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Groucho Marx, Marx Brothers, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx, Allan Jones ... see more see more... , Maureen O'Sullivan , Leonard Ceeley , Margaret Dumont , Douglas Dumbrille , Esther Muir , Sig Rumann , Robert Middlemass , Vivien Fay , Hooper Atchley , Frankie Darro , Frank Dawson , Pat Flaherty , John Hyams , Ivie Anderson and the Crinoline Choir , Si Jenks , Carole Landis , Edward J. Le Saint , Mary MacLaren , Wilbur Mack , Jack Norton , Charles Trowbridge , Max Lucke , Douglass Dumbrille , Sig Ruman

A Day at the Races was the Marx Brothers' follow-up to their incomparable A Night at the Opera. Groucho Marx is cast as Hugo Z. Hackenbush, a veterinarian who passes himself off as a human doctor when... read more read more... summoned by wealthy hypochondriac Emily Upjohn (Margaret Dumont) to take over the financially strapped Standish Sanitarium. Chico Marx plays the sanitarium's general factotum, who works without pay because he has a soft spot for its owner, lovely Judy Standish (Maureen O'Sullivan). Harpo Marx portrays a jockey at the local racetrack, constantly bullied by the evil Morgan (Douglass Dumbrille), who will take over the sanitarium if Judy can't pay its debts. After several side-splitting routines--Chico selling Groucho tips on the races, Chico and Harpo rescuing Groucho from the clutches of femme fatale Esther Muir, all three Marxes conducting a lunatic "examination" of Margaret Dumont--the fate of the sanitarium rests on a Big Race involving Hi-Hat, a horse belonging to the film's nominal hero, Allan Jones. Virtually everything that worked in "Opera" is trotted out again for "Races", including a hectic slapstick finale wherein the Marxes lay waste to a public event. What is missing here is inspiration; perhaps this is due to the fact that MGM producer Irving Thalberg, whose input was so essential to the success of "Opera", died during the filming of "Races". Even so, Day at the Races made more money than any other previous Marx Brothers film--the result being that MGM, in the spirit of "they loved it once", would continue recycling Races' best bits for the studio's next three Marx vehicles. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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87% liked it

8,784 ratings

Critics

100% liked it

13 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 51 min.

Directed by: Sam Wood

Release Date: June 1, 1937

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DVD Release Date: May 4, 2004

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Stats: 408 reviews

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Groucho, Chico and Harpo Groucho, Chico and Harpo Chico, Harpo and Groucho You want some steak? Groucho, Esther Muir, Chico and Harpo A Day At The Races.01 Groucho, Sig Ruman, Harpo, Leonard Ceeley, Margaret Dumont and Chico A Day at the Races A Day at the Races A Day at the Races
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Flixster Reviews (408)

  • ajv2688
    September 18, 2010
    ajv2688
    I believe this is the longest of the Marx Brother's movies. It really didn't need to be so long, there were a couple of boring scenes. Other than that, the Brothers do all their usual jokes and run around being silly as usual, which is always fun, so I liked this movie anyway.
  • FilmFanatik
    June 13, 2010
    FilmFanatik
    Much funnier than the last couple of films I've seen.
  • aSpaceCowboy
    April 17, 2009
    aSpaceCowboy
    The Marx brothers are at their highest, most outgoing and energetic Comedy yet. Showing us all again who they really are. Here to keep the role as, personally, the greatest Slapstick team to garner the MEDIA-tric world with timeless, genius liter humor both in its out-colored var... read moreiety as the jokes and characterizations remain clean.
  • garyX
    June 3, 2007
    garyX
    Another Marx Bros. classic. As long as you can stomach the superfluous romantic and musical interludes, you just cannot go wrong with them. Hilarious.
  • hypathio7
    January 12, 2010
    hypathio7
    This second Marx Brothers picture for MGM has many of the same elements. Sam Wood directs again. Allan Jones and Margaret Dumont are still on hand. Ruman returns in a briefer supporting part. Wunderkind Thalberg dies part way through production at age 37 though. Maureen O'Su... read morellivan is the new romantic leading lady. Ceeley, Dumbrille, and Middlemass are the villains this time representing business managers of a sanitarium who want to turn the building into a casino.

    Groucho is Dr. Hugo Z. Hackenbush, a vet who has convinced Dumont's Mrs. Upjohn that he is an expert psychiatrist and medical doctor. He is brought in to try to save O'Sullivan's sanitarium, which her father ran before her. Chico works for O'Sullivan and Harpo is a jockey at the nearby horse track. Jones is romantically involved with O'Sullivan of course, but annoys her when he invests in a race horse expecting to win enough to pay her debts and his.

