Customer Reviews

Marx Bros.: Go West/The Big Store

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

There are Marx Brothers Classics out there and Go West isn't one of them, although longtime afficionados who must have read negative reviews of their latter films somewhere along the way, might be very surprised at the number of clever, successful gags, and energetic performances by the comedy legends.
The somewhat complicated plot (feature comedies in the '40s were big on plots with bad guys and young lovers who are threatened by them and seek the aide of the starring comedy team) involving the search for gold, land deeds, corrupt sheriffs, and a few other things, actually involves the stars (they're not used as "comic relief", a typical device of the times).
The problem is that the good stuff sometimes over-milked, for example, the climactic scene of the Marxs' attempt to keep the train chugging by breaking up the train into little pieces and tossing them into the engine, needed a strong comedy director and editor to keep it from getting tiresome.
There's an entertaining musical number near the end of the film in which Groucho sings and plays guitar - always fun for the fans. Unlike the scene in "Horse Feathers" in which Groucho sings and plays for Thelma Todd, unfortunately the booming baritone of John Carroll is also heard, along with Chico, and a great chance is lost. Okay, Carroll is the handsome co-lead (?) but the credits list GM first, and let's assume that most fans paid to watch Mr. Marx. [Speaking of production numbers, in the 1947 "Copacabana" with Groucho, at center stage he performs a number originally written for Go West!].
Of course, there are depressing aspects to this film, which can be expected for the period - a sequence in which the boys and the lovers stop off on the trail on a Native American "reservation", and, hence, the stereotypically cliched dialogue and situations. However, something miraculous happens, Harpo happens upon a stringed object, transforms it into a harp and plays in duet with the "Chief", who plays a woodwind instrument - it's actually a great scene, which fades with the latter placing his hand gently on Harpo's shoulder. One of those rare, touching moments; the brothers were quite capable of injecting pathos into the proceedings when the moment was right.
The Big Store is contemporary - this time the Marxs' help the lovers retain a huge department store, despite tentative credentials as store detectives. Here's another one which has some good bits and pieces, contrary to the generaln consensus of film critics. We don't have over-milked gags as much as one lost opportunity after another; some of that disappointment actually due to the fact that surreal comedy was really a thing of the past by 1941. For example, in The Big Store we find Groucho asleep in the bed department. The effect is ruined by one of the supporting actors prefacing the scene with mention that Mr. Flywheel was up all night examining the books and it was okay for him to sleep there. Another scene has Harpo dressed in Revolutionary War era attire and playing the harp in duet with himself - a beautifully crafted scene. But, alas, it was in his imagination.
Margaret Dumont is on hand and she's always a pleasure to watch - she's given some decent dialogue in a typically wild courtship scene with you know who.
Both Go West and The Big Store have plenty of music, and that's not a negative, as they successfully showcase the performing talents of the Marxes. It's really astonishing to note that they could perform all kinds of comedy, plus play classical music quite impressively, even kick up their heels - Flywheel's dance moves are absolutely balletic in the otherwiseoverdrawn, impossible "Sing While You Sell" number. The viewer/fan can make up his/her mind with both entries as to whether they're watching a musical comedy, a comedy with music, a comedy, or....the Marx Brothers. For deep fans there will be a plethora of coulda-shoulda(s) - both features are in a completely different cosmos from "Duck Soup". DVD Extra Features are entertaining for both fan and historian, including an apparent radio promo/sketch for Go West.

Go West- I'm glad I watched 'A Night at the Opera' because that caused me to want to watch more Marx Brothers movies! Groucho is my favorite, because he's always hilarious in a stressful situation! Groucho plays an embezzler named S. Quentin Quale, who tries to rip off Joseph and Rusty Panello at the train station. Later, they all work together and stop a greedy rich man from building a town on an old man's land. The Marx Brothers help get the deed back and stop the bad guy. I love the awesome show-down on the train and how they tear up the entire framework for more firewood. If you love classic comedy, and The Marx Brothers, you'll love GO WEST!!!


The Big Store- The Marx Brothers get better everytime I see them! Groucho plays out-of-work Detective Wolf J. Flywheel who has been hired to go to The Phelps Department Store and protect Tommy Rogers from being killed. Wolf gets help from Wacky and Ravelli. I thought it was awesome toward the end when they all go through the store on roller skates, trying to stop a bad guy from getting evidence that shows he's tring to kill Tommy. If you love classic comedy, and the Marx Brothers, you'll love THE BIG STORE!!!

You might have to be a fan already, but Go West's train chase is positively worth the price of this copy as well as one of the funniest on film.

These films are only Ok but if you are a Marx Brothers fan, they are essential to own. The brothers are still full of antics and craziness, but the films seem underproduced and not as momentous as they used to. MGM generally tended to treat comedies as B level pictures and after Irving Thalberg's death, the Marxes were not accepted as A level stars.

"Go West" is your typical Marx Bros masterpiece. For the life of me, I can't understand why it's so despised. Plenty of wonderful verbal comedy from Groucho while Harpo and Chico are great with their unique brand of physical and nonsensical dialogue. The plot moves quick and the terrible MGM romantic subplot isn't so terrible. 8/10

"Room Service" is another story. Very bland and family-friendly. The Bros' comedy is not very inspired here, but the weird setting is fascinating and makes for great ephemera. Watch this when there's nothing else on. 5/10

Despite not having a reputation as one of the better Marx Brothers films, I still found "Go West" to be a typical MB movie with crazy scenes and a few songs. No, it may not have been as funny as their better-known films of the 1930s, but I didn't think it much below them, either.

