September 'Nick's Pix:' DUCK SOUP & Book Signing
Well, it’s that time of the month again. The second Wednesday of every month means another Nick’s Pix screening at the beautiful Lake Theater in Oak Park, and this time I could not be more excited because we are going all the way back to 1933 for one of the funniest movies ever made.
On Wednesday, September 9th at 7:00 p.m., I’ll be presenting the Marx Brothers’ absolute masterpiece Duck Soup in a beautiful 4K restoration on the big screen.
And when I say masterpiece, I mean it.
Duck Soup is one of the great American comedies. It is fast, ridiculous, anarchic, politically subversive, musically inventive, and relentlessly funny. The jokes don’t simply come at you: they attack you.
Groucho delivers one-liners at an almost impossible pace, Harpo turns physical comedy into surrealism, Chico mangles the English language with absolute precision, and Zeppo is there doing what Zeppo does best: somehow remaining relatively normal while complete insanity explodes around him.
This was the fifth and final Marx Brothers movie made for Paramount Pictures, and it was also the final movie featuring Zeppo alongside Groucho, Chico, and Harpo. Directed by the great Leo McCarey, Duck Soup represents the Marx Brothers at probably their purest and most concentrated.
There is barely a wasted second in the entire film.
Groucho plays Rufus T. Firefly, who is somehow appointed leader of the financially troubled nation of Freedonia. Meanwhile, neighboring Sylvania is plotting against the country, Chico and Harpo are supposedly working as spies, Margaret Dumont is trying to maintain some semblance of dignity, and eventually the entire thing spirals into war.
That’s really all the plot you need. Because plot is not why you watch Duck Soup. You watch Duck Soup because it is one of the most perfectly sustained explosions of comic lunacy ever captured on film.
Groucho is in incredible form. Rufus T. Firefly is basically Groucho Marx handed control of an entire country, which is both a terrifying concept and one of the funniest premises imaginable.
Authority means absolutely nothing to these guys. Government means nothing. Diplomacy means nothing. Military protocol means nothing. Wealth, class, patriotism, nationalism, decorum, everything exists simply to be mocked, dismantled, insulted, or hit over the head.
And standing directly in the middle of all this madness is the magnificent Margaret Dumont.
Dumont was the perfect straight woman for Groucho because she somehow maintained total dignity while he hurled insult after insult directly at her.
Her ability to play these scenes completely straight is essential to why they’re so funny. She never seems to understand that she is trapped inside a Marx Brothers movie, which makes everything happening around her even more hilarious.
Then you have Chico and Harpo creating absolute chaos everywhere they go, including the great sequences with Edgar Kennedy and the peanut and lemonade stands. These routines are master classes in physical comedy. Hats are stolen, exchanged, knocked off, put back on, carts are destroyed, tempers explode, and the entire thing keeps escalating until reality itself seems to have surrendered.
And, of course, there is the legendary mirror sequence.
Harpo, dressed exactly like Groucho, pretends to be Groucho’s reflection in a nonexistent mirror and perfectly imitates everything he does. It is one of the most famous comedy scenes ever filmed, and its influence can be seen everywhere, from cartoons to television shows to countless later movies.
But what continues to amaze me about Duck Soup is how modern it feels.
The movie came out in 1933, yet its political satire remains incredibly sharp. The idea that countries can stumble into war because of ego, stupidity, personal insults, nationalism, incompetence, and leaders behaving like children certainly hasn’t become less relevant.
There are moments during the climactic battle when Groucho changes military uniforms almost from shot to shot, wearing uniforms from completely different wars and countries.
Nobody bothers explaining it because explanation would ruin the joke. The entire concept of war has become so ridiculous that even the uniforms are meaningless.
That is the Marx Brothers.
There are filmmakers who spend enormous amounts of time constructing elaborate satire and explaining precisely what they want you to understand. The Marx Brothers simply blow everything up and move on to the next joke. And the pace is breathtaking.
Anyone interested in comedy filmmaking should study these movies. You want to learn how to construct a joke? Watch the Marx Brothers. You want to learn comic timing? Watch the Marx Brothers. You want to understand how dialogue, music, physical comedy, character, and editing can work together? Watch the Marx Brothers.
