Reviews (22)

Influential and powerful, and still compelling.
The most powerful of all the Warners gangster films, 'Public Enemy' is still gripping viewing today. It may be an obvious point, but it can't be stated enough how so much of the film's force comes from being made in the actual era it depicts (NB Prohibition lasted until 1933) with all the conviction and urgency that brings. The film is an acknowledged influence on 'Goodfellas' in that the story is told 'straight' with no moral bromide being forced through the criminal charcters' mouths - they lead their lives without time or need for apology or introspection. What moral conclusion there is to be drawn is all too implicit in the resolution of their story. 'Goodfellas' though depicting historical events, drew on a uniquely candid first hand account, as well as the director's own experiences, which gives the film a similar 'truth' to 'Public Enemy'. Scorcese also picked up on William Wellman's use of source, rather than soundtrack music ('I'm For Ever Blowing Bubbles'), as seen to virtuoso effect in 'Raging Bull'. As for Cagney himself, well, let's just say it was the performance that made him a star. That's all that need be said. The famous ending is still one of the most shocking in all cinema.

The greatest of the great
Paul Muni in Scarface; Edward G. Robinson in Little Caesar - these are now interesting but dated performances in interesting but dated movies. Almost seventy years later, Cagney's performance is truly fresh, as is the movie. Public Enemy is the one unmissable gangster movie from the early thirties: its violence is always suggested rather than stated (always more effective); most of the acting seems strikingly contemporary (Sara Algood is of another age, but Jean Harlow could saunter onto a contemporary screen and not seem in any way anachronistic); and there is no mood music: what music there is on the soundtrack can be explained by way of live bands or the presence of a radio. This fact contributes to one of the most chilling endings of any American movie I've ever seen. Above all, there is Cagney! What a great actor! Today there is Russell Crowe: even in the old days, only Spencer Tracy came close to this kind of ease and naturalness. Enough! About James Cagney I have said - and can say - nothing. Rent it, and see for yourself!

cagney unleashed on world
the most explosive debut in movie history was made by james cagney. little caesar was a better movie, but cagney epitomizes the depression era movie mobster in this movie. jean harlow gives the worst performance of her career in this movie, which is naturally something of a mystery. a year later she was great in red-headed woman, red dust and later bombshell. wellman was a great director but surely not with harlow. this is best known movie of mae clarke because if features the famed scene where cagney shoves a grapefruit in her kisser. this is totally unjust because clarke was a wonderful actress, especially in waterloo bridge. anyway, she is in only two brief scenes. the only good performance besides cageny is that of leslie fenton as nails nathan. despite public enemy's shortcomings it's one of the movies you have to see.

Just one historical note...
James Cagney has always been my great favorite and this seminal performance is nonpareil. I did want to add one thing to the excellent reviews already here: Edward Woods had originally been cast in the role of Tom Powers (I believe he was engaged to a studio honcho), but Cagney was so overwhelming in the secondary role, he was recast after only a couple of days. It's interesting to note that the children who played the characters as youngsters were clearly cast with the roles reversed.

An Unforgettable Final Scene
There is very little waste in PUBLIC ENEMY and it is easy to see why this film caused such a sensation in 1931. The movie is about the steady rise of a professional criminal (James Cagney) from before World War I through the early years of Prohibition. The acting by Cagney, Joan Blondell and Mae Clarke is excellent. The strong supporting cast includes Beryl Mercer, Edward Woods and Jean Harlow.

