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Animal Crackers (1930)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
28 August 1930 (USA)
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Tagline:
The maddest comics of them all!
Plot:
Mayhem and zaniness ensue when a valuable painting goes missing during a party in honor of famed African explorer Captain Spaulding. full summary | add synopsis
NewsDesk:
(6 articles)
AFI's 100 Years ...100 Movie Quotes
(From Extra. 4 November 2009, 4:45 AM, PST)
Goodman Theatre Announces Full Creative Team For Animal Crackers
(From BroadwayWorld.com. 28 July 2009, 5:35 PM, PDT)
(From Extra. 4 November 2009, 4:45 AM, PST)
Goodman Theatre Announces Full Creative Team For Animal Crackers
(From BroadwayWorld.com. 28 July 2009, 5:35 PM, PDT)
User Comments:
strangely modern and modernly strange
more (62 total)
Cast
(Complete credited cast) | Groucho Marx | ... | Captain Jeffrey T. Spaulding |
 | Harpo Marx | ... | The Professor |
 | Chico Marx | ... | Signor Emanuel Ravelli |
 | Zeppo Marx | ... | Horatio Jamison |
| Lillian Roth | ... | Arabella Rittenhouse |
| Margaret Dumont | ... | Mrs. Rittenhouse |
| Louis Sorin | ... | Roscoe Chandler |
| Hal Thompson | ... | John Parker |
| Margaret Irving | ... | Mrs. Whitehead |
| Kathryn Reece | ... | Grace Carpenter |
| Robert Greig | ... | Hives |
| Edward Metcalf | ... | Hennessey |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
97 min | Argentina:98 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
1.20 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Sound System)
Certification:
Spain:T |
Argentina:Atp |
Portugal:M/6 |
South Korea:All |
Australia:G |
Germany:o.Al. |
UK:U |
USA:G (1974 re-release)
Filming Locations:
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Several of Groucho Marx lines were cut on demand of the Hays office, including "I think I'll try to make her".
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Goofs:
Continuity: In the final scene of the movie, just as Harpo is about to drop all the cutlery from his sleeve, the camera cuts to a close up of Chico. For an instant his hat is pulled down very low, covering his eyes. However, in the scenes before and immediately after, his hat rests normally on his head.
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Quotes:
Capt. Spaulding:
Play that song about the Irish chiropodist.
Ravelli: Irish chiropodist?
Capt. Spaulding: "My Fate Is In Your Hands".
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Ravelli: Irish chiropodist?
Capt. Spaulding: "My Fate Is In Your Hands".
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Movie Connections:
Featured in "Broadway: The American Musical: Syncopated City: 1919-1933 (#1.2)" (2004)
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Soundtrack:
You Must Do Your Best Tonight
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FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (62 total)
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Judging by the script, you'd never believe that "Animal Crackers" is over seventy years old. Think of all the "postmodern" things that happen in this movie: Groucho directly addresses the audience to apologize for a bad joke; Harpo shoots a gun at a statue, only to see the statue come to life and return fire; and Margaret Dumont freezes in time while Groucho has a "strange interlude" and rambles to the audience about the perils of marriage and living with your folks! Of course, the absolutely ancient and decaying print will remind you that "Animal Crackers" is older than the hills, but otherwise, it's much fresher and weirder than the stuff that passes for comedy today.
Like "The Cocoanuts," this movie is based on a play, and as such it is considerably longer and stagier than most of the later Marx movies. The pace does drag a bit towards the end, especially since the plot disappears (along with Zeppo) for long segments at a time. But many of the individual segments are classic, including the often (and rightly) praised bridge game and Harpo's gag with the cutlery-filled sleeves. Even the music segments hold up well, particularly Chico's piano routine that gets savaged by Groucho.
Interestingly, there is a prominent romantic subplot to this film, which puts paid to the fallacy that Marx Brothers movies didn't have romances until MGM got its hands on them. However, the romance isn't nearly as intrusive or annoying here as in their later vehicles, so there's still plenty of reason to be annoyed with good old MGM...