Dave from Ottawa Silent film veteran Alan Dwan had helmed several of Douglas Fairbanks' best movies, and here turned out another swashbuckler, but with a difference: those zany Ritzes are on hand as a decidedly non-traditional trio of musketeers. Unlike the Marx Bros., whose movies were A-picture events, the now mostly forgotten Ritz Bros.' antics played in second features that failed to properly showcase their unique brand of knockabout comedy. Here they finally got a chance to perform in a good picture with a strong story and a good lead actor (Don Ameche as D'Artagnan) anchoring the proceedings, rather than just running about and being silly to no obvious purpose. The anarchic Ritzes here unleash their trademark catastrophic comedy to frustrate the machinations of Cardinal Richelieu and Lady deWinter. The Ritzes, of course, are not actual cavaliers, but rather a trio of dolts forced to masquerade as such to protect the Queen's honor. Much hectic action abounds, plus a few comedy songs, great silly costumes and a few of the Ritzes stage numbers such as a beautifully choreographed dance with cymbals on their bodies that must have taken years to perfect. The complex story is efficiently handled - the fat original novel plays out in a mere 72 minutes - and the straight action, heroically played by Ameche, and elaborately staged silliness of the Ritzes mixes well. An action comedy- musical would seem a difficult thing to blend correctly, but everything here is deftly handled and the cheapish production elements (leftover sets and contract players in supporting roles) do not hinder the overall effect. Worth going out of one's way to catch.

MartinHafer The Ritz Brothers are an acquired taste...like arsenic! Try as I might, every film I have seen these guys in I have thoroughly despised them. Now I read at least one review that liked this comedy(?) team, but I cannot stand them. I have reviewed quite a few films over the years by teams like the Marx Brothers, Olsen and Johnson, Wheeler and Woolsey, Abbott and Costello as well as the Three Stooges (all contemporaries of the Ritz's) and can say that for me, they are by far the least talented team of the era. Most of this is because unlike these other teams, there is no distinct personality for any of the three Ritz brothers. They all look pretty much the same and mug almost constantly for the camera. They also do not appear to have any talents other than acting goofy--not exactly a deep act! If you asked me which one was Harry or Jimmy, I certainly couldn't tell you--and I assume it's probably true for most people who have seen their films. So why, oh why, did they think to put these no-talents into Dumas' classic tale?! It's even more perplexing because the rest of the film is played so straight and the Ritz moments seem almost tacked on or an intrusion. I can only assume that studio chief Darryl Zanuck must have been insane at the time or under the influence! Other than the Ritz's antics, the rest of the film an an odd melange. On one hand, the ever-competent Don Ameche stars as D'Artagnan was not a bad casting decision--he was handsome and could sing quite nicely. The film also looked very nice. However, someone must have really had it out for Ameche, as in addition to saddling him the with Ritz Brothers, many of the songs they gave him to sing (in particular the first one) were simply awful. The tunes weren't bad but the lyrics...uggh!!! My house needed fumigation after several of them!What we have left are some decent actors trying to make the best of an untenable situation. They tried their best but the film simply was begging to be remade. My advice is to see the 1948 version with Gene Kelly or any of the more recent remakes, as they are head and shoulders above this 1939 mess--one of the few stinkers to come from this golden year in Hollywood.Overall, a tedious mess. The only good in the film I can think of is that it led to a clever episode of "Leave it to Beaver". The Beaver was supposed to do a book report on "The Three Musketeers" and instead watched this film and based the report entirely on it! Not surprisingly, he got an F and learned his lesson! I do wonder what this movie would have been like with the Marx Brothers and their zaniness. Sure, at the time they were employed by a different studio (MGM), but they could have really given the film a needed infusion of anarchy and goofiness.Not worth your time unless you are a 100% crazed movie freak (like me). Try ANY other version of the tale--it can't help but be better.

Michael_Elliott Three Musketeers, The (1939) *** (out of 4) D'Artagnan (Don Ameche) goes to join The Three Musketeers but he ends up teaming up with three misfits (The Ritz Brothers) posing as the Musketeers. I really wasn't expecting too much out of this film but found myself enjoying it throughout the short 73-minute running time. Ameche is terrific in his role and he pulls off the swordplay very nicely and his musical numbers are also very good. The Ritz Brothers have a poor reputation but so far I've enjoyed the two films of theirs that I've seen (the other being The Gorilla). This film also benefits from a very strong supporting cast, which includes Lionel Atwill, Gloria Stuart, Pauline Moore and a very funny John Carradine. The film stays pretty faithful to the original story with everything just kicked up a notch for comic situations.

Poseidon-3 With the many, many film versions of Dumas' classic tale out there, it became necessary (to some filmmakers) to mix it up a bit and put a spin or two on the story or use stunt casting in order to make the material seem fresh or different to an audience. In some cases, this has worked (as in the splendiferous 1973 version and its sequel) and in others it hasn't (the heinous Brat Pack version with Charlie Sheen.) This 1939 version is probably somewhere in the middle. The title characters barely appear at all as they are disposed of right off the bat and replaced by The Ritz Brothers. It is these three bumbling oddballs that Ameche (as D'Artagnan) meets with and enacts the story beside. Ameche and the Ritz's are enlisted to save the Queen of France's honor when she gives a priceless brooch to her lover, the Duke of Buckingham, but then needs it back in order to save face before her husband the King and his second-in-command Cardinal Richelieu. Standing in their way is the deceptive Barnes (as Milady De Winter) and the Cardinal's guards, led by Atwill (as Rochefort.) In the meantime, Ameche woos the Queen's dressmaker Moore through song and derring-do. This is a very pared down, simplified version of the story, ending before the plot becomes too dark (about a decade later, the Gene Kelly version would show the tale all the way to the end.) All but the bare bones of the story is hacked out or altered in order to house wacky comic schtick from the Ritzes or musical numbers, mostly supplies by Ameche. That said, enough of the tale remains to create some level of interest and a decent cast helps to put the thing over for the most part. Ameche is handsome and charming. Moore is reasonably appealing. Barnes is intriguing and game to the comic shenanigans while retaining her dignity. Stuart makes a lovely Queen Anne and does the best she can with a rather thin role. Familiar faces like Schildkraut and Carradine dot the cast. One disappointment is Mander as Richelieu. He doesn't bring an ounce of the sinister charm and menace that later actors like Vincent Price and Charlton Heston gave to the role. As for the Ritz Brothers, their brand of comedy is a matter of taste. They display a sort of mincing quality and don't particularly impress here in their series of bits, though they do show a flair for physical comedy at times. Thanks to lengthier careers, more distinct personalities and the aid of television reruns, The Three Stooges have nearly completely eclipsed these three gents who only enjoyed roughly a decade of film stardom. Likely to disappoint stalwart fans of the novel, the film is a pleasant enough diversion for others and is brief and nice to look at.