Monkey Business is a film that gets right down to business, the laugh business that is. No buildup of any kind, it starts off with the Marx four stowing away on a transatlantic ocean liner and merrily eluding captain and crew.

You can't go into any kind of plot, there really isn't one. As it happens there are two rival gangsters on board the ship, Rockliffe Fellowes traveling with daughter Ruth Hall and Harry Woods, normally a western heavy traveling with his wife/moll Thelma Todd.

Groucho and Zeppo get hired by Woods and Harpo and Chico get hired by by Fellowes. Zeppo has some misplaced loyalty though, he falls for Ruth Hall. But Groucho sticks loyally by Thelma Todd, too loyally in the mind of Woods.

The action moves from the ocean liner to a society party, similar to the one Mrs. Rittenhouse was throwing for Captain Spaulding in their last picture Animal Crackers. Hall is captured and it's up to the Marx to rescue the fair maiden. After all for the one and only time in their film careers, she was the sweetheart of one of their own.

Monkey Business is famous for the Marx Brothers affectionate salute to Paramount's biggest star at the time, Maurice Chevalier. They all get a crack at imitating Chevalier singing a few bars of You Brought A New Kind Of Love To Me from The Big Pond. All of them mind you, even Harpo.

Monkey Business was also the first film the Marx Brothers did in Hollywood, their first two, The Cocoanuts and Animal Crackers were done at Paramount's Astoria Studio in New York. It was also the first film written directly for them for the screen. It's a comedy classic, enjoyed by Marxists of all kinds.

This was a very wacky film with lots of silliness (such as Harpo trying to pass himself off as Maurice Chavalier) but the film suffers, somewhat, from a feeling of claustrophobia as most of the action takes place on an ocean liner. In many ways, this makes the movie very reminiscent of their later film, ROOM SERVICE (1938). In both cases, the brothers were trying repeatedly throughout the film not to get caught (either for stowing away in this film or for not being able to pay their hotel bill in the other). Because of this, there is no way this could be considered their best film, but it is still very watchable and silly. Now, if you are NOT a fan of stupid and non-stop comedy, don't watch this film. But, if you are in an odd mood and want a cheap laugh, give it a try.

Perhaps not my favourite, but just hilarious fun from start to finish. I do think it is better than Animal Crackers, which was great too, but the sound is an improvement here I feel. The script is great, with some deliciously acerbic one-liners from Groucho, and the story while perhaps straightforward is well structured with some very memorable sequences especially Groucho dancing with Thelma Todd and Zeppo getting tough with a gangster. Speaking of Zeppo, he is very underseen and underused in my view, and I just loved it that he had a chance to shine here and that he did. The film looks good as well, it goes at a snappy pace and the direction is spot on. And the acting with all four of the Marx brothers is most enjoyable. All in all, hugely enjoyable and for me one of the Marx brothers' best. 10/10 Bethany Cox