PUBLIC ENEMY received an Oscar nomination for Best Original Story (John Bright and Kubec Glasmon). The film has certainly stood the test of time and the final scene has remained unforgettable. William Wellman also directed BEAU GESTE, WINGS and THE STORY OF G.I. JOE. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Based on a story by Damon Runyon, this Frank Capra film was nominated for several Oscars® after it was released in 1933 (it was remade by Capra as Pocketful of Miracles in 1961). A tenderhearted Depression-era comedy, it tells the story of Apple Annie (May Robson), a panhandling street vendor who has kept her real identity hidden from a daughter being reared in Europe. When the grown-up daughter comes to New York for a visit, Annie turns to gambler Dave the Dude (Warren William) for help. He transforms her--temporarily--into a high-society grande dame, but not without complications. The film is nearly stolen by Guy Kibbee, as a judge posing as Annie's husband, but Warren William, a John Barrymore lookalike, and dour Ned Sparks get laughs too.--Marshall Fine ... Read more

Amazon.com essential video

Absolutely one of the most hilarious movies ever made, this classic farce featuring the outrageous genius of the Marx Brothers is a chance to see some of their best bits woven together seamlessly in a story of high society, matchmaking, and chaos. In order to bring two young lovers together, brothers Groucho, Chico, and Harpo must sabotage an opera performance even as they try to pass themselves off as stuffed shirts. Featuring the classic sequence where Groucho piles as many people as possible into a ship's stateroom, A Night at the Opera is a deliciously zany romp worth watching again and again. --Robert Lane ... Read more

Reviews (40)

The 2nd Best Marx after Duck Soup
Night at the Opera is different from their first 5 - in a nutshell, as everyone else had commented, there's no Zeppo, more music, Margaret Dumont is back, bigger role for romantic leads, and the comedy is somewhat more disciplined, i.e., the antics are perhaps less spontaneous than earlier films.

I understand criticisms leveled by those who prefer to skip the plot, musical numbers, and romantic plot development, but I wholeheartedly disagree that the movie is somehow lesser because of it, particularly the music. The brothers were an extemely musically talented trio, and throughout their lives saw themselved less as a Comedy show and more a variety show. To disregard the musical numbers as "filler" is to show a lack of appreciation for a performing art they held in very high regard.

I have always felt The Marx Bros. were more "in Character" here than in most of their other films (Duck Soup, Horse Feathers, Animal Crackers, are also good in this regard, as is Day at the races, to a lesser degree). Everything from the contract swindle ("the party of the first part...") to the organized fooling of sgt. Henderson ("now there are four beds - I know I'm crazy!") to the stateroom bit ("Is my Aunt Minnie in here?") to the methodically brilliant destruction of Il Trovatore in the finale are examples of great writing that suited the personalities of the brothers.

Duck Soup or Horse Feathers may be their funniest films, and Animal Crackers may be more memorable for it's classic scenes, but Night at the Opera in my opinion is the most well-balanced of all thier movies. I feel it's the best-written, best-produced, has the best plot, and contains BY FAR the best acting among suporting roles. If Duck Soup weren't so well-paced and funny, Night at the Opera would be my favorite.

The Marx Brothers at their very, very, best. Classic Comedy
On the one hand I want to say that I think "A Night at the Opera" is the greatest Marx Brothers comedy because their peculiar brand of lunacy works better when given a real world target such as Opera than in the fantasy land of Freedonia in "Duck Soup." On the other hand I want to say that I think "A Night at the Opera" has more funny stuff in it than "Duck Soup." I do not even want to begin to get into any consideration of what difference the retirement of Zeppo meant in all this. I just want to laugh my head off.

Groucho is Otis P. Driftwood, too busy trying to fleece Mrs. Claypool (Margaret Dumont) to waste time running an Opera Company. Harpo is Tomasso, the much abused valet to the pompous tenor Rudolpho Lassparri (Walter Woolf King), while Chico is Fiorello, self-appointed agent for the unknown but talent young singer Ricardo Baroni (Allan Jones), who is in love with Rosa Castaldi (Kitty Carlisle). When Groucho loses his job to stuffed shirt Herman Gottlieb (Sig Ruman), it is up to the Marx Brothers to restore order and sanity to the universe.