    Again some of their best comic "set pieces" are contained here: Tootsie-Fruitsie Ice Cream, Groucho calling Whitmore as the Florida medical board, Harpo's charades for Hackenbush is gonna be framed, Chico and Harpo interrupting Hackenbush's dinner with Flo, the medical examination of Mrs. Upjohn, and the chaos the boys cause at the race track. Harpo's non-verbal pantomime is even more expressive and hilarious in this picture. The music is still great entertainment though more on a popular track this time since the opera of the previous film. Jones has a solo in front of a wall of water, a Busby Berkeley type ballet number is revealed behind the wall of water, and a solo ballerina does an unbelievable number of rapid pirouettes. Chico does another piano piece and Harpo does too until he demolishes the instrument. It is a treat to see him use the strings and frame from the inside of the piano as his harp to avoid being hauled away by the authorities. Later there is a huge gospel/jazz/swing musical number. An entire black community living around a barn where the brothers are hiding out follow Harpo who is playing a whistle. The scene is a little odd and at times disturbing for its racial stereotyping, but the singing and dancing by everyone but the Marx Brothers is well done. At least there is some variety from the ballads popular to white culture in the mid-30's here.
  • staindslaved
    December 17, 2011
    staindslaved
    The funniest thing to me is that Groucho joked "What am I a horse doctor" a few films ago and now he in fact is a horse doctor. A Day at the Races is typical MGM Marx Brothers complete with side stories, songs and musical numbers. Whether this adds or subtracts from the film is... read more something that is still argued about today. A Day at the Races is considered to be one of the better Marx Brothers films but I didn't enjoy it as much as many of their other films. Fans I'm sure will still dig it.
  • 9876a
    July 18, 2007
    9876a
    "Emily, I've got a confession to make. I really am a horse doctor, but if you marry me, I'll never look at another horse."
  • chadroesti
    April 15, 2007
    chadroesti
    Have you got a woman in here?
    If I haven't, I've wasted 30 minutes of valuable time.
  • jam233
    October 18, 2009
    jam233
    Hysterically funny and certainly one of the Marx Brothers best. The writing is great and the musical numbers are terrific too. Great supporting cast, Margaret Dumont is a delight as always. Excellent!
  • TheMovieNerd
    August 23, 2009
    TheMovieNerd
    Another movie with the Marx Brothers at their best. Whether it's the great miming scene between Harpo and Chico or the final race scene, this movie had plenty of lines and momments to make me laugh out loud while watching it.
    A strong supporting cast including Dumont, Ruman, and... read more the couple Jones and O'Sullivan (who manage to be the least annoying out of all the romance stories used in the Marx Brothers movies) help give the Marx Brothers plenty of things to play off of and make for a great, classic comedy. Defintly for any fan of the Marx Brothers, old movies, or grea comedies in general.

    "You've got it all wrong. This is my aunt. She's come to talk over some old family matters."
    "I wish I had an aunt look like that."
    "Well, take it up with your uncle."

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Critic Reviews

Charles Cassady
December 14, 2010
Charles Cassady, Common Sense Media

Marx Bros.' big hit may miss with today's kids. Full Review

John J. Puccio
January 26, 2010
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis

...may not inspire one to gales of laughter the way the earlier Marx Brothers films did, but there are still some good laughs here. Full Review

Mark Bourne
April 4, 2006
Mark Bourne, DVDJournal.com

Proof of the absence of God comes when Marx Brothers gags get the scissors ... yet we still must endure a show-stopping (in the worst sense of the word) water-ballet number that's a dose of Robitussin... Full Review

Dan Lybarger
October 20, 2005
Dan Lybarger, Nitrate Online

Vintage Groucho, Harpo and Chico.

Dennis Schwartz
April 8, 2005
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

A winner at the box office. Full Review

Ken Hanke
August 18, 2004
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

The Marxes' last truly great film.

Walter Chaw
August 10, 2004
Walter Chaw, Film Freak Central

Groucho's power is his smoothness with language, his Kryptonite Chico's elaborate doublespeak. Full Review

Nell Minow
June 20, 2003
Nell Minow, Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies

Sublime.

Tim Dirks
January 1, 2000
Tim Dirks, Tim Dirks' The Greatest Films

A Day at the Races (1937) is a classic Marx Brothers comedy, often argued as one of their three or four best works. Full Review

March 26, 2009
Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

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Facts

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    • Flo Marlowe: Oh, hold me closer! Closer! Closer!
    • Dr. Hugo Z. Hackenbush: If I hold you any closer, I'll be in back of you.
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A Day at the Races Trivia

  • In what movie does a famous horse doctor buy racing tips from a Tootsie Fruitsie Ice Cream Salesman?  Answer »
  • Which two Marx Brothers movies were also the names of albums by Queen?  Answer »
  • In what famous Marx Bros. Movie does Dr. Hackenbush the horse doctor (played by Groucho) pose as a human doctor to save a sanitarium from being shut down?  Answer »
  • In which movie did Groucho Marx play Dr. Hackenbush?  Answer »
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