Dance With Me, Henry (1956)

It's a real shame to watch this Abbott & Costello movie and realise that it would be their last appearance together in a cinematic feature. The fact that it's their last movie is sad enough for fans but the fact that it's so poor, arguably one of their very weakest movies, makes it even harder to watch. The boys should have gone out with a bang but they instead deliver a damp squib, overflowing with horrible emotional manipulation and lacking enough great gags.

It's equally disappointing to see that the film is directed by Charles Barton (a man responsible for one of the best of the A & C films, when they got to meet Frankenstein). If everyone involved had just tried a bit harder then they may have been able to wring some more laughs out of the screenplay, by Devery Freeman, but most aspects of the film just seem a bit tired.

The heart of the story sees our comedy duo getting in some hot water with some gangster types. Bud is really the one causing the problems this time around while Lou does his best to run a fairground and look after the children in his care (children that may be taken away from him if he is deemed unfit for the role). It seems like only a matter of time until everything falls apart and lives are seriously endangered.

I won't say that this film is completely awful from start to finish. There are a few highlights here and there (Lou being interviewed by the police is one particularly enjoyable sequence) and the film isn't unwatchable, especially if you're a fan of the stars.

Sadly, nothing really rises above average though. A lot of the gags barely raise a smile, the farcical elements unfold in a pretty clumsy manner and the supporting cast - including Gigi Perreau, Rusty Hamer, Mary Wickes, Ted de Corsia, Ron Hargrave, Frank Wilcox and others - fail to add anything worthwhile, though Mary Wickes almost manages to steal the show despite her limited screentime.

Of course, you should watch this if you're trying to view the entire A & C filmography and if you're a fan of the two leads but everyone else can easily give this a miss.

5/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dance-Me-Henry-Region-Import/dp/B0012XU7NE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1344331876&sr=8-1

Abbott & Costello In The Foreign Legion (1950)

The movie starts with Bud and Lou playing a couple of guys choreographing some wrestling practice. It's going to be a great moneyspinner and they want everything to go smoothly. Mere moments later, the whole plan is in disarray when their main draw (Abdullah, played by William 'Wee Willie' Davis) decides that he's had enough and heads back home to Algeria. The guys, out of a sense of self-preservation, go after Abdullah, determined to get him back to America and wrestling for them but once in Algeria they find themselves, as usual, in the wrong place at the wrong time and circumstances lead to them taking shelter with, as you may have guessed, the Foreign Legion.

There's nothing here to get excited about even if the movie isn't a complete bore. The direction by Charles Barton is competent but the script by John Grant, Martin Ragaway and Leonard Stern is far from the best that the two leads have ever worked with. They do okay with the material, and one or two moments are very enjoyable (especially a scene involving various mirages), but this is undeniably lesser fare.

Sadly, the cast also feels like "lesser fare" to those who have enjoyed many other A & C adventures. The leads do their usual stuff, though Bud is a bit less harsh to Lou in this outing (which may make this one more enjoyable for some viewers), and William Davis does fine with his limited screentime but Patricia Medina isn't all that captivating in the one leading female role while Walter Slezak, Douglass Dumbrille, Leon Belasco and the others in the cast don't make much of an impression either.

One interesting aspect of the movie nowadays is seeing Tor Johnson in one of his many small roles he took before becoming best known years later for his work with Ed Wood but it's just a shame that there's nothing else worth singling out for attention in a film that most firmly resides in the arena of the average.

5/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abbott-Costello-Foreign-Legion-Keystone/dp/B000H5V9H6/ref=sr_1_1?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1337701783&sr=1-1

Africa Screams (1949)

Abbott & Costello return for another comedy adventure, this time taking place (as if you couldn't guess from the title) in Africa. Featuring the standard attempts to get rich, the usual misunderstandings and moments with Lou being placed in peril, Africa Screams also benefits from the dangerous environment that our leads find themselves in.

It all starts with a map in a book that has since become quite untracable. Hillary Brooke plays a woman who wants that map and when she finds out that Lou, apparently, has it memorised and can draw it out for her she makes our duo a fine offer. But is it really a fine offer, considering what may be located with the help of the map? And when did Lou develop such a great memory and a skill for cartography?

Whenever I see any footage shot in a jungle environment I am always reminded of just how dangerous those places are. From the smallest bugs to the largest carnivores, it seems like everything is out to prey on any unsuspecting interloper. Back in the 1940s places like the lands of Africa were even more exotic and dangerous than they appear to us today and this movie really capitalises on every aspect of that. Danger comes from crocodiles, lions, traps set by hunters and, of course, scary tribal folk (pretty much a staple of this material in any movie made before the age of broadened horizons and political correctness).

