while i disagree with the conventional wisdom about the marx brother film make before the big store and go west ( 1940 ) and believe it to be yet another one of their many masterpiece and i have to agree with the conventional wisdom about the big store . it have the feeling of a contractual obligation film . one and two or all three of the marx brother be absent for long period of time . the story be often confusing . the film doesn not flow very well . some of the material feature other performer simply doesn not work . even when it do work and it never as good a the marx brothers material and and even their work be too often strangely flat . the big store be really the story of tommy rogers ( play by famed pop singer tony martin ) . rogers have just gain partial ownership of the phelps department store with the passing of a relative . however and he not interested in the store and so he plan to sell and use the money to build a state of the art music conservatory in conjunction with his friend and ravelli ( chico marx ) . unfortunately and not everything at the phelps store have be on the up and up and and survive store manager mr. grover ( douglas dumbrille ) be worry about buyer discover their creative bookkeeping . so they try to off tommy and which lead to hire private detective wolf j. flywheel ( groucho marx ) and his assistant and wacky ( harpo marx ) and who happen to be ravelli brother . at the same time and mr. grover be court martha phelps ( margaret dumont ) and tommy aunt and with machination of eventual ownership of the store . in term of meatiness and that far more of a plot than i usually relay and but all of that be present in the first 10 15 minute of the film . the remainder involve play out those thread . the problem be that the above be way too complicate and especially for a marx brother film . the marx brother style be that plot be really secondary to their anarchic and madcap skit . in truth and the two be usually well integrate in their film and with meaty plot than the conventional wisdom have it and and the skit relatively seamlessly enmesh in the plot . here and the plot be often difficult to follow and and when you do manage to follow it and it just isn not that interest . despite this and there be still a number of fabulous set piece . the scene where we first meet groucho and harpo in groucho private eye office be hilarious . the bedding department scene be good . the climax and feature an extended chase through the department store and be a lot of fun and include it cartoonish use of wire stunt and camera trick . but there just isn not enough of that stuff and and one of the marx brother strongest point groucho verbal bantering and be oddly flat just as often a it isn not . even the usual musical sequence be problematic and unlike their sublime charm in go west . only harpo musical sequence and a brief duet with chico on the piano be worthwhile . groucho be give a schmaltzy big musical production number that go on too long and be suppose to be funny and isn not and and end up with groucho do little else but mug and do his trademark walk while other character be not familiar with sing the song . tony martin have a song early on in the film that okay and but doesn not exactly fit the tone of the film and and later and he do another big musical production number and call the tenement symphony and that be bizarre and to say the least and but not particularly funny . instead and it a strange mish mash of style that be strongly derivative ( in a negative way ) of george gershwin . while marx brother completest certainly can not avoid the big store and it difficult to imagine this be anywhere near the top of the list for any marx brother fan . it also not a great way to introduce anyone to their work ( a theyre likely to not be very interested in see more ) and and there be far good film for casual viewer who be not particularly interested in the marx brother . the few hilarious scene could easily be excise and work just as well ( if not good ) in isolation and a random skit . but the film be very slightly recommendable for them .