Reading Jim's BLAZING STEWARDESSES review, what caught my attention the most was his appraisal of The Ritz Brothers. I've seen them in two movies, STRAIGHT PLACE AND SHOW and THE GORILLA, and didn't think they were that funny. They were OK in the former and I thought they were best doing song and dance numbers, but in the latter they were pretty bland. Their characters are interchangeable and I had trouble figuring out where the jokes were, never mind understanding them.
Well, that's the old opinion, and while it hasn't changed too much, I was inspired by Jim's review to pull out my copy of THE GORILLA again. My opinion changed about the interchangeable aspect because I realized Harry Ritz carried the weight of the material and had some good energy and mugging skills. The other two were.....well, imagine if the Marx Brothers were Groucho, Zeppo, and Zeppo. Also, I've read in some circles that THE GORILLA may be the worst Ritz comedy, so perhaps I'm watching the wrong film to appraise these guys. It's also the most known Ritz comedy these days because of it's public domain status and 'cause Bela Lugosi's in it. STRAIGHT PLACE AND SHOW I only saw on TCM and don't have a copy of.
The thing that amazes me the most about the Ritz Brothers is while they are generally disliked, a comic authority like Mel Brooks considers them greater than The Three Stooges and The Marx Brothers! To each their own.
I'd like to hear other Ritz Brothers opinions, and perhaps a suggestion of another film of their's to check out. Anybody think there's a standout Ritz film?