--- title: "A Night at the Opera" year: 1935 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/a-night-at-the-opera" fi1m_id: "a-night-at-the-opera" imdb_id: "tt0026778" tmdb_id: 37719 wikidata_id: "Q943992" fi1m_score: 84 critics_score: 79 critics_reviews: 6 published: "2026-09-25T02:14:56.590023+00:00" updated: "2026-09-25T02:14:57.955809+00:00" region: "CL" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # A Night at the Opera (1935) Directed by Sam Wood · 1h 31m · Comedy, Music ## Identity A Night at the Opera - **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/a-night-at-the-opera - **Type:** Film - **Fi1m ID:** a-night-at-the-opera - **IMDb ID:** tt0026778 - **TMDB ID:** 37719 - **Wikidata ID:** Q943992 - **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0026778/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/37719, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q943992 **Fi1m score: 84** · Critics 79 from 6 reviews *In a sentence:* The contract gets shorter, the cabin gets fuller, and the music keeps asking everyone to behave > Sam Wood’s comedy earns its reputation through the contract routine, the stateroom and three performers who know how to prolong trouble. The musical pauses are less rewarding, but the laughter comfortably justifies them. ## Synopsis Otis B. Driftwood (Groucho Marx), Fiorello (Chico Marx) and Tomasso (Harpo Marx) bring verbal disputes and physical disruption to the company of Rosa (Kitty Carlisle) and Ricardo Barroni (Allan Jones). Mrs. Claypool (Margaret Dumont), Gottlieb (Sig Ruman) and Lassparri (Walter Woolf King) also figure in this opera comedy. A contract provides an occasion for an argument that does not leave the paperwork intact. Music shares space with comic routines, as the formal business of agreements and performances offers the trio opportunities to make trouble. ## Review *A Night at the Opera* is a richly funny comedy whose musical passages sometimes make its 91 minutes feel longer than necessary. Sam Wood gives Groucho Marx, Chico Marx and Harpo Marx room to wreck the formalities, then periodically asks everyone to settle down again. The routines are patient enough to let a ridiculous idea develop beyond its first good laugh. We recommend it warmly, with a little tolerance for the interruptions. George S. Kaufman and Morrie Ryskind’s screenplay is sharpest when somebody tries to conduct a little business. The contract-tearing routine keeps finding fresh comedy in the attempt to get an agreement into an acceptable form. We laughed hardest here: the more attention the document receives, the less useful it becomes. Groucho Marx and Chico Marx make the exchanges sound like a conversation neither man has any intention of ending sensibly, and each objection has time to register before the next arrives. The stateroom sequence works by different means, giving Harpo Marx’s physical comedy a setting that seems designed to resist it. Merritt B. Gerstad’s photography keeps the confined space readable, so that the eye can follow the disturbance rather than merely accept that something frantic is happening. William LeVanway’s editing preserves the accumulation of the joke. We need to feel the routine growing, and the film gives us that time instead of trying to manufacture excitement with constant changes of view. Margaret Dumont, as Mrs. Claypool, is essential to the tone. She gives Groucho Marx something firmer to work against than an obliging smile; his lines are funnier because she does not behave as though she has been hired to enjoy them. Sig Ruman’s Gottlieb and Walter Woolf King’s Lassparri also help give the disorder something to push against. The film needs people who take proceedings seriously. Dolly Tree’s costumes reinforce the ceremony, giving the comic interruptions a suitably dressed company to offend. The reservations concern the stretches that ask us to settle down and enjoy the music. Herbert Stothart’s musical contribution gives the film polish, and Kitty Carlisle and Allan Jones are assured performers, but the change of pace repeatedly costs it comic momentum. The music deserves a place; some of the time given to it feels less easily justified. We began waiting for the comedians to get back to work. A comedy this dependent on individual routines risks feeling like a collection of turns, and there are stretches when the joins show. Yet Sam Wood generally knows when to stand back, allowing the performers’ different speeds and methods to hold our attention without dressing every exchange up as an event. The verbal jokes need close listening, while the physical comedy remains easy to follow. That balance helps the film recover whenever the pace slackens. That unevenness is worth accepting, though we would not pretend every passage earns its place. There is considerable pleasure in watching skilled comedians pursue a ridiculous idea longer and more patiently than seems sensible. Watch it in company, and resist the temptation to repeat a line while the next one is arriving. *Fi1m score 84, published 