Want to know the best Marx Brothers movies? How about the worst Marx Brothers movies? Curious about Marx Brothers box office grosses or which Marx Brothers movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Marx Brothers movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences and which got the worst reviews? Well you have come to the right place….because we have all of that information.
The Marx Brothers were a family comedy act that was successful in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in motion pictures from 1905 to 1949. 5 of the Marx Brothers’ 13 feature films were selected by the American Film Institute (AFI) as among the top 100 comedy films. Their movies Duck Soup and A Night at the Opera are both in the AFI’s top 12 comedy movies. One of our goals here at Ultimate Movie Rankings is do a career movie page on every member of the American Film Institute’s Top 50 Greatest Screen Legends list. Marx Brothers are ranked as the 20th greatest screen legends on that list. This page ranks 14 movies in which at least 3 Marx brothers appeared in as well as 4 Groucho Marx movies.The movies are ranked from Best to Worst in six different sortable columns of information. Following the movie ranking table is a “Know your Marx brother” section as well as links to the our AFI Screen Legend movie pages.
The Marx Brothers in 1938’s Room Service.
Marx Brothers Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews and awards.
Marx Brothers Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table
The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies anyway you want.
Sort Marx Brothers movies by which Marx Brother starred in the movie
Sort Marx Brothers movies by adjusted domestic box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
Sort Marx Brothers by yearly domestic box office rank
Sort Marx Brothers movies how they were received by critics and audiences. 60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
Sort by how many Oscar® nominations each Marx Brothers movie received and how many Oscar® wins each Marx Brothers movie won.
Sort Marx Brothers movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score. UMR Score puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
Stats and Possibly Interesting Things From The Above Marx Brothers Table
Seven Marx Brothers movies crossed the magical $100 million domestic gross mark. That is a percentage of 41.11% of their movies listed. A Day At The Races (1937) was their biggest box office ht when looking at adjusted domestic box office gross.
An average Marx Brothers movie grosses $94.70 million in adjusted box office gross.
Using RottenTomatoes.com’s 60% fresh meter. 13 of Marx Brothers’ movies are rated as good movies…or 72.22% of their movies. A Night At The Opera (1935) is their highest rated movie while The Story of Mankind (1957) was their lowest rated movie.
One Marx Brothers movie (A Day At The Races) received at least one Oscar® nomination in any category…..or 5.55% of their movies.
Zero Marx Brothers movie won at least one Oscar® in any category…..or 0.00% of their movies.
An average Ultimate Movie Ranking (UMR) Score is 60.00. 13 Marx Brothers movies scored higher than that average….or 72.22% of their movies. A Day At The Races (1937) got the the highest UMR Score while The Story of Mankind (1957) got the lowest UMR Score.
Zeppo, Groucho, Harp and Chico Marx in 1932’s Horse Feathers
Know Your Marx Brother
Chico Marx 1887-1961
Chico Marx was born Leonard Marx. Originally his nickname was Chick-O but due to a typing error he became Chico. Chico was actually the 2nd Marx brother to be born. His older brother (Manfred) died in infancy. His persona in the act was that of a charming, dim-witted albeit crafty con artist. After their mother passed away, Chico became the manager of the brothers. He played an important role in the management and development of the act. He was married two times and had one child. Chico loved to gamble. His favorite gambling pursuits were card games as well as horse racing, dog racing, and various sports betting. His addiction cost him millions of dollars by his own account. When an interviewer in the late 1930s asked him how much money he had lost from gambling, he answered, “Find out how much money Harpo’s got. That’s how much I’ve lost.”
Harpo Marx 1888-1964
Harpo Marx was born Arthur Marx. He was a mime artist and musician, and the second-oldest of the Marx Brothers. His comic style was influenced by clown and pantomime traditions. He wore a curly reddish blonde wig, and never spoke during performances (he blew a horn or whistled to communicate). He frequently used props such as a horn cane, made up of a lead pipe, tape, and a bulbhorn, and he played the harp in most of his films. So why did Harpo never speak? Early in his vaudeville days he got a bad review. The review said his pantomime was excellent…but when he talked he ruined the performance. So he decided to stop speaking….and the Marx Brothers quickly realized that his not speaking worked very well in their act. He was married one time and had 4 children.
