Review of A Night at the Opera (85)

Plot
Two lovers who are both in opera are prevented from being together by the man's lack of acceptance as an operatic tenor. Pulling several typical Marx Brothers' stunts, they arrange for the normal tenor to be absent so that the young lover can get his chance.

Jason's Thoughts
I can honestly say that before I sat down to watch A Night at the Opera, I had never seen a Marx Brothers film. I have always heard good things about their movies, so I went in with some high expectations for this one. After watching the film, I have to say that my expectations fell a bit short.

A Night at the Opera had its funny moments that made me laugh and chuckle to myself. The scene where the two parties discuss and remove several sections of an employment contract and the crowded stateroom scene are two that come to mind that I felt were both clever and funny. Much like the rest of the film, however, both of those scenes rely heavily on repetition, which is one of the faults of this movie.

Don't get me wrong, well timed repetitive humor can be hysterical. Nothing can bring a smile to my face faster than hearing the two word phrase of "O'Doyle rules." However, seeing a movie that has small sections of repetitive humor over and over again can quickly become annoying. Breaking up the repetitive nature of the movie with a couple of oddly placed musical interludes didn't help the film much either.

The Marx Brothers certainly have an appeal to them, but I think it is one that has to be acquired or you had to have lived in their time period to find their work hysterically funny. I guess I will get a chance to test that theory when we get to sit down and watch Duck Soup, which took up the number 60 spot in the Top 100 list.

Crystal's Thoughts
For the streak we have been on, I am starting to think I really do have ADD. Once again, this movie was a bit confusing with all the people running around. It was better towards the end as the characters were more defined, but at first, I had no idea who was doing what. The names of the two lead male opera singers certainly didn't help my case, Ricardo and Rodolfo. Than again, none the names were too easy to follow. I must say, I am glad I wasn't born in Italy!

While this movie wasn't horrible like others we've had to bare, it wasn't the greatest. I am not a fan of opera, so the music at times felt like nails down and chalkboard. And while I know the movie was made in 1935, the camera jumped around, a lot. It was very distracting. I also didn't feel the story line was too strong. Yes, it's two lovers being able to be together, and there were a few funny parts, but I thought these Marx brothers were kings of comedy. I really wasn't laughing that hard at all, which a comedy should, including making your sides hurt after you're done laughing.

One part of the movie I did find interesting was the scene on the ship when the stowaways were eating and dancing and drinking below deck with the lower class passengers. It reminded me a lot of Titanic, which in the end is a reminder of how these movies contribute to the success of others. I feel it shows a good study and understanding of the older films by the directors and screenwriters.

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