The leads are on top form, even if the material isn't. Don't get me wrong, there are many laughs and great moments but none of the absolute classic routines appear here. It doesn't matter, however, and Earl Baldwin peppers the script with plenty of minor chuckles in between the big set-pieces until a finale that drops the ball slightly when it chooses to unwisely pile on the antics of the animals with the humans getting in the way of each other.

Charles Barton does another great job in the director's chair, helped by A & C, the casting of Frank Buck and Earl Baldwin playing versions of themselves, Hillary Brooke planning to double-cross the boys whenever she can get the right time and opportunity and Joe Besser and Shemp Howard joining in with the fun.

I'm not sure what the general consensus on this one is but I, for one, really enjoyed it and heartily recommend it to other fans of the boys.

7/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Africa-Screams-DVD-Bud-Abbott/dp/B000818VKM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337012480&sr=8-1

Abbott & Costello Meet The Killer, Boris Karloff (1949)

Compared to the high quality of the previous outings, this is another lesser Abbott & Costello movie (and easily one of the weakest movies that they starred in under the direction of the dependable Charles Barton) but, as I have said about a few of their other movies, it's still a fun viewing and worth watching if you're a fan of the duo.

Bud Abbott plays Casey Edwards, a hotel detective who ends up with a dead body in his hotel and a pretty decent amount of suspects (including, of course, Boris Karloff). Lou Costello is Freddie Phillips, the incompetent bellboy who ends up being the main suspect as pieces of evidence, and more bodies, start piling up around him.

While this doesn't have many of the really great routines that A & C were famous for it does have a few very good moments scattered here and there. One extended sequence involving some corpses that our leads don't want discovered in their vicinity is particularly enjoyable, mixing some good physical work with a number of fun verbal gags.

The script by Hugh Wedlock Jr, Howard Snyder and John Grant is okay but it's a shame that the whole thing couldn't have been given a bit more care around the important laughs. It's true that many A & C movies feel like little more than pantomimes put onscreen but this film seems to have been made without anyone involved remembering that it should also hang together as a whole movie. As such, it feels like it slightly outstays its welcome even at the brisk 84 minutes it runs for and there's very little of interest in the moments that focus on the murder mystery element of the film.

The direction is okay but the material is hampered by an instantly forgettable cast. Oh, our leads do their usual good work and Boris Karloff is enjoyable enough in the few scenes that he has but nobody else stands out. James Flavin, Lenore Aubert, Gar Moore, Donna Martell, Alan Mowbray, Mikel Conrad and others have their time onscreen but, while I won't exaggerate and say that I remember none of them, not a one of them makes any lasting impression.

Oh, and one last thing. Don't let the title mislead you.

6/10

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abbott-Costello-Meet-Killer-Jekyll/dp/B000H7ZZH4

The Noose Hangs High (1948)

Another Abbott & Costello movie directed by Charles Barton, The Noose Hangs High is pretty much a joy from start to finish. Even if you're not a big fan of the central duo this one should keep you entertained as it moves from routine to routine with the laughs coming thick and fast.

What's in the mix for this outing then? Well, there's a toothache, mistaken identity, gambling, verbal dexterity and an absolutely wonderful sequence in which the two leads try to get themselves arrested.

The one minor complaint to note is that a lot of the better gags and routines aren't new to anyone who has seen some of the A & C movies from the past but that doesn't matter when they're slotted in so nicely here and performed with such skill. The bet that is made to prove that someone present is actually "not here" is Abbott & Costello doing what they do best. Then there's the routine that sees Lou being confused as someone explains to him how a horse eats its fodder and how some male horses can make great mudders. Last, but by no means least, we have an exchange between A & C that covers a variety of topics from Lou boring holes in walls to disliking mustard and causing mass unemployment to dating a much younger woman to being in a train station with no destination in mind (just see it and all will become clear).

The cast all do great. This is focused on the leads for the majority of the runtime but Cathy Downs is a lovely lady, Joseph Calleia plays the tough guy strong-arming the main duo and Leon Errol is an eccentric with the best luck in the world.

John Grant and Howard Harris are the main writers but about five other names are attached to the process (from story to screenplay). As surprising as it is, this actually just makes the whole thing zippier and more full of gags as opposed to a big, sprawling mess. That may be in no small part due to the direction from the consistently capable Charles Barton, a man rightfully acknowledged as being able to get the best out of A & C.

If you're a fan of great comedy then this is definitely one to watch, even if you don't consider yourself necessarily a fan of those involved.

