A Night in Casablanca

Buy This Item A Night in Casablanca by Warner Home Video  Available from Amazon  $17.99  on 9-19-2008     Marx Brothers comedy has them ferret out Nazi spies in a Casablanca hotel. Reader Reviews Too many of the lines are anything but gems (Chico: That's not-a my wife. That's-a my camel). The movie is stylistically dominated by its framing melodrama. Harpo and Chico are starting to look old. The climax is almost completely devoid of anarchic fun. Nazis trying to kill Groucho are a questionable substitute for Margaret Dumont. Yet despite these drawbacks, "A Night in Casablanca" is clearly the brothers' strongest outing since "A Day at the Races" and is some ways even better: Groucho doesn't snivel, the romantic leads can act but don't sing, the musical interludes are brief and entertaining (Chico has two in a row, the second using some much-needed new business) and there is a much higher percentage of comedy vs romantic plot. And much of the comedy is quite good. Some of Groucho's banter with would-be femme fatal Beatrice Rheiner (played handsomely by Lisette Verea in her only American--and only sound--movie role) has an existentially knowing edge to it that suits Groucho's more mature character. Harpo has a great dueling scene early in the film. Chico, the most under-appreciated brother, gives a characteristically effortless performance. And the scene where the brothers drive the villain half insane by secretively unpacking his luggage around him is better than anything in their previous four movies. Groucho, incidentally, gives what is arguably his best acting performance. This movie is no where near as great as their early Paramounts but it's still a surprisingly entertaining comedy for a team coming back from retirement following a precipitous decline in the quality of their work. Highly recommended.

A Night in Casablanca Available from Amazon Price: $17.99 Updated on 9-19-2008.

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