They mimmic his behavior to an impossibly exact degree, creating the illusion that he is looking into a mirror when he is really looking at someone mimmicing him. In this scene, Groucho is confronted with Harpo (and later Chico) dressed exactly as he is. After this, Zeppo stayed behind the scenes and let Groucho, Chico, and Harpo completely take over the spotlight.)Īmong other classic bits, Duck Soup contains the famous "mirror gag." (In fact, this was the last Marx Brothers film to feature Zeppo–the Marx Brother who served as "romantic interest" in their early films.
It shows the Marx Brothers at the peak of their form. The film was made in 1933, in the midst of the Great Depression. If you say, "That’s just duck soup," you mean "That’s very easy" (not that many folks use this phrase much any more presumably it dates to an era when more Americans went duck hunting). Instead, the phrase "duck soup" is a metaphor that refers to something that is very easy.
#Duck soup marx brothers movie movie
One note for readers who aren’t native English-speakers: The title of the movie is not to be taken literally. It’s also widely considered the best of their films by film critics. Recently I re-watched their movie Duck Soup and it reminded me of just how funny the brothers can be.ĭuck Soup is my favorite of all the Marx Brothers films–at least of all the ones I’ve seen thus far (there are still some I have yet to watch). I really like the Marx Brothers brand of zany humor.