In terms of classic comic routines "A Night at the Opera" gives you (1) the Stateroom scene with all those people (and don't forget the hardboiled eggs); (2) Groucho and Chico discussing the clauses in a contract (including the Sanity Clause); (3) Chico and Harpo working "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" into the overture of the opera (get your peanuts); (4) a dinner date between Groucho and Margaret Dumont (looking at him is the price you have to pay); and (5) Chico the Russian aviator explaining how they flew across the Atlantic Ocean in a boat (always remember to take enough gas or else you will have to turn back). There are more-you now Chico plays the piano, Harpo plays the harp, and Groucho deflates a pompous windbag at some point--but I want to talk about other things now.

I think the person who really helps sell this film is Kitty Carlisle. In every Marx brother movie there are the boys, there is Margaret Dumont as the foil, and then there are the young boy and girl who sing their way into your hearts. Carlisle and Jones (the only boy singer to appear in more than one Marx Brothers movie) are clearly the best pair to ever take on these thankless roles. The boys clearly like her and take her seriously, which she does in return, giving "A Night at the Opera" a sense of heart. This does not happen in Marx Brothers movies (compare it to the campy efforts of the young lovers in "Animal Crackers"). On top of all this, Carlisle and Jones can sing and their duet from the end of Il Travatore is much better than all the sappy songs that the lovers usually sing in these films.

"A Night at the Opera" is directed by Sam Wood (who would later spend some time directing scenes on that "Gone With the Wind" film you hear so much about). James Kevin McGuineess receives story credit but the key thing is that George S. Kaufman had a major hand in the script (until it ended up in the hands of the actors of course).

Notes: Look for the father of the Marx brothers on the pier when the ship sets sail and please remember that it Leonard's stage name is pronounced "Chick-o" not "Chico." Put an end to this Marxist reinterpretation nonsense.

The beginning of the decline
Many think this film the best or one of the best the Brothers Marx ever did. It's probably a matter of taste (well, it's certainly a matter of taste), but I think the first MGM comedy by the Marx Brothers is scattershot. Groucho, Chico and Harpo are in top form, and when they're on -- and allowed to dominate a scene -- the film is terrific. The stateroom scene is still funny after 70 years, and the finale at the opera is Marxist anarchy at its finest.

But when they're off screen (at least a third of the movie), you're left with an embarrassing melodrama I'm sure the movegoing audiences of 1935 found as sappy as I did. Bad enough the young Italian lovers sound like they're from New England section of Italy; worse are the musical interludes, which bring the film to a halt and destroy any comedic momentum the Marxes have created. A scene where Chico, Harpo and Jones show off their musical prowess goes on far too long and completely stops the film. Their earlier comedies had musical interludes, but they were woven into the films better. The opening number in Duck Soup, for example, is a lengthy set-up to the first joke; ditto the "We're Going to War" number. When the young lovers in A Night at the Opera sing "Alone," there's nothing but the youngsters staring moonily at each other. Their voices are fine, but the studios of the time were never short of movies with beautiful youngsters singing to each other. It's unnecessary here, and it reminds you the Marx Brothers aren't on screen.

"A Night at the Opera" was the Marxes' most successful comedy at the box office, and probably the most popular film they ever did. But time has been kinder to their earlier Paramount productions. Those films are stagebound, but they have a madcap energy the MGM films never recovered.

If you're a real fan of the Marx Brothers, you've probably already seen this; the rest of you should start with Duck Soup or Horse Feathers. A Night at the Opera was, unfortunately, the beginning of the end for this legendary team.

"No need of you reading that, because these are duplicates."
Many have argued that A NIGHT AT THE OPERA is the Marx Brother's finest film, pointing out that it combined the best of the Brother's comedy with the biggest and boldest in MGM production values. Personally, while I really like the film, I wouldn't quite put it in the top slot. Any of the sequences containing the Marx Brothers themselves are gold, but I find that I'm not as enamored with the romantic subplot and singing as other reviewers have been (notably Leonard Maltin in this DVD's commentary). Still, arguing about which one of the fine films is actually the best is a little pointless. This is a great movie, regardless with how it compares to the others.