Groucho Marx 1890-1977Groucho Marx was born Julius Henry Marx. He was known as a master of quick wit. His rapid-fire, often impromptu delivery of innuendo-laden patter earned him many admirers and imitators. His distinctive appearance, carried over from his days in vaudeville, included quirks such as an exaggerated stooped posture, glasses, cigar, and a thick greasepaint mustache and eyebrows. He also had a successful solo career, most notably as the host of the radio and television game show You Bet Your Life. The Marx Brothers’ movies did not get much Oscar® love (their movies combined for only ONE nomination) ….but they did give Groucho an Honorary Oscar® in 1974. His Oscar® reads…. “In recognition of his brilliant creativity and for the unequaled achievements of the Marx Brothers in the art of motion picture comedy”. He was married three times and had three children.Zeppo Marx 1901-1979
Zeppo Marx was born Herbert Marx. He was the youngest of The Marx Brothers, Zeppo was put into the role of the straight man after his brother Gummo (the other brother) left the act. Zeppo also acted as an understudy to all three of his brothers. After playing small parts in the first five Marx Brothers movies, Zeppo felt his talent wasn’t being used to its full extent and left the act to join Gummo as an agent. Somewhat of a mechanical whiz, Zeppo invented a wristwatch that would monitor the pulse rate of cardiac patients, and his company, Marman Products, produced clamping devices which were used in the first atomic bomb raids over Japan in 1945. Zeppo was married twice and had one child. Gummo Marx (1892-1977) was the 4th brother. He left the Marx Brothers just when they were reaching popularity because he felt he lacked the performing skills of his brothers. He became a well respected agent.
Marx Brothers Financials Directly From MGM/RKO Ledgers 1935-1941
The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies anyway you want.
Column 1 is the name of the movie
Column 2 is the name of the studio
Column 3 is the domestic rental total
Column 4 is the international rental total
Column 5 is the total of domestic and international rentals
Column 6 is the profit or loss in dollars of the movie
The Marx Bros at last. My favorite comedy team. Excellent work Bruce. For the record there are only 12 true Marx Bros films, 12 comedy classics. The first was ‘The Cocoanuts’ (1929) and the last ‘A Night in Casablanca’ (1946). All three brothers were in Love Happy (1949) but not together and the film is chiefly remembered now for an early appearance by Marilyn Monroe.
My two favorites are Duck Soup and A Night at the Opera with Duck Soup just ahead of Opera. Duck Soup is pure comedy gold with not a wasted second. So I agree with the critics chart on your page but Duck Soup and Opera are too low on the Moviescore chart.
Surprised to see Horse Feathers topping the box office chart, I always thought Opera was their biggest hit.
Okay I’ve seen… 15 of the 18 films you’ve listed, I haven’t seen Skidoo, Girl in Every Port and Double Dynamite. The Story of Mankind was a historical fantasy directed by Irwin Allen, Harpo played Sir Isaac Newton!
I liked the bios you’ve included for each of the brothers, a neat addition to all the stats. And thanks for the link Bruce. Voted up.
Hey Steve….I agree with your “12 True Marx Brothers films”….It seems they only made Love Happy and The Story of Mankind to help out Chico who had no money.
In some places Horse Feathers is listed as the number one movie of the year…..in all of my sources it was easily Paramount’s biggest hit of 1932. When looking at the MGM Eddie Mannix ledgers…A Day At The Races easily beat A Night At The Opera when looking at box office grosses.
So you are at 15…..well I am seriously trailing you….as I am at 4….and I watched those 4 movies in the last 2 or 3 years. Pretty sure The Marx Brothers are one of Flora’s favorites too….so she might be giving you a run for the money.
Duck Soup did not perform very well at all…..though I did see a few places that claim it did much better than people say…..but most people say it was very disappointing at the box office….which makes sense when you realize they left Paramount after Duck Soup…and did not make another movie for 2 years. Anyway the box office gross hurt its score on my ranking system….but it still finished 2nd in the critic audience section.
Hope the link gets some traffic…was HubPages the only place you had a Mark Brother link? Thanks for the comment.
Och aye I think I did a poster page for them Bruce or was going to do a poster page for them, I canna remember cap’n… sorry I was stuck in ‘Scotty’ mode for a second.
So, Day at the Races not Night at the Opera was their biggest hit, it was one of the two. And it was downhill after that. The rock group Queen must have been fans they named two of their most popular albums after those two Marx Bros films.
Fascist dictator and friend of Hitler, Benito Mussolini, banned Duck Soup in Italy, which must have pleased the brothers but didn’t help the box office for that film.
When I checked….the HubPage hub came up. Certainly there is a SteveLensman Marx Brother You Tube video out there. Of the MGM movies….Day At The Races was number one….but they all fall behind Horse Feathers. I agree Queen must have been huge Marx brothers fans. Interesting info on Mussolini and Duck Soup. I am sure his banning of Duck Soup probably got people more motivated to see the movie. Thanks for the return visit Montgomery…you can go back to the engine room.
Actually, this is one time when you are wrong, Bruce. (I can’t be totally predictable)
I really have never cared for the Marx Brothers.I remember having an online conversation with someone who loved them regarding the fact that the only one of their films I liked was A Night at the Opera because it was full of music and him saying that their fans didn’t like that movie because their was too much music.
I have seen famous scenes of their films multiple times, but I have only seen 3 of their films in total.
