Copacabana

Groucho Marx plays an agent called Lionel Q.Deveraux, who only has one client, Carmen Novarro, played by Carmen Miranda.Lionel gets Carmen to perform at a club called Copacabana, but she has to perform there as a Brazilian and as a French singer.It's not so easy.Copacabana is a nice comedy musical with Groucho Marx.The movie offers you some very funny moments, even if it doesn't have the other Marx brothers.

If you love Groucho Marx or love musicals this is the movie for you. Groucho Marx is still the funniest man alive. Groucho Marx is witty as a slippery agent to Carmen Miranda in this movie. I am a fan of anything he does or anything the "Marx Bros." are invovled with. (even though this is a solo act)This movie has it all musical numbers and laughs. The chemistry between Carmen Miranda(Carmen Novarro)and Groucho (Lionel Q.Deveraux) is incredible. I will go into the plot well it has to do with anarchy and misinformation with has been a playing ground of Groucho's for years. I would like to thank Groucho and his brothers for making me laugh when my our life I sometimes don't have much to laugh at. Fellas you were trully are blessed. Thank You. P.S. Mr. Deveraux even brings back an old friend for a song and dance... don't ask you can't afford him.

The talent act of Deveraux (Groucho) and Novarro (Carmen Miranda) fizzles. So, Deveraux takes on the role of Novarro's "agent" in a bid to coax the Copa manager, played by Steve Cochran, to hire Novarro as a hot Brazilian number. But Cochran is interested only in credible agents, those with multiple clients. Naturally Groucho invents Mlle. Fifi as a second client. The thing is ... Groucho only has Novarro. So, who else to play the role of Mlle. Fifi than ... Novarro. The main plot line thus centers on Groucho and Carmen in their efforts to fool the club manager, by covertly alternating Carmen's on-stage roles.

It's a dumb, silly story. But Groucho delivers enough funny one-liners and clever quips to make his part interesting. And lively, breezy Carmen Miranda, with that unique style of dancing and singing, entertains with style and panache. The silly storyline alternates with staged floor shows, which overflow with music and Latin atmosphere. The costumes are interesting, but the B&W cinematography does not do them justice.

The film quickly becomes dull, especially in the middle Act, when Groucho and Carmen go off-screen. Too much time is wasted on a romantic subplot between Cochran's character and his secretary Anne, played without feeling by Gloria Jean. We also have to endure, and I do mean endure, the "talent" of someone named Andy Russell. That smarmy smile of his makes me want to jump off the nearest cliff.

This film will probably disappoint most Groucho fans, as he is but one of several that get major screen time. Steve Cochran, Gloria Jean, Andy Russell, and a few others just are not in Groucho's league. Carmen Miranda is, and whenever she is singing or dancing, the film is entertaining.

If you can ignore all the extraneous characters and focus on Groucho and Carmen, "Copacabana" can be worth a one-time visit.

In New York City, Lionel Q. Devereaux (Groucho Marx) and his fiancée Carmen Novarro (Carmen Miranda) are unsuccessfully trying to find a spot in the show business. Lionel introduces himself to Steve Hunt (Steve Cochran), who owns the famous Copacabana nightclub, as an important agent and convinces Steve to see the presentation of Carmen. He enjoys the show and asks for another attraction; Lionel convinces Carmen to wear a veil and perform another song and introduces her to Steve as the French singer Mademoiselle Fifi. Steve hires both singers and Carmen has to change clothes and identities between her performances. When she sees Lionel flirting with a Copa Girl, Mlle. Fifi accepts the invitation to have dinner with Steve, hurting the feelings of his secretary Anne Stuart (Gloria Jean) that is in love with him. The situation gets complicated and Carmen simulates an argument with Mlle. Fifi with her subsequent disappearance, originating an investigation of the police where the prime suspect is Lionel.

"Copacabana" is a delightfully naive and entertaining movie from a time when the society was extremely innocent and could buy such ingenuous story. The plot, i.e., the double-identity of Carmen Miranda, is totally absurd but the situation of Lionel after the disappearance of Mlle. Fifi was remade by Billy August in 1963 in "Irma La Douce". Groucho Marx is funny and responsible for the best moments of this movie; but the subplots with the silly romance of Anne and Steve, and the participation of the weird singer Andy Russell should be better written. The songs are boring and dated in 2009, but Carmen Miranda was very successful in those years and sings the famous "Tico-Tico no Fubá". My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Copacabana"

Copacabana showcases the unlikely pairing of Groucho Marx and Carmen Miranda in a musical melange concerning Carmen playing two different singers in the famous nightclub. The gags are fast and funny and the songs tuneful. Andy Russell and Gloria Jean are along to add to the music quotient and Steve Cochran is on hand to oversee the nightclub. The Copa gals are gorgeous and are given the opportunity to show off their personalities a bit. Louis Sobel, Earl Wilson and Abel Green, all real-life collumnists from the era make cameo appearances. This is definitely a forties musical with all the trappings. The musical numbers, choreographed by Larry Cebellos, are fun to watch, and look good in the restored black-and-white print. Purists may prefer a Marx Brothers comedy or a Carmen Miranda Technicolor musical from Fox, but this is a delightful way to spend an hour and a half. For me, the seemingly strange combination of Groucho and Carmen works and becomes a unique musical comedy experience.