The biggest thing this film has going for it (outside of the wonderful Marx Brothers themselves, of course) is the big production values that MGM splashed out on. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, it's nice to have some great big sets for the Brothers to clown around in (Harpo's stunt double swinging through the rafters is great), but all things considered, I think I prefer the tongue-in-cheek send-up of the big dance numbers (as done in DUCK SOUP) to the production dances which are played straight here.

Margaret Dumont is underused, which is a shame since her dignified outrage usually accounted for big laughs. She gets a good scene at the beginning, and a handful of opportunities to look indignant later in the film, but she isn't the constant presence that she had been in other films.

Still, while I can pick out a few flaws here and there, this is overall a hilarious and fun movie. Much of what is considered classic Marx Brothers material is from this film: the too-many-people-in-the-stateroom scene, the Marxian deconstruction of a legal contract (if anyone thinks that "'The party of the first part' shall be known in this contract as 'the party of the first part'" isn't realistic, then I can show you fine print I've received from credit card companies that are even more tautological than that), and, of course, the grand finale wherein the three brothers completely destroy an opera-in-progress.

The DVD also contains an all-new documentary, which features (among other people) co-star Kitty Carlisle, who is amazingly sharp for being in her 90s, and Dom DeLuise, who talks a lot about food and appears to have been interviewed in the middle of making breakfast (no, I'm not sure why he's here). This is mostly a talking heads interview documentary and there's not a whole lot of brand new material or trivia, but it is nice to see some differing perspectives on things. The story of how Groucho got his name contradicts the anecdote given on the commentary track, and Carlisle refutes the conventional wisdom that states that Margaret Dumont didn't get any of the jokes Groucho was bouncing off her.

A short except from a 1961 broadcast of "The Hy Gardner Show" (who?) reveals Groucho recounting the story of he and his brothers stripping naked and roasting potatoes in the office of Irving Thalberg after the famed producer kept them waiting once too long. I trust you will enjoy the anecdote, because it's told a whopping three times during the course of these DVD extras. Shockingly, none of the tellings blatantly contradict each other.

Two shorts have been included as extras, though I'm not sure I understand their relevance. Robert Benchley's HOW TO SLEEP won the Academy Award in 1935 for Best Short Subject/Comedy, and it's certainly entertaining enough. As for the other short, SUNDAY NIGHT AT THE TROCADERO, well, I'm baffled. I can't make heads or tails of it. Set in a nightclub, a Hollywood talent scout is visiting this ritzy affair. Numerous song and dance people are attempting auditions, while the club's doorman is trying to impress by doing very bad celebrity impersonations (it didn't help that half the time I didn't recognize the name of the person he was impersonating or the name of the person people actually thought he was doing). Cameos by stars of the day abound by having the camera cut to different tables and a voice over shouting, "Hey, look! It's Bob Has-been!" (or whoever). It isn't helped by the fact that most of the careers of these minor celebrities ended soon after the shoot, so for me I was watching cattle call of anonymous hotshots. I couldn't figure out why these people were appearing as themselves. Was the audience supposed to believe that these people really hang out at this fictional locale? Groucho Marx (out of character and costume) has a three-second cameo where he looks as confused as I felt.

I'm wary of commentaries performed by people who weren't actually born when the film they're talking about was made, but Leonard Maltin does a fine job here. He relates a lot of anecdotes about the Marx Brothers, points out how the script is layering the subplots, and relates a lot of trivia that I had never heard before (for example, the only surviving print is actually an edited version made during WWII when all references to Italy have been removed, which explains why the film bizarrely never tells you were the first scenes are set). He even gets into the fun, shouting "What a twit!" when the evil opera singer refuses to sing on the cruise-liner for free.

Although the DVD of A NIGHT AT THE OPERA is included in "The Marx Brothers Collection" box set, it is also available for individual sale. Although I slightly prefer A DAY AT THE RACES (also out on DVD now), I couldn't recommend anyone not pick up this film. For Marx novices, there's a great movie. For Marx aficionados, there's informational material that may be enjoyed. In any event, the powers that be have given a great film an excellent treatment on the DVD format.

