The Cocoanuts (1929)

"Three years ago I came to Florida without a nickel in my pocket. Now I've got a nickel in my pocket."

Directors

Robert Florey
Joseph Santley

Cast
Groucho Marx - Mr. Hammer
Harpo Marx - Harpo
Chico Marx - Chico
Zeppo Marx - Jamison
Mary Eaton - Polly Potter
Oscar Shaw - Bob Adams
Margaret Dumont - Mrs. Potter
Kay Francis - Penelope
Cyril Ring - Harvey Yates
Basil Ruysdael - Detective Hennessy

Being asked who my patron saint is, aside from my name's sake patron, goes with the territory of being a Catholic. My reply is often "Groucho Marx." 

The reactions I receive from this differ. Once I was told, "He wasn't Catholic." My response to that was, "Maybe that's why he never answers my prayers." Still, that hasn't stopped me from being a Marxist. 

I should mention that I'm writing this review under the pretense that my readers (all three or four of them, plus mom) are familiar with the Marx Brothers. For those who don't know who these guys are, I'm too lazy to write up a brief biography about them. Instead, watch this video before moving on - Legends of Comedy - The Marx Brothers.

The 1929 comedy "The Cocoanuts" is the Marx Brothers' first film. Four of the Marx Brothers appear in this movie - Groucho, Harpo, Chico, and Zeppo. 

Incidentally, Zeppo appears in the first five Marx movies, with their 1933 movie "Duck Soup" being his last film role before leaving the act. After his departure, Groucho, Harpo, and Chico appear in the rest of their films. And the fifth brother, Gummo, doesn't appear in any of their films.

My first review on this blog was the 1932 Laurel and Hardy movie "Pack Up Your Troubles" for its unique story that's unlike other Laurel and Hardy films. After that, I wanted to include at least one Marx Brothers movie on this blog. But I didn't know which movie to start with. I didn't want to just pick any movie. I thought about "Duck Soup" but my mind eventually gravitated towards "The Cocoanuts." I'll get to "Duck Soup" eventually. 

I also considered their satire of the 1943 classic "Casablanca" titled "A Night in Casablanca." That deserves a lot of attention.

Left to right: Zeppo, Groucho, Chico, and Harpo in "The Cocoanuts."

If there's one thing that appeals to me about the Marx Brothers' comedy, it's their irreverence and ribbing towards the upper-class and all their formalities. 
"The Cocoanuts" takes place in a resort, Hotel de Cocoanut, down in Florida. 

The movie opens with Irving Berlin's song "Florida by the Sea." 

"In the lovely land of Florida

Sunny Florida by the sea.
All the sunshine in America
Is in Florida you'll agree," as the song goes. It should be the state anthem! 

The resort is run by Mr. Hammer (Groucho) along with his assistant, Jamison (Zeppo). 

Harpo and Chico show up to the hotel posing as guests. However, their suit cases are empty as they plan to rob the hotel guests.

One of those guests is the wealthy Mrs. Potter (Margaret Dumont). Her daughter, Polly (Mary Eaton) is staying with her at the hotel. 

Polly is in love with a down-on-his-luck architect named Bob Adams (Oscar Shaw) who's working at the hotel to keep himself afloat, financially speaking. 

Adams's ultimate plan is to develop the entire Hotel de Cocoanut into a large complex called "Cocoanut Manor." 

However, Mrs. Potter wants Polly to marry Harvey Yates (Cyril Ring) as she thinks he's among a higher social standing more suitable for her daughter.

 Little does she know that Yates is really a con artist. He and his partner, Penelope (Kay Francis), are plotting on stealing Mrs. Potter's diamond necklace. And hilarity ensues.  

I consider their first film "The Cocoanuts" to be groundbreaking in the comedy genre. Aside from being their first movie, I can't think of any other comedy before this one with the same whirlwind of non-stop jokes and on-liners that steps over the story to make itself the primary focus of the movie. The comedy here leaves the thin storyline as secondary. 

At the time, audiences couldn't make sense of the story, written by the legendary George S. Kaufman, as the comedy stood in its way. The comedy doesn't support the story. Rather, the story, as thin as it is, supports the comedy. And, really, the story needs to be thin. Otherwise, it would distract from the comedy. It wouldn't be as entertaining if that were the case. 

And what's even more impressive is that it doesn't really matter. I can't take my eyes off the energetic Marx brothers, nor do I want to. 

And as a big bonus, the songs are written by none other than Irving Berlin. That's some classy high caliber music!

The movie doesn't pull any punches, comedically speaking. It introduces the Marx Brothers, in all their impudent, cheeky, impressively talented ways to a wide range of audiences. They were already known to a lot of audiences through stage productions.

In their film debut, they're not presented in small doses. They're comedy, which relies more on one-liners and some sight gags, wasn't necessarily slapstick like other comedians at the time. Their comedy depended on comparing their jokes and behavior contrasted against the upper crust of society, and seeing the reactions that come about.

What audiences saw on screen in 1929 is what they got. The Marx Brothers as introduced to audiences like a novice swimmer is introduced to the deep end of a pool in order to learn how to swim. These are the Marx Brothers audiences would see again and again, in movie after movie.  

As Groucho Marx once said, "If you don't have anything nice to say, go ahead and say it." And it all starts with "The Cocoanuts."

In one seen, Chico tells Harpo, who never spoke in any of the Marx's movies, "Right now I'd do anything for money. I'd kill somebody for money. I'd kill you for money."

Harpo's face becomes dejected which Chico laughs off. 

"Ah, no. You're my friend. I'd kill you for nothing," Chico says, which makes Harpo smile and nod.

The best comedy in this movie comes from exchanges between Groucho and Margaret Dumont, who would be his leading straight lady for several films to come for Groucho to bounce insults off of. 

I could listen to hours of dialogue between Marx and Dumont and be entertained by each and every minute. 

In one seen, Mrs. Potter says to Hammer, "I don't think you'd love me if I were poor."

Hammer replies, "I might, but I'd keep my mouth shut."

Later, he asks to meet her in private.
"I'll meet you tonight under the moon. Oh, I can see it now - you and the moon. Wear a neck-tie so I'll know you."

But, perhaps, my most favorite line Groucho ever said to Dumont in all of their movie history together is delivered in this movie.

In one scene when Hammer is trying to flirt with Mrs. Potter, he says, "Did anyone ever tell you that you look like the Prince of Wales? I don't mean the present Prince of Wales; one of the old Wales, and believe me when I say Wales, I mean Wales. I know a whale when I see one."

Fantastic!

As a comedy, "The Cocoanuts" is a movie that deserves a lot more attention both in general as a comedy and as a Marx Brothers movie. It's an unforgettable introduction to the Marx Brothers which doesn't just pave the way for their humor, it drops their cynical style right in the laps of audiences again and again. I would have loved to see audience reactions back in 1929. It's a truly groundbreaking comedy movie with humor unlike comedies that came before.