver -who always takes off without him-, and a Personal Secretary who has to mail Firefly’s dentists checks but without actually enclosing the checks.
The movie is filled with memorable moments. During one particular scene in which Firefly courts the wealthy Mrs. Teasdale, he says to her: “Married. I can see you right now in the kitchen bending over a hot stove. But I can’t see the stove.” Another of my favorite moments occurs in court when Firefly is interrogating Chicollini -his Secretary of Defense- who is being tried for treason. Frustrated with his witness’ lack of intelligence at answering the most basic questions, Firefly takes it on his own to address the jury: “Gentlemen, Chiccolini here may look like an idiot, act like an idiot and talk like an idiot. But don’t let that fool you…he really is an idiot!”
What makes Duck Soup great apart from the sharp script, is the chemistry between the four brothers, as well as with the remaining characters. As a 1933 black and white movie, there are certain aspects of the it that look dated, however the great performances make up for them. If you can get past this barrier, you will have a great time enjoying this piece of art. The musical segments can be a little unexpected, but they were a need back then; also, Margaret Dumont -the actress that plays Mrs. Teasdale- happened to be a professional opera singer, so it is impressive to see her talent on the screen.
Humor can take many forms, such as satire, sitcom, direct, impersonations, and of course the vauderville gag. If comedy is your thing, then know this: Duck Soup is a must on the list of any film fan, so do yourself a favor and watch this movie right now.
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