Tiresome
Almost everything I write about stuff for Amazon gets either ignored or negative responses. I hardly expect this to fare any better. My original intent was to buy the 7 disc set of the Marx Bros (also just released), I grew faint-hearted near the deadline and canceled it and ordered the only 3 I wanted: Opera, Races and Casablanca. I think the first 5 "lost" Marx Bros movies (I have them on DVD and treasure them, all but Duck Soup, with a screenplay by one of their song-writing teams) are (so far) their funniest. Chaos, pandemonium, idiosyncrasies, personality. Either I was despondent when I watched this flick or else the Marx Bros' antics had worn thin for me. (I remember loving all their movies 30 years ago.) I was bored, saw what was supposed to be funny and didn't think it was. There were a few witty remarks, but those came from either Kaufman or Ryskind, not the Marx Bros. And on that subject, I never (at least not before The Solid Gold Cadillac) thought I'd ever watch or read a Kaufman play and not think it was hilarious. I did not think this was hilarious. The opera they featured at the end was Verdi's Il Trovatore, I don't like that opera anyway, particularly the mezzo gypsy song, particularly all of it. I thought the whole movie was watery, thin, dull and not the best of the Marxes, and not particularly funny. I just opened Casablanca. Tomorrow morning I'll take a crack at it, though I remember much of it now. I remember (and make the connection between that movie and this) that Harpo had gone from being an innocent who chases girls to a character who gets knocked around a lot by the heavies. I don't like the change. The characters, the (well, I said it already) idiosyncrasies and personalities of the brothers just weren't there in this movie. Sigh. I have 2 more to go. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Not Bela's Best!
We are told in the prologue that Confucius, on his death-bed, handed out 12 coins to twelve friends. Apparently, if any one man gets a hold of all of these coins together, he will be the supreme ruler of the Chinese province of Keelat. Bela Lugosi plays plays Fu Wong, a sinister Chinaman with a heavy Hungarian accent, who will stop at nothing to get his hands on the coins. Wallace Ford is a wise-cracking reporter on his trail of murder and torture. It all boils down to a crock of creaky,B-grade nonsense. Really! If you like this sort of thing, the cheap Alpha DVD has a reasonable VHS quality picture on it but the sound is a bit woolly and gets worse towards the end. I lost interest about half-way through but if it's your bag.... Go for it!

One of the Best of the "Bad" films.
This is one of the best of the cheap "Chinatown" mysteries. A real classic. The more you watch it, the more it grows on you.
DVD picture quality is pretty good, the sound is OK, but what can your expect from Monogram pictures. Buy it!

Bela Lugosi is the wrong Mr. Wong
I halfway enjoyed the series of Mr. Wong Chinese detective films made starring Boris Karloff, so when I stumbled on this film, boy, was I surprised. Especially since this 1935 film, which is only an hour-long, is directed by William Nigh, the same director as Karloff's Mr. Wong films. Go figure. Anyhow, the story is certainly interesting as the title character is a mysterious figure who stops at nothing to obtain the twelve coins of Confucius, which have all managed to end up in New York City's Chinatown. But I just cannot get past the idea of Bela Lugosi playing a Chinese villain replete with Hungarian accent. Still, the man does know what to do with instruments of torture. Certainly worth a look and if it inspires you to check out the "other" Mr. Wong, so much the better.

The OTHER Mr. Wong
The last film I ever expected to be re-released on DVD, yet it's enjoyable. For those of us who have seen Bela Lugosi as a bad guy (in most of his films) and a good guy (in a few others) here's your chance to see him in a dual role. One, an obsessed mandarin trying to acquire coins which will give him power. The other, a knowledgable collector who hopes for his (the bad guy's downfall). Not a 5 star film but good. I also recommend the Boris Karloff Mr. Wong set.

