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Movies / On DVD / A Night at the Opera
A Night at the Opera

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A Night at the Opera (1935)

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Reviews Counted:33

Fresh:32

Rotten:1

Average Rating:8.5/10

Runtime: 1 hr 32 mins

Genre: Comedies

Synopsis: While DUCK SOUP has risen to become emblematic of the Marx Brothers at their zaniest, A NIGHT AT THE OPERA represents the brothers at their finest. Under the inspired supervision of the boy genius... While DUCK SOUP has risen to become emblematic of the Marx Brothers at their zaniest, A NIGHT AT THE OPERA represents the brothers at their finest. Under the inspired supervision of the boy genius Irving Thalberg, the script was penned by two of Hollywood's wittiest screenwriters, George Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind; the production values are substantially greater than in previous Marx Brothers works; the romantic leads, Kitty Carlisle and Allan Jones, are charming, first-rate stars; the supporting cast, led by Margaret Dumont, Sig Rumann, and Herman Gottlieb, turn in excellent performances; and the bent of the humor is honed from the surreal to a pointed attack on the lifestyles of the wealthy. The circuslike stateroom scene is among the funniest in motion-picture history. Harpo's performance of the hit song "Alone" is perhaps his finest harp solo. Directed by Sam Wood, A NIGHT AT THE OPERA was the Marx Brothers' greatest commercial and critical success. [More]

Starring: Marx Brothers, Kitty Carlisle, Allan Jones, Sig Ruman

Starring: Marx Brothers, Kitty Carlisle, Allan Jones, Sig Ruman, Walter Woolf King, Margaret Dumont, Edward Keane, Gino Corrado, Claude Payton, Samuel Marx, Billy Gilbert, Luther Hoobyar, Rodolfo Hoyos, Olga Dane, James J. Wolf, Inez Palange, Jonathan Hale, Otto Fries, William Gould, Jay Eaton, Leo White, Rolfe Sedan, George Irving, Wilbur Mack, Selmer Jackson, Phillips Smalley, Harry Tyler, Harry Allen, Alan Bridge, Lorraine Bridges, Jack Lipson, Robert Emmett O'Connor, Frank Yaconelli

Director: Sam Wood

Director: Sam Wood
Producer: Irving Thalberg
Screenwriter: George S. Kaufman, Morrie Ryskind, Al Boasberg, Bert Kalmar, Harry Ruby, James Kevin McGuinness
Composer: Herbert Stothart

[See More Credits]

Reviews for A Night at the Opera

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1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

The Brothers get to perform some of their most irresistible routines.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
01/26/06
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It is impossible to explain why that is so funny; their sheer irreverence, exuberance and verbal comic genius are marvelous.

Full Review Source: Guardian [UK] | comment Comment
07/11/02
Peter Bradshaw
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian [UK]
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Guaranteed to have you giggling from one end of the musical scale to the other.

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
07/01/02
Jamie Russell
Jamie Russell
BBC
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Embora empalideça diante de Diabo a Quatro, melhor filme dos irmãos, traz algumas das cenas mais memoráveis da trupe, dos jogos de palavras às gags físicas.

comment Comment
03/11/09
Pablo Villaca
Pablo Villaca
Cinema em Cena

No review available.

comment Comment
02/23/08
Cole Smithey
Cole Smithey
ColeSmithey.com

The backstage finish, with Harpo doing a Tarzan on the fly ropes, contains more action than the Marxes usually go in for, but it relieves the strictly verbal comedy and provides a sock exit.

Full Review Source: Variety | comment Comment
06/26/07
Variety Staff
Variety Staff
Variety
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Fondly remembered for such classic comedy bits as Groucho and Chico drafting a contract, the stateroom scene, and the hilarious climax where the brothers make a shambles of Il Trovatore. Sans Duck Soup, we'll watch this any day.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
06/26/07
TV Guide's Movie Guide
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Never was a director more aptly named than Sam Wood: his movies are redwood forests of unrelieved monotony.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment 5 Comments
06/26/07
Dave Kehr
Dave Kehr
Chicago Reader

[The Marx Brothers] still let the air out of stuffed shirts and barbecue a few sacred cows, but something got lost in all that MGMness when the screen's ultimate anti-authoritarian team starting working the Andy Hardy side of the street.

Full Review Source: DVDJournal.com | comment Comment
04/04/06
Mark Bourne
Mark Bourne
DVDJournal.com

The loudest and funniest screen comedy of the Winter season.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
03/25/06
Andre Sennwald
Andre Sennwald
New York Times
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

...generally an entertaining piece of work...

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
02/28/06
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews

Classic, classy Marxist mayhem

comment Comment
01/13/06
Carol Cling
Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal

Fresh off the failure of "Duck Soup," this was the Marx Brothers' comeback movie. The effort shows.

Full Review Source: Bangor Daily News (Maine) | comment Comment
11/18/05
Christopher Smith
Christopher Smith
Bangor Daily News (Maine)

One of the Marx brothers' greatest films.

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
10/18/05
Christopher Null
Christopher Null
Filmcritic.com

No review available.

comment Comment
06/29/05
Emanuel Levy
Emanuel Levy
EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

comment Comment
03/26/05
James Plath
James Plath
Reel.com

... all the classic hallmarks of the Marx Brothers — Groucho’s one-liners, musical numbers, rapid fire word play and Margaret Dumont — are present in the film

Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment Comment
02/26/05
Philip Martin
Philip Martin
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

No review available.

comment Comment
12/10/04
Thomas Delapa
Thomas Delapa
Boulder Weekly

Definitely the best MGM Marx film; an all time yocker.

comment Comment
10/30/04
Steve Crum
Steve Crum
Kansas City Kansan

May be the start of the slide, but it's still pretty close to the top.

Full Review Source: Film Freak Central | comment Comment
07/31/04
Walter Chaw
Walter Chaw
Film Freak Central
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 >> >|
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