Pretty Good

everything you have heard about this movie is true.

It is a whirlwind of delight --- attractive actors, stunning couture, spectacular sets and outrageous parties.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

The Gorilla (1939) *** (out of 4)A gorilla is going around murdering people and Walter Stevens (Lionel Atwill) gets a note warning that he will be the next victim. He hires some detectives (The Ritz Brothers) to protect him and it seems there are a large number of possible suspects including the butler (Bela Lugosi).THE GORILLA is another example of the "old dark house" genre and it really doesn't have the greatest reputation among horror fans. I can understand this as the comedy aspect certainly isn't going to be for everyone but I've seen enough Ritz Brother comedies to where I'm sure to their brand of humor. The same is true for Patsy Kelly who certainly pushes her way through scenes. If you can accept their type of comedy then you're in for a good time.I think what makes this film stand out is the fact that it's got such a great cast. The Ritz Brothers are in fine form here and I think this is perhaps their funniest film. There are some nice bits including one where people keep disappearing from a certain chair whenever the lights are turned off. Kelly has enough energy for five people and it's fun seeing Atwill in the film. Lugosi is also quite good here, although he's really not given a whole lot to do. It's still fun seeing him scare the others.Director Allan Dwan does a good job with the material as he keeps the film moving at a very good pace and there really aren't any slow moments throughout the short running time. Again, I understand that the Ritz Brothers were never in the same league as a Laurel and Hardy or Abbott and Costello but if you can deal with their humor then THE GORILLA offers some cheap fun.

"This Ritz Brothers vehicle features them as detectives hired to protect lawyer Walter Stevens (Lionel Atwell) from 'The Gorilla', a killer working under the guise of an escaped circus animal. Garrity, Harrigan, and Mullivan (Jimmy, Harry, and Al Ritz) discover that is really heiress Norma Denby (Anita Louise) who may be the target of the killer. To complicate things even further, a real escaped gorilla shows up to befuddle our trio of detectives," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis.Another in the long line of comedy in the haunted house capers, "The Gorilla" works well if you're familiar with the Ritz Brothers, and unfamiliar with the often filmed storyline. It will also help if you like movies featuring men in gorilla suits. Director Allan Dwan and photographer Edward Cronjager make it look all right. The cast is strengthened by a high-key performance from literary maid Patsy Kelly (as Kitty), and a low-key play by butler Bela Lugosi (as Peters); their names, "Kitty" and "Peters", are certainly amusing.**** The Gorilla (5/26/39) Allan Dwan ~ Harry Ritz, Patsy Kelly, Bela Lugosi

I have to confess that I had never until today heard of this comedy trio called "The Ritz Brothers." They seem to have been a sort of toned down version of "The Three Stooges," and - not being much of a "Stooges" fan - I actually appreciated their more toned down style of comedy. Here, they play a trio of inept detectives trying to protect a wealthy businessman (Lionel Atwill) who's been threatened by a mass murderer known as "The Gorilla." There is, in fact a "real" gorilla on the loose (played by Art Miles - the makeup, while not great, wasn't as bad as some that I've seen), who can't be the murderer (because first, gorillas can't write notes and, second, he hasn't been on the loose long enough to have committed the murders) but still he provides plenty of comic relief in his scenes with the Ritz Brothers. It's a good mystery. We're kept guessing from the beginning about who's actually committing the murders, and there's no way of really knowing. Bela Lugosi is featured as the butler, Peters, and he plays the role perfectly straight (in a sense perfectly cast, because I can't picture Lugosi doing comedy) and that straight performance adds both to the comedy and the mystery (Peters comes across as mysterious throughout.) Overall, it's not a classic, but it's quite enjoyable. It will offer some laughs and keep you guessing all at the same time. 7/10

Slapstick comedy featuring the Ritz brothers. Who are the Ritz brothers? I don't know, I've never heard of them until now, but they seem a very cheap and shoddy imitation of the Marx brothers. They play detectives out to catch "The Gorilla", a man who kills people after sending them threats 24 hours in advance. The Ritz bros. bungle and trip their way to discovering the truth of the matter, and hilarity is supposed to ensue. It doesn't. The comedy falls flat--or maybe not enough, as sometimes it's supposed to--and the plot is completely illogical.The movie gets some props for generally trying to have fun with the hidden passageways motif and Bela Lugosi's usual outrageousness, but the problem with camp is that when it's camp horror, it's funny, and when it's camp comedy, it's not, meaning that this movie is kind of suspended between both by boredom and disinterest.--PolarisDiB