Horse Feathers: Still just as weird as you remember

Is it worth your time?

If you like your humor fast, loud, and completely detached from reality, then yes. If you need a script that actually bothers to explain why anyone is doing anything, skip it. You will either love the constant barrage of wordplay or you'll find it exhausting. Personally, I think it’s the best kind of exhausting.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Horse Feathers (1932) through its definitive frames.

Horse Feathers is a movie that barely holds itself together, and I mean that as a compliment. It feels like the whole production was one step away from falling apart, which is exactly the energy the Marx Brothers needed.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Horse Feathers (1932) through its definitive frames.

Groucho is the college president here, and he spends most of the time just insulting everyone in sight. It’s great. There’s this one bit where he tries to sing about how he’s against everything, and it’s basically just him being a grumpy contrarian for three minutes. It’s perfect.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Horse Feathers (1932) through its definitive frames.

Then you have Harpo. Harpo is just... Harpo. He’s essentially a cartoon character who wandered onto a live-action set. Watching him try to navigate a college campus is like watching a bull in a library, but if the bull had a harp and a bottomless coat of stolen goods.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Horse Feathers (1932) through its definitive frames.

The football scenes at the end? They are completely ridiculous. Nobody is actually playing football. They’re just tackling each other in a pile of dust while the rules of the sport get thrown out the window. It makes The Duchess of Doubt look like a documentary by comparison, honestly.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of Horse Feathers (1932) through its definitive frames.

• The ice-man delivery scene is still one of the best bits of physical comedy ever.
• The dialogue is so fast you’ll definitely miss half of it on your first watch.
• The college setting is just an excuse for them to wreak havoc on authority figures.

Sometimes the movie stops dead just so they can do a musical number or a weird skit that has nothing to do with the plot. You know what? I don’t care. The pacing is a total disaster, but it’s a fun disaster. It’s not trying to be The Revolt or some serious drama. It just wants to see if they can make you laugh until you get a headache.

Also, notice how the supporting cast is basically just there to be confused or annoyed. They are the straight men, and they do a pretty good job of not breaking character while Groucho is literally tearing the furniture apart. That takes some serious discipline. 🦆

It’s not a perfect film. It’s not even a good "movie" in the traditional sense. But it is a record of these guys just being the funniest people in the room, and that’s enough for me.