Rent A Night at the Opera (1935)
3.8 of 5 from 127 ratings
1h 27min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
Arts patron Mrs. Claypool (Margaret Dumont) intends to pay pompous opera star Lassparri (Walter Woolf King) $1,000 per performance. Hey, maybe that's why they call it grand opera! Grand comedy, too, as Groucho, Chico and Harpo cram a ship's stateroom and more than wall-to-wall gags, one-liners, musical riffs and two hard-boiled eggs - all while skewering Lassparri's schemes and helping two young hopefuls Rosa and Riccardo (Kitty Carlisle and Allan Jones) get a break. To save the opera, our heroes must first destroy it. And they must also gain ocean passage as stowaways, pull the wool (if not the beards) over the eyes of City Hall, shred legal mumbo-jumbo into a Sanity Clause, pester dowager Claypool and unleash so much glee that many say this is the best Marx Brothers movie. Seeing is believing. - Actors:
- Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx, Kitty Carlisle, Allan Jones, Walter Woolf King, Sig Ruman, Margaret Dumont, Edward Keane, Robert Emmett O'Connor, Enrique Acosta, Harry Allen, Sam Appel, King Baggot, Marion Bell, Edna Bennett, Stanley Blystone, Al Bridge, Loie Bridge, Lorraine Bridges
- Directors:
- Sam Wood, Edmund Goulding
- Producers:
- Irving Thalberg
- Writers:
- George S. Kaufman, Morrie Ryskind, James Kevin McGuinness, Buster Keaton, Al Boasberg, Bert Kalmar, George Oppenheimer, Robert Pirosh, Harry Ruby, George Seaton, Carey Wilson
- Aka:
- The Marx Brothers: A Night at the Opera
- Studio:
- Warner
- Genres:
- Classics, Comedy, Music & Musicals
- Collections:
- 10 Films to Watch if You Like To Be or Not to Be, A Brief History of Cinema Afloat: Part 2, Films to Watch If You Like..., Paramount's Laughing Thirties, A History of Baseball Films, A Brief History of Film..., The Instant Expert's Guide, The Instant Expert's Guide to Stephen Frears, The Instant Expert's Guide to: Mel Brooks, Top 100 AFI Laughs, Top 100 AFI Movies, Top Films, Topping the Music Hall Bill
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 15/08/2023
- Run Time:
- 91 minutes
- Languages:
- English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Full Screen 1.37:1
- Colour:
- B & W
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Commentary by Leonard Maltin
- Documentary 'Remarks on Marx'
- Groucho Marx on The Hy Gardner Show (1961 Broadcast)
- 3 Vintage Shorts: Los Angeles: Wonder City of the West, Sunday Night at the Trocadero and Robert Benchley's Academy Award-Winning How to Sleep
- Theatrical Trailer
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Reviews (2) of A Night at the Opera
Aquired taste - A Night at the Opera review by JD
Harpo's dreadful acting used to bother me, the badly dubbed musical interludes still do, but Groucho's panache has got to warm the soul on the coldest day. It is incredibly corny but I smiled because it was.
2 out of 3 members found this review helpful.
Too much opera. - A Night at the Opera review by Steve
When the Marx Brothers signed with Irving Thalberg, he asked them if they would take a pay cut as Zeppo had quit. Groucho replied that without him they were worth twice as much. It's a shame that no one brought similar insight to the musical numbers that stretch their MGM debut over 90 minutes and introduce longueurs to their manic, fast talking comedy.
The act was revised, toning down the anarchy, and making the trio more likeable by having them roast the bad guys, rather than just anyone. The difference is obvious, but there are still some long sequences of fabulous wordplay, including the legendary Sanity Claus sketch.
There is also the famous crowded stateroom scene. Margaret Dumont adds a little continuity by leaving Paramount with the remaining trio to play their stooge. The vocals of Kitty Carlisle and Allan Jones are, I guess, a matter of personal taste.
It's tempting to lean on the FF during the musical numbers. Harpo and Chico's recitals are actually more of a challenge than the opera. Hard to be too critical as this was the biggest box office hit of their careers, but my preference is for the earlier, crazier Paramount comedies.
0 out of 1 members found this review helpful.