Day at the Races, A (1937)
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Director: Sam Wood
Honors:
They seem to get better and better with each picture they
make, and here with A Day at the Races
the Marx Brothers are at full force in another crazy story as they try to save a
friend with their hilarious antics. It would be the group’s longest film, include
large musical numbers that mixed styles, and contains comedy routines that are
so funny they could stand on their own, but are fondly remembered from this
picture. As with many films at this time out of MGM, it marked the end of an
era with the passing of producer Irving Thalberg, and marks the peak of the
Marx Bros. in the form of probably their finest film.
A Day at the Races
is a Marx Bros. comedy as they desperately try to save a sanitarium and its
beautiful owner from going broke. Standish Sanitarium is having a difficult
time financially, and its owner, the young and lovely Judy (Maureen
O’Sullivan), tries to think of ways to save it from falling to the bank. With her
greatest and wealthiest patient, Mrs. Upjohn (Margret Dumont,) and her fancy
for a certain Dr. Hackenbush (Groucho), Judy hires the doctor aboard hoping
Upjohn will make a large donation to the sanitarium for the services as her
favorite physician, despite his is really only a veterinarian. Meanwhile Judy’s
boyfriend, singer Gil (Allan Jones), attempts to help Judy by taking his entire
life savings to buy a race horse that turns out to be rather slow, instead of
helping his own career.
Antics abound throughout the film with many hilarious acts
by the Marx Bros. interacting and causing much distress on others. Chico plays
Tony, an employee of the sanitarium and friends with horse jockey Stuffy,
played by Harpo. Much of the picture bankers are trying to prove Hakenbush as a
fake doctor, but ultimately the fate of the sanitarium lies in the horse owned
by Gil. With the jockeying of Stuffy, and the trickery of Tony and Hakenbush,
Gil’s horse “Hi-hat” wins the big steeplechase race saving Judy’s sanitarium.
First to put the film into proper perspective for
contemporary audiences: A sanatarium in the 1930s was a place for generally the
wealthier class would go to “get well” instead of a possible misconception of a
place for physically or mentally unwell people. Sanatariums were generally
places in the “country or other nature surrounded places that made people think
that getting closer to nature and being “healthy” made them, both body and
mind, become more fit after years of stress and labored filled lives. In
reality they were resorts and not hospitals.
The film is a real
tour de force of the Marx brothers. Veterans of the vaudeville stage this
picture proves the groups hard work and timing to hit precise moments for
optimum laughs. Besides some of the funniest routines the trio had produced,
the film is filled with musical numbers that are full MGM status. Included in
it a number in the style of Busby Berkley with a rather large and very
beautiful water fountain on a lavish set similar to that of a Astaire/Rogers
film, such as Top Hat, where we see
many pretty young dancers perform. Aside from that the most memorable musical
number is a jazz scene inspired by the wave of African American musicians which
grew in popularity during the 1930s. It is a jazz filled number with energetic
dancing and singing, added by the excitement of Harpo joining in the fun. The
film is really the largest picture the Marx Bros. had been in together, and
much of that is thanks to Irving Thalberg, who sadly passed away shortly before
filming began.
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| Tutsie fruitsie ice cream scene is one of the film's best routines |
To help bring the same level of success as seen in the
previous Marx Bros. feature Thalberg brought back director Sam Wood as well as
actor Allan Jones to play the romantic lead, for which the true plot of the
story centers around. Wood’s contribution is mostly overlooked as the film is
really the hard work of all three Marx brothers. Thalberg, as before when they
joined MGM, sent the trio on the vaudeville circuit to perfect the routines
that would play out in the film. The brothers were originally from the stage
and fed off the response of live audiences. Routines such as the tutsie
fruitsie ice cream scene where Chico sells Groucho horse race tip through a
series of books would be worked out to perfection and filmed based off the real
life laughs they received on stage.
The style in which the film was produced, which was very
similar to that of A Night at the Opera,
allowed A Day at the Races to be an
even larger success for the comedy group. It was the creative producer of
Irving Thalberg that endorsed the brothers to expand and perfect their craft to
the point they were able to produce such comedies. With the passing of Thalberg
only two weeks before shooting, the production of the feature would go as
planned in tribute to Thalberg, but as the production side of MGM moved into
the hands of studio head Louis B. Mayer the creative control of the Marx Bros.
in their future films would dwindle and the trio would not see the success they
would here with A Day at the Races.
A Day at the Races would
mark a first (and only) for a Marx Bros. film as the picture was nominated for
an Academy Award in the category of best dance direction, because of the
creative musical numbers in the picture. This category would be one of many
short lived awards passed out by the Academy, which was still in its earlier
years.
To go along with any Marx Bros. film would be the supporting
cast, of which the real plot of film was actually based around while the
brothers tried to help, only to cause chaos. First and foremost there is
Groucho’s straightman in Margret Dumont. As always she provides the great
bouncing board for all of his quips and one-liners that make fun of her, while
being his storied love interest. Groucho almost needed Dumont to be in every
film to be the butt of his jokes in many sequences.
The vocally talented Allan Jones returns from A Night at the
Opera to take the place left behind when Zeppo departed the group as the
romantic lead. Jones with his singing voice, which was also on display in the
popular adaptation of Show Boat, also
provides musical interludes in the comedy. His love interest would be played by
the rather well known Maureen O’Sullivan. A regular actress under the MGM
studio of stars, O’Sullivan was best known as Jane in the Tarzan films, but still fails to find a strong footing to play
major dramatic roles. Even so she still finds her way into many notable films
as a supporting actress as seen here.
For years A Day at the
Races has been thought of as the Marx Bros. finest comedy picture. Groucho
for years would even refer to himself at “Hakenbush” manifesting his love for
this feature. In 2000 the American Film Institute would honor it by placing it
as n#59 on their list of top comedies of all time. Time would provide this
feature to be the panicle of the group’s motion pictures, manifested in the
lesser films to follow in their time with MGM. A classic comedy that continues
to entertain A Day at the Races is a
fondly remembered film in any library on cinema and comedy lovers.
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