Hey Flora I stand corrected. So Steve gets the victory…..Steve 15, me 4 and you 3…..wow Steve doubles our total and even has an extra movie laying around.
Yep another AFI actor done….only Welles, Olivier and Buster Keaton left. I started Olivier…but wow is his movie career very very long. His page will probably take a good amount of time to research.
Seems when they started making movies with Irving Thalberg that musical numbers became a bigger part of their movies…I appreciate you stopping by even though you are not a huge Marx Brothers fan.
Gotta say I disagree with your commentors about The Story of Mankind. I find it sad that their last is so bad. They do not even appear together in this one. Chico and Harpo look very little frail. Chico plays a monk and if you blink you will miss his entire part. Harpo comes off a bit better, and it’s great to see his red wig and golden harp in color, but he’s gone quickly. Groucho gets to do more and he has the only funny line in the movie. But to spend almost 2 hours with a bunch of past their prime players is difficult to get through. So in a nutshell, I think your ranking of dead last is right on the button.
Hey Klestor54…..thanks for the detailed look at The Story of Mankind. I will admit I had never heard of the movie before writing this page. It sounds like it might be a trainwreck of a movie….but it is loaded with lots of stars. Glad you agree with dead last ranking of The Story of Mankind.
Hey QW…..Duck Soup? Yes it is considered their masterpiece. My rankings combine all financial aspects into the score. Duck Soup did not do very well when first released. Paramount decided to let the Marx Brothers move to MGM after this film did poorly at the box office. If you look at the critic/audience rating….you will be happy to see Duck Soup sitting in the 2nd spot. The way I have set up these ranking pages is that you can sort/rank the movies anyway you want. In this case I think the critic/audience rating column is the way to go for you. Thanks for stopping by and commenting on my Marx Brothers page.
This would be my Top 10
1. Horse Feathers 2. Duck Soup 3. The Cocoanuts 4. Animal Crackers 5. The Story of Mankind
6. Monkey Business 7. A Day at the Races 8. At the Circus 9. The Big Store 10. A Night in Casablanca
Glad to see HorseFeathers first. I was never a fan of A Night at the Opera so I feel you have that one way too highly ranked. I do realize that most Marx fans love that movie. Glad to see you included The Story of Mankind many Marx fans like to pretend that one does not exist. I have always found it to be a very entertaining movie. Groucho is the highlight of that movie. A nice interesting read.
Hey Tyler….thanks for your Top 10. Looking at your Top 10 and my ratings…they look close with the big exceptions of The Story of Mankind and A Night At The Opera. I am glad you enjoyed The Story of Mankind so much….not thinking many people share that thought. I have not seen the movie but I have to admit the movie has me interested in checking it out.
As for A Night At The Opera….I think your comment says it all…..it might not be one of your favorites….but lots of people think it is one of their greatest films. Thanks for the comment.
I love the Marx Brothers. Interesting Screen Legends List. I would rank them higher than 20th though.
Hey Grumpo…..nice Marx name. AFI does not really explain their rankings….but they are the only group on the list. Thanks for stopping by.
I understand but they still should be in the Top 10.
I will let them know Grumpo.
The Marx Bros at last. My favorite comedy team. Excellent work Bruce. For the record there are only 12 true Marx Bros films, 12 comedy classics. The first was ‘The Cocoanuts’ (1929) and the last ‘A Night in Casablanca’ (1946). All three brothers were in Love Happy (1949) but not together and the film is chiefly remembered now for an early appearance by Marilyn Monroe.
My two favorites are Duck Soup and A Night at the Opera with Duck Soup just ahead of Opera. Duck Soup is pure comedy gold with not a wasted second. So I agree with the critics chart on your page but Duck Soup and Opera are too low on the Moviescore chart.
Surprised to see Horse Feathers topping the box office chart, I always thought Opera was their biggest hit.
Okay I’ve seen… 15 of the 18 films you’ve listed, I haven’t seen Skidoo, Girl in Every Port and Double Dynamite. The Story of Mankind was a historical fantasy directed by Irwin Allen, Harpo played Sir Isaac Newton!
I liked the bios you’ve included for each of the brothers, a neat addition to all the stats. And thanks for the link Bruce. Voted up.
Hey Steve….I agree with your “12 True Marx Brothers films”….It seems they only made Love Happy and The Story of Mankind to help out Chico who had no money.
In some places Horse Feathers is listed as the number one movie of the year…..in all of my sources it was easily Paramount’s biggest hit of 1932. When looking at the MGM Eddie Mannix ledgers…A Day At The Races easily beat A Night At The Opera when looking at box office grosses.
So you are at 15…..well I am seriously trailing you….as I am at 4….and I watched those 4 movies in the last 2 or 3 years. Pretty sure The Marx Brothers are one of Flora’s favorites too….so she might be giving you a run for the money.
