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I'll Say She Is
Don't look for I'll Say She Is as a title available on the Internet Movie Database or in Leonard Maltin's Movie and Video Guide. I'm pretty sure that I'm the only one who has given the movie this name. Truth be told, this was an unnamed eight-minute short that the Marx Brothers did in 1931 for a promotional film called The House That Shadows Built, a collection of interviews and shorts in honor of Paramount's twentieth birthday. These days, House is outdated and pretty forgettable—not to mention flowery and self indulgent—with the exception of the Marx's brief moments. As an advertisement for their upcoming film Monkey Business, the Marxes selected the first scene from their Broadway hit I'll Say She Is and filmed it. Their two other Broadway shows, The Cocoanuts and Animal Crackers, had already been adapted into equally popular films in 1929 and 1930, respectively, so I'll Say She Is probably seemed ripe for an adaptation itself. As the play was really just a collection of unrelated comedy sketches, it makes sense that for its screen adaptation, a scene was selected and made into a short film. As of the time of this writing, the short remains unnamed, leaving it free-game for a title of the reviewer's choosing. Its original Broadway title seems like the most logical choice; The Marx's Brothers' Short Promotional Film Featured in The House that Shadows Built just doesn't have the right ring to it. Until the mid-nineties, The House That Shadows Built was considered lost. It then miraculously reappeared in someone's attic, much to the delight of the Marx Brothers' legions of fans. To them, this discovery was as profound as the recent unearthing of a missing piece by Beethoven was to musical connoisseurs: Certainly the Marx's contribution was short, but it was still the Marx Brothers! Short length be darned, here was the previously unseen sixth film that they did for Paramount, the studio which produced their greatest, most archaic comedies! It concerns Mr. Lee (Ben Taggart), the owner of a theatrical company, who, in a few brief moments, has his profession assaulted and his room reduced to shambles by the Marx Brothers. Each brother walks in separately and begs Mr. Lee for a part in a movie. Each subsequently does an appalling impersonation of Maurice Chevalier (which they would also do in Monkey Business), insults Mr. Lee's intelligence, tests his patience, and decides to stick around long enough for the next Marx to enter the room. By the time all four brothers are waltzing around Mr. Lee's small office, we begin to wonder whether or not there should be an amendment in the Constitution insisting that no more than one Marx Brother can be in a room at the same time. See also the closing moments in Duck Soup, in which they write their own constitution. As usual, Groucho's puns are as laugh-out-loud funny as the are raunchy ("I played a part in Ben-Hur once. A girl played the part of Ben. I played her."), and the other Brothers lend themselves well to the progressively chaotic shenanigans. I found Harpo to be particularly charming, but then, I've always loved Harpo. Together, the four brothers manage to generate the charm and laughs that their combination of comedic skills always brought to the screen—see my review of Monkey Business for further analysis of their durability as comic performers. The most curious element in I'll Say She Is is the large role give to Zeppo, the straight man of the group who in the other films is usually reduced to standing in the background with his mouth open. Indeed, Zeppo is the first brother to appear and introduce himself, and he remains the running commentary for his brothers as they enter and perform ("When you go out, don't slam the door," he tells Chico after a horrible audition). He is finally the vital character who tries to convince Mr. Lee that he should cast the other three in a play that Zeppo has written. Compared to the reduced parts given to the other brothers, who only have a few lines each, Zeppo is essentially the main character here, with the most to do and the most significance to the film's brief plot. Zeppo's enhanced role is an interesting development, especially considering the limited role that he had in the other films. I have always seen Zeppo as the essential "normal" fellow in a group of loonies (again, see my review of Monkey Business for a more detailed explanation). He is seemingly intelligent, yet he never finds Groucho, Chico, and Harpo's bizarre behavior unusual. He is the everyman character who serves as a gateway between the audience and the other brothers; therefore, he doesn't have much to do because he doesn't really need much to do. A vital role, but probably a thankless one. In his book The Comic Mind: Comedy and Movies (University of Chicago Press: 1979), Gerald Mast offers another explanation for the importance of Zeppo: "[He] added a fourth dimension as the cliché of the [romantic] juvenile, the bland wooden espouser of sentiments that seem to exist only in the world of the sound stage. [... He is] too schleppy, too nasal, and too wooden to be taken seriously" (282, 285). Mast gives us insight that is essential to appreciating Zeppo's extended role in I'll Say She Is: He is a spoof of the plastic smiles of the 1930's sappy, "gee-golly" musical. To prove this, view a “serious” musical from the late 1920s/mid 1930s and note all of the cast members with limited, juvenile roles. Do you notice how they’re always smiling, how they're always stiff, how they're always so happy to be there, how they’re “pleasant” nearly to the point of unnerving? Zeppo's limited screen time and missing character development is therefore the point of his roles—his wide-eyed, beaming "Yes sir!" adds an extra dimension to the Brother's comedy by mocking their era of filmmaking. By showcasing Zeppo in a short film to be included in a cheesy celebration of such an era, the Brothers reveal that they're perfectly aware of the cheesiness of this thing called show business, even if Paramount isn't. Viewing such an in-joke today, we cannot help but be flabbergasted at the way the Marx Brothers quietly bit the hands that fed them, because A) Paramount never noticed the mockery, B) only the Marx Brothers would have the nerve to try to get away with it, and C) by God, they got away with it! When viewed next to the total lunacy of Horse Feathers, Monkey Business, and Duck Soup, I'll Say She Is does not quite live up to the Marx standard. This is clearly a rushed production, with little of the rhythm or sense of spontaneity (let alone the zany interaction between the brothers) contained in its longer, more elaborate family members. It also doesn't help that Ben Taggart, as Mr. Lee, is certainly no Margaret Dumont; he is too stiff to make an effective foil for their madness. Still, I'll Say She Is remains a delightful gem, generating plenty of laughs and maintaining the chemistry between the brothers that we appreciate. More importantly, it demonstrates that the Marxes are capable of reducing their surroundings to rubble in eight minutes with the same fierceness that they do in a feature-length comedy. Good thing these guys decided to be actors instead of construction workers. Judging by their ability to quickly lively up a room, though, I probably would have voted for them if they had run for a public office. We've done worse, and with fewer laughs. Note: I’ll Say She Is is currently available in its entirety in two releases: The House That Shadows Built, which is hard to find, and as a special feature on the DVD documentary Inside the Marx Brothers, which is widely available. Cast: A Paramount Pictures release.
Director and writers unknown, but adapted by the Marx Brother
Broadway play of the same name (which the Brothers co-wrote with
Will Johnstone) and included in the collage-film The House That
Shadows Built, released in 1931. No M.P.A.A. rating, but fine
(and recommended) for the entire family. Running time: 8 minutes. Questions? Comments? E-mail me: danel_the_tinman@hotmail.com |
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