DATING BACK TO the days of the Silent Screen, Producer/Director Al Christie's comedies were considered to be pedestrian, unimaginative and even unfunny. His sound productions for EDUCATIONAL PICTURES/FOX seemed all too often to fit comfortably into this mold.
WHILE STARTING OUT in a very boring, talkative mode, we soon see it snow-ball into a veritable runaway juggernaut of a short. It swiftly went from being slow to rapid-fire, and even static to manic; owing its transformation to just one thing; that being the arrival of Harry, Jimmy & Al Ritz to the story.
WHILE THAT TODAY, the Ritz Brothers aren't as forgotten or even unknown to the public than they had been prior to the introduction of home video, they are the least known of the major comedy teams from Hollywood's glorious past. With the advent of Beta, VHS, DVD & Blue Ray, we were able to do our own research into where they fit into and just where do they rank alongside the likes of Laurel & Hardy, The Marx Brothers, the Stooges, etc.
AS FAR AS those questions go, today's review of HOTEL ANCHOVY should answer any and all questions that one may have. It contained all of the elements which made up the Brothers arsenal. And incidentally, it was their first venture into the Movies.
IN THE OLD nutshell, the Ritz's are working as Desk Clerk, House Detective and Bell Boy in an establishment that is in the process of being sold. Their assignment and responsibilities are two fold: prevent guests from leaving and insure that this big shot seller is made comfortable. Need we say that they failed?
THE FILMS MANIACAL pacing combined with Ritz Brothers' fancy "hoofing", their rapid fire wisecracking, their uncanny ability to move as one combining with some tried but true Vaudeville sketches somehow blended smoothly and gave us a sort of figurative "Stooges on Speed" Farce.
SO, THANK YOU, Brothers Joachim!
WHILE STARTING OUT in a very boring, talkative mode, we soon see it snow-ball into a veritable runaway juggernaut of a short. It swiftly went from being slow to rapid-fire, and even static to manic; owing its transformation to just one thing; that being the arrival of Harry, Jimmy & Al Ritz to the story.
WHILE THAT TODAY, the Ritz Brothers aren't as forgotten or even unknown to the public than they had been prior to the introduction of home video, they are the least known of the major comedy teams from Hollywood's glorious past. With the advent of Beta, VHS, DVD & Blue Ray, we were able to do our own research into where they fit into and just where do they rank alongside the likes of Laurel & Hardy, The Marx Brothers, the Stooges, etc.
AS FAR AS those questions go, today's review of HOTEL ANCHOVY should answer any and all questions that one may have. It contained all of the elements which made up the Brothers arsenal. And incidentally, it was their first venture into the Movies.
IN THE OLD nutshell, the Ritz's are working as Desk Clerk, House Detective and Bell Boy in an establishment that is in the process of being sold. Their assignment and responsibilities are two fold: prevent guests from leaving and insure that this big shot seller is made comfortable. Need we say that they failed?
THE FILMS MANIACAL pacing combined with Ritz Brothers' fancy "hoofing", their rapid fire wisecracking, their uncanny ability to move as one combining with some tried but true Vaudeville sketches somehow blended smoothly and gave us a sort of figurative "Stooges on Speed" Farce.
SO, THANK YOU, Brothers Joachim!