Overview
A chaotic comedy unfolds in a Florida hotel where schemes and slapstick collide.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- None
- anarchic
- witty
- irreverent
- classic comedy night
- marx brothers marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film an entertaining comedy hit whose success rests chiefly on the Marx Brothers, while finding the musical elements, staging, and early sound uneven.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Hammer's hotel schemes, the brothers' interference, and the jewel thieves' collapse of control repeatedly turn orderly plots into comic chaos.
Hammer's Florida real-estate scheme exploits the contemporary land boom as the central commercial target of the comedy.
The Marx Brothers' verbal exchanges, musical numbers, slapstick routines, and ensemble staging reflect vaudeville and stage-musical traditions.
The adaptation preserves musical-comedy staging while showcasing early talking-picture sound, including muffled audio and visually crowded dance scenes noted by critics.
Films like The Cocoanuts, and why
Animal Crackers
marx brothers slapstick, anarchic wordplay, musical-comedy framework, and ensemble farce
Horse Feathers
marx brothers comedy built around escalating disorder, theatrical timing, and irreverent verbal gags
The Hollywood Revue of 1929
early talking-picture slapstick, backstage-style musical comedy, and chaotic ensemble energy
Movie Details
- Directors
- Robert Florey, Joseph Santley
- Release Date
- 1929-05-23
- Runtime
- 93 min
- Rating
- 6.5 / 10 (131)
Cast
- Groucho Marx
- Harpo Marx
- Chico Marx
- Zeppo Marx
- Oscar Shaw
- Mary Eaton
- Cyril Ring
- Kay Francis
- Margaret Dumont
- Basil Ruysdael
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- fuboTV, YouTube TV
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Cocoanuts about?
- A bankrupt Florida hotelier's real-estate hustle collides with Marx Brothers chaos, jewel thieves, and a tender romantic subplot in a landmark early sound farce.
- What is The Cocoanuts like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Cocoanuts as brisk, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is The Cocoanuts violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in The Cocoanuts.
- What did critics think of The Cocoanuts?
- Critics broadly found the film an entertaining comedy hit whose success rests chiefly on the Marx Brothers, while finding the musical elements, staging, and early sound uneven.
- Which films are like The Cocoanuts?
- Films with a similar feel include Animal Crackers, Horse Feathers, and The Hollywood Revue of 1929.
- How long is The Cocoanuts?
- The Cocoanuts runs 93 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Cocoanuts?
- In United States, The Cocoanuts streams on fuboTV, YouTube TV.
