On a transatlantic crossing, The Marx Brothers get up to their usual antics and manage to annoy just about everyone on board the ship.On a transatlantic crossing, The Marx Brothers get up to their usual antics and manage to annoy just about everyone on board the ship.On a transatlantic crossing, The Marx Brothers get up to their usual antics and manage to annoy just about everyone on board the ship.
- Awards
- 2 nominations
Groucho Marx
- Groucho
- (as The Four Marx Brothers)
Harpo Marx
- Harpo
- (as The Four Marx Brothers)
The Marx Brothers
- The Four Stowaways
- (as The Four Marx Brothers)
Chico Marx
- Chico
- (as The Four Marx Brothers)
Zeppo Marx
- Zeppo
- (as The Four Marx Brothers)
Rockliffe Fellowes
- Joe Helton
- (as Rockcliffe Fellowes)
Eddie Baker
- Ship's Officer
- (uncredited)
Bobby Barber
- Hoarse Barber Customer
- (uncredited)
Billy Barty
- Child
- (uncredited)
Billy Bletcher
- Man in Deck Chair
- (uncredited)
Eddie Borden
- Joe
- (uncredited)
James Bradbury Jr.
- Party Guest
- (uncredited)
Maxine Castle
- Opera Singer at Party
- (uncredited)
Davison Clark
- Passport Official
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaSam Marx: The Marx Brothers' father is sitting on the crates behind them after they're carried off the ship.
- GoofsDuring the passport scene, when the brothers try to get off the boat by impersonating Maurice Chevalier, neither Zeppo Marx (the first brother to try) nor Groucho Marx (the third to try), get Chevalier's passport back from the officer in charge, yet Chico Marx and Harpo Marx each have it as they approach the front of the line.
- Quotes
Groucho: Are you the floorwalker of this ship? I want to register a complaint.
Captain Corcoran: Why? What's the matter?
Groucho: Matter enough. You know who sneaked into my stateroom at three o'clock this morning?
Captain Corcoran: Who did that?
Groucho: Nobody, and that's my complaint.
- Crazy creditsThe opening credits are painted on the sides of barrels (In the film's opening, the Marx Brothers' characters are stow-aways on a cruise ship, hiding in barrels marked "Kippered Herring").
- Alternate versionsReissue prints have a few additional seconds at the beginning showing the "Approved" code on a title screen. Earlier prints do not have the code at the beginning.
- ConnectionsEdited into Histoire(s) du cinéma: Seul le cinéma (1994)
Featured review
In all my years of criticing films, I have never found a team of comedians more funny, more satirical, or more flexible as the four original Marx Brothers. Their comedy and their formula works in ways that no other comedy team has ever worked, and results like this, their third and, IMHO, funniest film, prove what film historians already know: Groucho, Harpo, Chico, and Zeppo are some of the most influential Hollywood legends to ever live!
"Monkey Business" works because all of the brothers are given the same amount of screentime, and each of their characters were very important to the plot. In movies before and after this picture, more emphasis would be spent on different brothers in each film (i.e. Groucho in "Animal Crackers," Harpo in "Love Happy"), and the other bros would have little to do but stand their with their mouths open. Not so in this. They are all main characters here, and each of them are allowed to stick to their own unique formulas that they are best at: Groucho with his wisecracks, Chico with his conning, Harpo with his silent antics, and Zeppo the straight man with his women-swooning.
As far as plotline goes, the four brothers play themselves, stowing away on an ocean-liner and constantly avoiding the captain and his crew by any means neseccary (and I do mean by any means!). The story itself is a very serious one, and it could have passed for a pretty good, if by-the-numbers gangster movie: There are two dueling mob bosses on this boat, one of which is trying to come clean after making his fortune. He has a beautiful young college daughter, and he is trying to get his life straightened out. The other mob boss has a failing marriage with a beautiful young wife (Thelma Todd), and he by no means is trying to reform. He wants his part of the other boss's money, or else he plans on kidnapping the daughter and holding her for ransom.