25 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics respond warmly to A Night at the Opera, with praise centred on the Marx Brothers’ verbal comedy and the strength of individual routines. The reviews repeatedly single out the speed of the jokes, sharp one-liners and comic disorder. Empire highlights the stateroom sequence, while Variety praises the contract-tearing routine and trunk sequence. There is also support for the way the brothers’ unruly humour survives the film’s more polished presentation. The reservations are modest rather than a sustained case against the film. Empire finds it highly successful without counting it as the brothers’ funniest, and Variety describes the satire as rather serious. The available verdicts range from warm approval to considerable enthusiasm, with no outright negative response recorded. The New York Times entry has the lowest supplied score, but its inaccessible review text means it cannot establish a substantive dissent or explain that lower rating. ## Straight answers **Is A Night at the Opera worth watching?** *A Night at the Opera* is well worth watching for its patient verbal sparring and physical comedy, and we score it 84 out of 100. The contract routine and crowded stateroom justify our warm recommendation, though the musical passages slow the laughter and suit viewers happy to wait for the comedians to return. **How long is A Night at the Opera, and what is it rated?** *A Night at the Opera* runs 1h 31m. It is a comedy and music film. **Where can I watch A Night at the Opera in Chile?** *A Night at the Opera* is not on any streaming or rental service in Chile at the moment. It is available in 2 other countries; change your country at the top of the page to see where. Availability is checked daily. ### Reviews we read (6) - **Radio Times**, David Parkinson (5/5): Parkinson says the Marx Brothers’ anarchic spirit triumphs despite efforts to polish their comedy for MGM. He praises the survival of that unruly comic energy. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-5gux4f/a-night-at-the-opera/) - **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw (85/100, inferred): Bradshaw’s verdict is strongly positive, praising the film’s rapid-fire comedy. He singles out the brilliant routines and sharp one-liners. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/film/movie/77687/night-at-the-opera) - **Empire**, David Parkinson (80/100, inferred): Parkinson finds it a polished, highly successful Marx Brothers outing, even if not their funniest. He singles out the stateroom sequence and the film’s delirious verbal comedy for praise. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/night-opera-review/) - **Variety**, Variety Staff (75/100, inferred): The review is positive about this Marx Brothers comedy, despite calling its satire rather serious. It singles out the contract-tearing bit, trunk sequence, and lively opera-house chase finale. [Read](https://variety.com/1934/film/reviews/a-night-at-the-opera-2-1200411103/) - **Time Out**, GB (70/100, inferred): The review presents the film as a high point for the Marx Brothers. It singles out their comedy before MGM began rationing it. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/a-night-at-the-opera) - **The New York Times** (66/100, inferred): The archive headline identifies a review of the Marx Brothers film. The review text is inaccessible, so its verdict and specific praise or complaint cannot be determined. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1935/12/07/archives/article-2-no-title-three-of-the-four-marx-brothers-in-a-night-at.html) ## Details - **Director:** Sam Wood - **Director:** Sam Wood - **Screenplay:** Morrie Ryskind, George S. Kaufman - **Story:** James Kevin McGuinness - **Cinematography:** Merritt B. Gerstad - **Editor:** William LeVanway - **Music:** Herbert Stothart - **Costume design:** Dolly Tree - **Cast:** Groucho Marx as Otis B. Driftwood; Chico Marx as Fiorello; Harpo Marx as Tomasso; Kitty Carlisle as Rosa; Allan Jones as Ricardo Barroni; Sig Ruman as Gottlieb; Walter Woolf King as Lassparri; Robert Emmett O'Connor as Henderson - **Runtime:** 1h 31m - **First release (the US):** 1 November 1935 - **Genres:** Comedy, Music ## Where to watch in Chile Not streaming, renting or buying in Chile at the last check. Also available in: CA, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## If you liked this - *Hellzapoppin'* (1941): Another comedy whose performers treat the story as an unwelcome interruption. - *The Ladykillers* (1955): Polite manners and stubborn authority prove useful obstacles to some appalling behaviour. - *PlayTime* (1967): For physical comedy that makes crowded spaces funny without needing a punchline. - *What's Up, Doc?* (1972): A screwball chase built from mistaken identities, brisk exchanges and carefully organised chaos. - *Tampopo* (1985): Food replaces opera, with another ensemble happily interrupting the central story. --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/a-night-at-the-opera