Classic Lugosi
"Mysterious Mr. Wong" (1935) is great fun for Bela Lugosi fans. It's a low-budget melodrama with Bela making the most of his footage in the title role. He is properly sinister throughout. Unlike other public-domain Lugosi titles, the video's print quality is quite good. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

Wonderful start for the "Road" pictures.
"Road to Singapore" is the first of the "Road" pictures starring Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and Dorothy Lamour. They are all wonderful, crazy, silly and just plain fun films as Bing and Bob wreak havoc along everything they encounter. In this first film, plenty of that is done, probably more likely in any other 'Road" picture as they head for Singapore and rescue the fair Mima from a bullwhipper. Some of my favorite sequences are the "patty-cake, patty-cake" scenes in which it becomes a running gag in every "Road" film, especially this. Filled with crazy antics, hilarious crack-ups, exotic dance numbers and s omuch more to enjoy even though the film is quite underrated and a bit quirky.

The first stop of many worthwhile destinations
I don't know why so many of the past reviewers put this film at the bottom of the list of "The Road to . . ." series. This is the film that started it all! It may lack some of the easy play and banter between Hope and Crosby as seen in the later films, but keep in mind this is the first time (1939-40) that Bing and Bob have been in a film together. As the years progressed, they were given more freedom to do what they liked given their bigger star status and the box-office successes of the earlier pictures. Despite what others may say, "Singapore" is an enjoyable film all the way through. It's embedded with gems like "Captain Custard" and "Sweet Potato Piper". The chemistry between Hope, Crosby, and Lamour is great -- you can tell they must have had a fun time making this movie :)I would definitely not leave this one out of my "Road" collection.

The start of a great tradition
The first of the much-vaunted "Road To" series, and an inkling of things to come... Beset on all sides by would-be wives, Bing Crosby and Bob Hope skip town to form an Asian branch of the He-Man Woman-Haters Club, predictably getting sidetracked by drippy Dorothy Lamour (is it just me, or is her likeness to Katie Holmes... check her out in profile... a little eerie?) Anyway, the plot is paper thin, the pacing is sluggish and the gags are as flat as the tunes by songwriter Johnny Burke. It's kind of goofy seeing Hope in a supposedly manly-man role, but maybe that's just in hindsight. Most significantly, this marks the beginning of Crosby's descent into unmitigated pop culture corn... It's a so-so oldie; better that you should stick with Crosby's earlier "Waikiki Wedding," which at least has some cool music.

TOO ROMANTIC
That's the title of the best-known tune which was introduced in this first entry in the immensely popular ROAD TO.... series. In this one, Josh Mallon, the scion of a straightlaced shipping magnate, and his free-spirited pal, Ace Lannigan, ridicule the institution of marriage. However, Josh's Dad is disgusted with his son's irresponsible antics & commits Josh to an office job and a marriage to socialite Gloria Wycott...The working title of this just-average first outing from the famed duo of Hope & Crosby was FOLLOW THE SUN. Other songs which are heard in the picture are: SWEET POTATO PIPER, KAIGOON, THE MOON AND THE WILLOW TREE & CAPTAIN CUSTARD (!). In 1940, the Ohio Censorship Board demanded that the studio (Paramount) make extensive cuts in the native dancing girl sequence.

On The Road To Classic Comedy
While this first outing may not be the very best of the road pictures (I rate "Morocco" and "Utopia" as better), this is classic comedy, if not a classic film. Hope was new enough on the scene to get third billing (behind Crosby and Lamour), and it was amusing seeing an early Anthony Quinn and Jerry Colonna. The plot is better than some in the "Road" series (a bit of class warfare gets things started), and I always enjoy seeing Bing's "dad" in the film (Charles Coburn).

The rivalry between Hope and Crosby for Lamour's affection has an edge to it, but that makes it just about perfect.

In the extra features we learn that Hope and Lamour were not the first choices for the flick -- would you believe George Burns and Gracie Allen??? BTW, the extra features in all of the new Universal series of DVDs for the "Road" series are well done.

I hadn't seen this in years, and it is much better than my memory had it from years as cut up fodder on commercial television. This one is a keeper. ... Read more