So what we have here is a pretty standard, serious plotline....The writers were very smart in choosing to make it one, so that it would eventually become all-the-more funny. Suddenly, into this serious movie, the Marx Brothers are dumped into the scene, and everything becomes chaotic. Groucho falls for the bad guy's wife. Zeppo falls for the good guy's daughter. Harpo falls for any girl in a dress. Chico falls for a cow. Chico and Harpo are hired to protect the goodguy. Groucho and Zeppo are hired to kill him. In the meantime, they are still on the run and are constantly trying to foil the plans of the Captain, who wants to put them in irons. The results of their slapstick are all the better now, because they are surrounded by a bunch of straight men who are acting in a very serious film...and it is their job to make it funny.
There is no greater film that better demonstrates just how genius the Marx Brothers' brand of comedy truely is. Groucho's constant insults and depression puns, Harpo's....whatever you call what Harpo does.... Chico's conning and comebacks, and Zeppo's romantic Renniasance man ("Mary, I'll never leave you," he promises his love before deserting her as he runs away in terror at the sight of the approaching the Captain) all make this the greatest of comedies. It also features probably their greatest screen moment: All four must do a Chevalier impression to get off the boat, and the results are....well....interesting.
Don't miss this movie if you want your sides to split in half!
"Would you mind getting off that flypaper and giving the flies a chance?"
**** out of ****
"Monkey Business" works because all of the brothers are given the same amount of screentime, and each of their characters were very important to the plot. In movies before and after this picture, more emphasis would be spent on different brothers in each film (i.e. Groucho in "Animal Crackers," Harpo in "Love Happy"), and the other bros would have little to do but stand their with their mouths open. Not so in this. They are all main characters here, and each of them are allowed to stick to their own unique formulas that they are best at: Groucho with his wisecracks, Chico with his conning, Harpo with his silent antics, and Zeppo the straight man with his women-swooning.
As far as plotline goes, the four brothers play themselves, stowing away on an ocean-liner and constantly avoiding the captain and his crew by any means neseccary (and I do mean by any means!). The story itself is a very serious one, and it could have passed for a pretty good, if by-the-numbers gangster movie: There are two dueling mob bosses on this boat, one of which is trying to come clean after making his fortune. He has a beautiful young college daughter, and he is trying to get his life straightened out. The other mob boss has a failing marriage with a beautiful young wife (Thelma Todd), and he by no means is trying to reform. He wants his part of the other boss's money, or else he plans on kidnapping the daughter and holding her for ransom.
So what we have here is a pretty standard, serious plotline....The writers were very smart in choosing to make it one, so that it would eventually become all-the-more funny. Suddenly, into this serious movie, the Marx Brothers are dumped into the scene, and everything becomes chaotic. Groucho falls for the bad guy's wife. Zeppo falls for the good guy's daughter. Harpo falls for any girl in a dress. Chico falls for a cow. Chico and Harpo are hired to protect the goodguy. Groucho and Zeppo are hired to kill him. In the meantime, they are still on the run and are constantly trying to foil the plans of the Captain, who wants to put them in irons. The results of their slapstick are all the better now, because they are surrounded by a bunch of straight men who are acting in a very serious film...and it is their job to make it funny.
There is no greater film that better demonstrates just how genius the Marx Brothers' brand of comedy truely is. Groucho's constant insults and depression puns, Harpo's....whatever you call what Harpo does.... Chico's conning and comebacks, and Zeppo's romantic Renniasance man ("Mary, I'll never leave you," he promises his love before deserting her as he runs away in terror at the sight of the approaching the Captain) all make this the greatest of comedies. It also features probably their greatest screen moment: All four must do a Chevalier impression to get off the boat, and the results are....well....interesting.
Don't miss this movie if you want your sides to split in half!
"Would you mind getting off that flypaper and giving the flies a chance?"
**** out of ****
- How long is Monkey Business?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Die Marx Brothers auf See
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 17 minutes
- Color
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content