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Duck Soup will screen from a 2K digital restoration.

Arguably the Marx Brothers’ most beloved film, Duck Soup is a non-stop barrage of anarchic comedy from Groucho, Chico, Harpo and Zeppo.

When the fictional nation of Freedonia goes bankrupt, they must turn to the wealthy dowager Mrs Teasdale (Margaret Dumont) for financial assistance. Her condition for a bailout loan: that the acid-tongued Rufus T Firefly (Groucho) be made leader of the country. Meanwhile, the conniving Ambassador Trentino (Louis Calhern) from neighbouring rival Sylvania enlists two spies (Harpo and Chico) to dig up dirt on Freedonia’s new leader.

As tension between the two nations grows and Rufus T Firefly must travel between his decisive appointments, there is only one vehicle resplendent enough to be declared ‘His Excellency’s Car’: a Harley-Davidson Model J with sidecar.

Duck Soup was the final film the Marx Brothers made with Paramount. Although not a box office bomb, it did not reach the same heights of success of their previous releases. Over the years, however, the film’s reputation has grown and it is now acclaimed as one of the greatest American comedies ever produced. It remains a hilarious and acerbic take on war, political systems and the concept of order in general.