It's not as totally outrageous as the boys' earlier stuff but it also has fewer stupid stuff, too. Make no mistake: it has its share of genuinely funny material, both in dialog and in sight gags. The finale is a wild chase scene on a train that is very, very entertaining. That holds true for a wild stagecoach ride earlier in the picture. Once again, Chico comes up with the funniest lines.

THE BIG STORE - The final 15 minutes "saved this film," as most of it is not up to MB standards. I guess by the 1940s, the boys were in a decline, for various reasons. The jokes in here - and the songs - are too dated and, frankly, appealing. However, I personally enjoyed the hectic last 15 minutes with a chase through a department store. That was classic slapstick material and it still works.

OVERALL - For $13.49 (current price), it's a good deal, even if only one of the movies is good.

Classic comedy. Even our 20 yr old son finds their Wit and one liners great enough to repeat to friends.

This is simply good family fun. My aunt, was one of the child instrumentalists (bassoon) in the movie. She is now 88 years old. My family (children and grandchildren) were amazed at the humor and action scenes and loved the complete story. My elementary school general music students are amazed at the piano quartet and duet.
We could use more of this style, just silly fun - not so heavy on the sex scenes, in our movie going society. Thanks to Amazon for connecting me to the source so I could purchase the DVD.

Comedy PAIRfection : Marx Bros. twin bill !. Groucho (1890-1977) , Chico 1887-1961 , Harpo 1888-1964 - All certifiaby wacko in a double dip comedies . The Marxmen GO WEST to where the sun always shine , the fun never sets and where they outwin a land grabber . Highlights include the One dollar scam , the stagecoach ride , Chico and Harpo belllying up the bar and train chase finale . What fools these mortals be and what fuels they need . The Boys chop up passanger car to get wood to stoke the locomotive . They Go East in THE BIG STORE , becoming detectives-cum-bodyguard for a Department Sore . Crime is afoot in the store or , if in the fabric department by the yard . Still our sleuths don't have a clue exept in laughting matters. Chico and Harpo share a Pioano keyboard , Beds disapear into walls , roller skates provide in-store mobility Grocho warbles Sing whille you sell . Sold . High Quality Transfer.Recommended .

"The Big Store" and "Go West" were supposed to be the last films for the Three Marx Brothers, after a tremendous career and a half dozen film classics that remain funny even today - "Cocoanuts" (1929), "Animal Crackers" (1930), "Duck Soup" (1933), "A Night at the Opera" (1935), and "A Day at the Races" (1937). By the end of the 30s, Irving Thalberg was dead, the Marx Brothers films were getting repetitious and their contract with MGM was running out, and the great comedy team of Abbott and Costello were churning out the comedy hits with "Night in the Tropics" (1940), "Buck Privates" (1941), and "Hold That Ghost" (1941). In April 1941 Groucho told the LA Herald - "Our stuff is simply growing stale. So are we."

Unfortunately, "Go West" and particularly "The Big Store" continued their decline, and they were so bad the boys decided to make a few more films to try to go out on top. The gambling debts owed by Chico were another reason to continue making films. In any event, they made two more films - "A Night in Casablanca" (1946) and "Love Happy" (1949) and thank goodness for that - "Casablanca" was up to the standard they set in earlier films and "Love Happy" gave Marilyn Monroe one of her first screen appearances.

That being said, we have in this duo some of the worst of the Marx Brothers films. Now a bad Marx Brothers film is not necessarily a bad film, but you get the point.

"Go West" is the worst of the pair. It has a lot of "bit pieces" that don't really fit into anything else, and are staged like burlesque acts. Of course some of the one liners are funny and there is a good bit at the end when the boys dismantle a train to provide fuel to keep it going. And there is a funny scene where Harpo faces Robert Barratt in a gun fight. But otherwise the musical numbers are forgettable, as is most of the film.

"The Big Store" pairs the 3 brothers with long-time comic foil Margaret Dumont as well as Douglas Dumbrille. This was Dumont's last film with the boys, although she would continue to make films right up until her death in 1965, and even showed up in an Abbott and Costello film, "The Little Giant" (1946) thanks to the influence of director William Seiter who had directed the boys in "Room Service" (1938). Dumont was a terrific actress, one of the best straight men ever to grace the silver screen, but her performance in "The Big Store" is only mediocre. One of the problems is her early acceptance of Groucho's advances. In her other films, it takes a lot of effort for Groucho to woo her. In this film, she is entranced from early on, thus reducing the comic tension as Groucho tries and tries again.

The production numbers, like the comedy, are mediocre. Groucho said that "Tenement Symphony" was the worst number he'd ever seen. A bee bop number in an elevator (the lead up to Groucho's "Sing While You Sell") is completely out of place. Tony Martin's solo work is good, as you'd expect from a recording artist with several top 10 recordings.

Should you see these films? If you're a Marx Brothers fan, you probably should. But it's their early work that is truly great.