The Big Store (1941)

Director:

Charles Reisner

Writers:

Nat Perrin (story)
Sid Kuller (writer) ...

Release Date:

20 junio 1941 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Musical

Frase comercial:

Howl . . . And Farewell ! Their Last Picture . . . And Their Best !

Plot:

The Phelps Department Store is about to be sold by its new part owner, Tommy Rogers with the permission of Martha Phelps...

Plot Keywords:

Marx Brothers | Department Store | Private Detective

Comentarios de los usuarios:

Not great, but has its moments

Cast

Groucho Marx	...	Wolf J. Flywheel
Chico Marx	...	Ravelli
Harpo Marx	...	Wacky
Tony Martin	...	Tommy Rogers
Virginia Grey	...	Joan Sutton
Margaret Dumont	...	Martha Phelps
Douglass Dumbrille	...	Mr. Grover
William Tannen	...	Fred 'Chris' Sutton
Marion Martin	...	Peggy Arden
Virginia O'Brien	...	Kitty
Henry Armetta	...	Guiseppi
Anna Demetrio	...	Maria
Paul Stanton	...	Arthur Hastings
Russell Hicks	...	George Hastings
Bradley Page	...	Duke

También conocida como:

Tienda de locos (Spain) [es]

Duración:

83 min

País:

USA

Idioma:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sonido:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Clasificación:

Australia:G | Finland:S | Germany:6 | Sweden:Btl | USA:Approved (certificate #7345)

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivialidades:

This is the only film of The Marx Brothers where Harpo Marx is initially teamed with Groucho Marx instead of Chico Marx.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Wolf, Ravelli and Wacky meet Tommy, Wacky has his right arm by his side. In the subsequent shot, when he shakes hands with Tommy, he has his right hand in his pocket.

Quotes:

Wolf J. Flywheel: [Flywheel has mistaken the Hastings brothers for the killers and handcuffed them] There you are. I give you the killers.
Tommy Rogers: Why, it's the Hastings brothers, the men who are going to buy the store.
Wolf J. Flywheel: Gentlemen, I'm terribly sorry, but it's really not my fault. You certainly do look like crooks.

Movie Connections:

References Strike Up the Band (1940)

Soundtrack:

Sing Before Breakfast

Not great, but has its moments

The Big Store is not one of the Marx Brothers' best films, but it's worth watching once. Groucho still delivers a few good one-liners and insults to Margaret Dumont. Harpo and Chico have some good scenes (watch as an Italian immigrant accuses Chico of mocking his accent!). I actually think that the musical numbers in this one are wonderful, except for those by Tony Rogers, one of the many love interest duds who grace the Brothers' flicks. Maltin's right: The Tenement Symphony is a suicide-inducing number, and easily a low point in all of the Marx Brothers' films, except for the entire running time of Love Happy. But there's a great song and dance number when Groucho first enters the store. You have to catch the woman singing a jazzed-up version of Rock-a-bye Baby; I have never seen a more eerily emotionless visage on a human being. It's creepy and oddly beautiful. Chico and Harpo perform an awesome piano duet. There's also a scene where four young kids play the piano like Chico, which is very charming. And Harpo's harp sequence is pretty good (he plays Mozart on the harp, and then his two reflections accompany him with other, various string instruments). The final chase sequence is rather annoying. The Marx Brothers' fall came about when their films started overutilizing special effects, fast motion, and sound effects to enhance the comedy. Still, The Big Store is not a disaster, by any means. 7/10.