Duck Soup did not perform very well at all…..though I did see a few places that claim it did much better than people say…..but most people say it was very disappointing at the box office….which makes sense when you realize they left Paramount after Duck Soup…and did not make another movie for 2 years. Anyway the box office gross hurt its score on my ranking system….but it still finished 2nd in the critic audience section.
Hope the link gets some traffic…was HubPages the only place you had a Mark Brother link? Thanks for the comment.
Och aye I think I did a poster page for them Bruce or was going to do a poster page for them, I canna remember cap’n… sorry I was stuck in ‘Scotty’ mode for a second.
So, Day at the Races not Night at the Opera was their biggest hit, it was one of the two. And it was downhill after that. The rock group Queen must have been fans they named two of their most popular albums after those two Marx Bros films.
Fascist dictator and friend of Hitler, Benito Mussolini, banned Duck Soup in Italy, which must have pleased the brothers but didn’t help the box office for that film.
When I checked….the HubPage hub came up. Certainly there is a SteveLensman Marx Brother You Tube video out there. Of the MGM movies….Day At The Races was number one….but they all fall behind Horse Feathers. I agree Queen must have been huge Marx brothers fans. Interesting info on Mussolini and Duck Soup. I am sure his banning of Duck Soup probably got people more motivated to see the movie. Thanks for the return visit Montgomery…you can go back to the engine room.
Re: me vs. Steve:
Actually, this is one time when you are wrong, Bruce. (I can’t be totally predictable)
I really have never cared for the Marx Brothers.I remember having an online conversation with someone who loved them regarding the fact that the only one of their films I liked was A Night at the Opera because it was full of music and him saying that their fans didn’t like that movie because their was too much music.
I have seen famous scenes of their films multiple times, but I have only seen 3 of their films in total.
So another name knocked off the AFI actors list.
Congrats,
Flora
Hey Flora I stand corrected. So Steve gets the victory…..Steve 15, me 4 and you 3…..wow Steve doubles our total and even has an extra movie laying around.
Yep another AFI actor done….only Welles, Olivier and Buster Keaton left. I started Olivier…but wow is his movie career very very long. His page will probably take a good amount of time to research.
Seems when they started making movies with Irving Thalberg that musical numbers became a bigger part of their movies…I appreciate you stopping by even though you are not a huge Marx Brothers fan.
Gotta say I disagree with your commentors about The Story of Mankind. I find it sad that their last is so bad. They do not even appear together in this one. Chico and Harpo look very little frail. Chico plays a monk and if you blink you will miss his entire part. Harpo comes off a bit better, and it’s great to see his red wig and golden harp in color, but he’s gone quickly. Groucho gets to do more and he has the only funny line in the movie. But to spend almost 2 hours with a bunch of past their prime players is difficult to get through. So in a nutshell, I think your ranking of dead last is right on the button.
Hey Klestor54…..thanks for the detailed look at The Story of Mankind. I will admit I had never heard of the movie before writing this page. It sounds like it might be a trainwreck of a movie….but it is loaded with lots of stars. Glad you agree with dead last ranking of The Story of Mankind.
Duck Soup is their masterpiece and your rankings have it at 7th? You might want to re think your ranking process if this is the result.
Hey QW…..Duck Soup? Yes it is considered their masterpiece. My rankings combine all financial aspects into the score. Duck Soup did not do very well when first released. Paramount decided to let the Marx Brothers move to MGM after this film did poorly at the box office. If you look at the critic/audience rating….you will be happy to see Duck Soup sitting in the 2nd spot. The way I have set up these ranking pages is that you can sort/rank the movies anyway you want. In this case I think the critic/audience rating column is the way to go for you. Thanks for stopping by and commenting on my Marx Brothers page.
This would be my Top 10
1. Horse Feathers 2. Duck Soup 3. The Cocoanuts 4. Animal Crackers 5. The Story of Mankind
6. Monkey Business 7. A Day at the Races 8. At the Circus 9. The Big Store 10. A Night in Casablanca
Glad to see HorseFeathers first. I was never a fan of A Night at the Opera so I feel you have that one way too highly ranked. I do realize that most Marx fans love that movie. Glad to see you included The Story of Mankind many Marx fans like to pretend that one does not exist. I have always found it to be a very entertaining movie. Groucho is the highlight of that movie. A nice interesting read.
Hey Tyler….thanks for your Top 10. Looking at your Top 10 and my ratings…they look close with the big exceptions of The Story of Mankind and A Night At The Opera. I am glad you enjoyed The Story of Mankind so much….not thinking many people share that thought. I have not seen the movie but I have to admit the movie has me interested in checking it out.
As for A Night At The Opera….I think your comment says it all…..it might not be one of your favorites….but lots of people think it is one of their greatest films. Thanks for the comment.