8/10

http://www.amazon.com/The-Noose-Hangs-High-Abbott/dp/B0007O38ZI

Mexican Hayride (1948)

With Charles Barton directing once again and John Grant helping out with the screenplay, this is an Abbott & Costello movie that showcases our comedic duo at their easygoing best. It's not their finest hour, perhaps due to the source material (a play by Herbert and Dorothy Fields featuring Cole Porter musical numbers that were left out of the movie), but it's a lot of fun from beginning to end and features one or two truly wonderful routines.

Our two leads play a couple of conmen who end up making some money in Mexico. Of course, Lou is as oblivious to the real nature of the schemes while Bud tries to do whatever it takes to ensure the success of another great scheme. Things don't go smoothly and on the way there are amusing encounters with local food, a memorable elocution lesson and even some dangerously close contact with a bull.

While Mexican Hayride suffers in direct comparison to the previous A & C outing, the classic Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein, it definitely keeps the quality level in line with most of their other movies that Charles Barton oversaw. Many people claim that he was the best director the boy ever had and it's hard to argue with that when you see him allowing the boys to play to their strengths time after time.

The script is by John Grant and Oscar Brodney, it's not quite a laugh-a-minute but there are plenty of one-liners and quick exchanges to keep fans happy. The cast all do well (especially Luba Malina as Dagmar) but they only float in and out of the picture to fill out the scenes in between the comedy set-pieces, which is as it should be when the leads are on such great form.

This is yet another fun outing for A & C from a time that, arguably, saw them at their very best.

8/10

http://www.amazon.com/Abbott-Costello-Complete-Universal-Collection/dp/B001EXE2Y2

Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)

Bringing together two things I loved in my youth, Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein easily remains one of my favourite A & C outings. Of course, purists will balk at a number of factors. The fact that they don't actually MEET Frankenstein but, rather, Frankenstein's monster is one minor criticism often brought up but I must say that this is simply a minor error in an effort to truncate the title because throughout the film the monster is known as The Monster (or Junior, etc). It is never mislabelled as Frankenstein. The other criticism often levelled at this film, and a major one, is that it really was the end of the line for the classic Universal monsters and many fans of those great horror movies saw this as a real dignity-stripping fanfare for the villains they loved (Glenn Strange plays "The Monster" while Bela Lugosi returns to play Dracula and Lon Chaney Jr. once again embodies Larry Talbot/The Wolfman). This is a harder criticism to just shrug off and I think it comes down to personal taste. The monsters themselves aren't necessarily the butt of most of the jokes but they're certainly not the feared figures they once were. Personally, I love the clash between that world of cobwebs and creaking coffin lids and the patter of Abbott & Costello.

The plot sees our comedy duo getting themselves caught up in quite a monster mash between all of those I've already mentioned. I don't think I need to say any more though I will say that the plot has at least been created with a decent idea or two used to bring this motley crew together.

Director Charles Barton is at the helm once again and does a great job, once again. The performances are all quite enjoyable - as well as those icons of horror we also have decent support from Lenore Aubert, Jane Randolph, Frank Ferguson and Charles Bradstreet (there's even a fleeting cameo from Vincent Price) - and the movie wastes no time in setting up the action and wringing the laughs from it. Robert Lees, Frederic I. Rinaldo and John Grant are back on the writing duties and the premise of the movie allows them to create some real gems. This is the movie with the following, unforgettable exchange -

Larry Talbot: "You don't understand. Every night when the moon is full, I turn into a wolf."
Wilbur: "You and twenty million other guys."

I wish I could recommend this to everyone and know that they would like it as unconditionally as I do but I know that will never happen. In the meantime, I just hope that some people give it a viewing soon and find themselves laughing more often than not.

9/10.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abbott-Costello-Meet-Frankenstein-Mummy/dp/B000GKHM28

The Wistful Widow Of Wagon Gap (1947)

AKA The Wistful Widow.

One of the best movies starring Abbott & Costello, this comedy Western contains a great mix of verbal and physical humour and has considerably less of the annoying mugging and childish behaviour that Lou Costello had been making his trademark over the preceding decade. He's still a naive and nervy "little boy" but doesn't need to make funny whining noises and/or do a double-take every two minutes.

The plot sees our two leads heading in to a dangerous town to try and make a buck or ten. They're only there for a few minutes when someone dies and Lou gets blamed for it. Thankfully, instead of being given a death sentence the two men are ordered to support the widow and family of the deceased and to help pay off the dead man's debts. This is demoralising and tiring for Lou, who has to work from sunrise to sunset, but things take a turn for the better when he realises that nobody wants any harm to come to him. Why? Because if they are found responsible for his death then they have to take over the responsibility and put up with the fearsome widow. Having found the secret to becoming almost untouchable, Lou is made the sheriff of the town and begins to enjoy himself a little. But there's always going to be a time when a sheriff, even an apparently untouchable one, will get into some serious trouble.