Modern comedy filmmakers could learn an enormous amount by sitting down and watching Duck Soup.
I also have a very personal connection to these movies.
Growing up in Chicago during the 1970s, New Year’s Eve meant Marx Brothers movies on WGN Channel 9. They would run Marx Brothers marathons, and while our parents were out celebrating New Year’s Eve, my friends and I would be having sleepovers and sitting in front of the television watching Groucho, Chico, Harpo, and Zeppo back-to-back-to-back.
Those movies became part of my childhood. I also have another wonderful memory connected to this movie.
Back in the summer of 2009, Chicago used to have those terrific outdoor movie screenings in Grant Park. A giant screen would be set up in the park, people would bring blankets, food, wine and cheese, sit outside on a beautiful Chicago summer night, and watch a classic movie together.
One night they showed Duck Soup.
And somebody had the brilliant idea of handing out Groucho glasses (the plastic glasses with the giant nose, eyebrows, and mustache) to everyone attending the screening.
Thousands of people put them on simultaneously. The Guinness World Records people were there, and that night we set the record for the largest gathering of people wearing Groucho Marx glasses in one place.
So yes, somewhere in the history books, I am technically part of a Groucho Marx-related Guinness World Record.
I’m very proud.
We will probably not be breaking any Guinness World Records at the Lake Theater on September 9th. Probably. But if you happen to own a pair of Groucho glasses, I certainly would not discourage you from bringing them.
What I can guarantee is that we’re going to have a fantastic time watching one of the greatest comedies ever made the way comedy should be experienced, with a big audience.
There is nothing better than hearing a group of people laugh together. And everybody could use a good laugh right now. I certainly could.
One of the things I love about doing these monthly Nick’s Pix screenings is that I get to present all kinds of movies. We’ve shown modern films, classics, animation, dramas, musicals, comedies, and movies from almost every era. I want these screenings to celebrate the entire history of movies.
And I am incredibly proud that I get to do it at the Lake Theater.
My partnership with Classic Cinemas has now lasted more than two and a half years, and we’re already planning future seasons. I love working with this family-owned company because they understand what going to the movies is supposed to be. CEO Chris Johnson and his family take pride in providing the best movie-going experiences around today.
Great projection. Great sound. Comfortable reclining seats. Affordable tickets. Free refills on popcorn and soda. And, most importantly, a genuine love of the theatrical movie-going experience.
The Lake Theater itself has been part of Oak Park for around 90 years, and there is something especially wonderful about showing a 1933 comedy in a great historic movie palace.
So here’s the deal:
Wednesday, September 9th at 7:00 p.m.
At the Lake Theater in Oak Park
A special 4K presentation of the Marx Brothers’ Duck Soup.
Tickets available at RIGHT HERE!
I’ll introduce the movie beforehand and share some stories and background about the Marx Brothers and the film. Then we’ll watch it together on the big screen. Afterward, I’ll come back out and we’ll have an interactive discussion, do some movie trivia, and give away prizes including T-shirts, movie passes, and more.
And, as always, this Nick’s Pix screening will also be a book signing for my book, 40 Years, 40 Films, published by Eckhartz Press.
The book is my autobiographical journey through forty years as a film critic, with essays about my favorite movie from every year beginning in 1985, along with my Top 10 lists and discussions of hundreds of other movies that have been part of my life and career.
I’m incredibly proud of it, and I’ll be in the lobby before and after the screening selling and signing copies. Pick one up, I’ll personalize it for you, we’ll take some pictures, talk movies, and have some fun.
So come out and see Duck Soup on the big screen.
Come celebrate Groucho, Chico, Harpo, Zeppo, Margaret Dumont, and the complete comic insanity of the Marx Brothers. Come laugh with us. And bring your Groucho glasses if you’ve got them.
It all happens Wednesday, September 9th at 7:00 p.m. at the Lake Theater in Oak Park.
Get your tickets now, reserve your seats, and I’ll see you there!
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