Director Charles Barton gets plenty right here. The script (by John Grant, Robert Lees and Frederic I. Rinaldo) helps a lot, as do the performances, but Barton brings everything together in just the right amounts. Abbott and Costello fans will enjoy the standard A & C comedy but there are also many moments for fans of standard Westerns to enjoy.

Marjorie Main is very entertaining as Widow Hawkins, as is George Cleveland (who plays the Judge), while Gordon Jones, William Ching, Audrey Young and the others onscreen all do very well. The two leads, as already mentioned, are on top form with a mix of one-liners and enjoyable physical comedy.

Definitely a movie that fans of A & C will want to see and, hopefully, love as much as I do.

8/10.

http://www.amazon.com/Abbott-Costello-Complete-Universal-Collection/dp/B001EXE2Y2

Buck Privates Come Home (1947)

Following on from, as if you couldn't guess, Buck Privates, this Abbott & Costello vehicle sees our two leads trying to adjust to civilian life after their stint in the armed forces. This is made a bit trickier by their plan to keep and look after a young illegal immigrant named "Evie" (Beverly Simmons) and by the fact that they haven't really got any trade to fall back on besides their usual quick sales/con work.

Even more so than their other vehicles, Buck Privates Come Home has an air of comfortable familiarity about it. It's a sequel that spends the first few minutes introducing the lead characters with some footage from the earlier movie before going on to recreate the chemistry of that film. Bud and Lou are still the troublemakers with good intentions, Sgt. Collins (Nat Pendleton again) is still the authority figure trying to put a stop to their antics and there are a number of decent comedy moments that are stretched almost to breaking point. Okay, you could almost give that description to every Abbott & Costello movie ever made but the interaction between A & C and Pendleton here works as well as it did the first time around and it feels like a very smooth continuation despite the gap of over half a decade.

Director Charles Barton, working with the script by John Grant, Frederic I. Rinaldo and Robert Lees, does just fine with the material. Lou Costello may have regressed slightly with each movie, going from an innocent and all-too-trusting manchild to a dumb and incompetent  baby, but that fault (for those who view it as such) lies with the development of his comedy persona rather than the director having to shoehorn the personalities into a film. The leads all do their stuff, little Beverly Simmons is a bright young thing and Tom Brown and Joan Shawlee provide decent support.

It's a shame that there isn't more of the better A & C material in this movie but I must admit that the delivery of the standard slapstick and gentler comedy is very well done. It makes for a decent sequel to Buck Privates and an enjoyable vehicle for the comedy duo.

7/10.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abbott-Costello-Privates-Comin-Mountain/dp/B000GLKNR8/ref=sr_1_1?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1333035636&sr=1-1

The Time Of Their Lives (1946)

Abbott & Costello provide audiences with something a bit different from their usual fare in this easygoing, supernatural comedy.

Lou plays Horatio, a man wrongly shot down as a traitor and cursed to reside as a ghost alongside Melody Allen (played by Marjorie Reynolds). Horatio and Melody have to stay on the land on which they died, unless one day their innocence can be proved. As time rolls merrily on, we eventually get a group of people arriving who may well help in that endeavour. Including, of course, a character played by Bud Abbott.


The Time Of Their Lives is a pleasant enough little movie and I can't say that I disliked it. However, it really was really missing some spark of wit and vitality. The supernatural element kept things entertaining enough but didn't really compensate for the lack of the trademark fast-talking banter that fans of A & C know and love.

The first of many A & C movies directed by Charles Barton, this one benefits from a great cast (Marjorie Reynolds is a delight, Binnie Barnes and Gale Sondergaard are both very good, Ann Gillis is very sweet and John Shelton is fine) compensating for the mediocre script. Val Burton, Walter DeLeon and Bradford Ropes all had a hand in the screenplay, with some additional dialogue by John Grant (as was so often the case), but none of them capitalise on the potential of the premise. One or two set-pieces stand out as pretty amusing skits but they're still not a patch on the more typical A & C style of humour that featured in most of their other movies.

I wish this had been a better comedy but I still enjoyed it as a nice and inoffensive comedy that happens to have two lead characters who are ghosts.

6/10.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Abbott-Costello-Naughty-Nineties-Their/dp/B000GLKNQO/ref=sr_1_1?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1332194164&sr=1-1