Professor Popinjay's Compendium of Perspicacity

(There is no part 2 yet.)

By Prof Popinjay

If you don’t know, Abbott and Costello are a comedy team that came out of vaudeville and are one of only a few comedy duos who managed to translate well into film at a time when many actors struggled to adapt to the new medium. They are known for their hilariously confusing dialogue and amazing sense of comedic timing which is unlike anything that has since been produced. I have had the joy of watching a number of their films but not all yet so perhaps a continuation of this review is forthcoming. We’ll see. Here now is a brief review of each of the films I viewed:

Buck Privates Come Home- Obviously the title of this film has not stood up to the test of time and naturally now engenders notions of something obscene as all things do. A “buck private”, not to be confused with a butt pirate, however is a term used to describe the lowest military rank. Buck Privates Come Home is the sequel to its predecessor simply titled Buck Privates. I haven’t been able to get my hands on Buck Privates (stop snickering!) So I don’t know how they came by the little French girl. In “…Come Home” they’re trying to provide a home for the orphan girl before the child welfare agent sends her back to France. It’s a cute story with a sweet ending. I liked how every time Costello got in a line, be it a work line or a bread line, it always turned out to be a recruitment line to rejoin the military. Funny. Ha!

Little Giant- This was a cute story about a country bumpkin aspiring to be a successful salesman in the big city. Unfortunately this story, as cute as it is, puts Abbott in the role of an embezzling jerk and opportunities for the duo’s amusing bits are few and far between. There’s a couple but it’s more story than bits so it kind of misses the point of putting these guys on the big screen. I did like the bit where Abbott, mistaking Costello for a Hercules model for an advertising campaign, makes Costello take off his clothes for what Costello thinks is just a normal job interview. Of course that’s commonplace these days but back then that was funny.

The Time of Their Lives- Yet again, cute story. Noticing a pattern? Some lovable early-American ghosts are trying to clear their names so they can move on. As enjoyable as the film is this one once again fails to keep both Abbott and Costello together for very long. The film itself is good nevertheless. Heaven being closed for Washington’s Birthday killed me.

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein- At the time Universal monster movies were all the rage. It only made sense to combine them with Abbott and especially Costello, who’s scared little boy demeanor was the perfect comedy reaction to these silver screen terrors. “Meet Frankenstein” is a bit of a mad monster party incorporating not just Frankenstein’s monster, but THE Bela Lagosi as Dracula, and THE Lon Chaney Jr. as the Wolfman, and even a cameo from Vincent Price as the invisible man. Just having all those guys in one film is quite the spectacle excepting for the invisible man whom we could not see. This film is part of a whole series of Meet the (Insert Monster) films of which I hope to see all.

Abbot and Costello Meet the Invisible Man- I’ve never seen the original Invisible Man (yes, yes, I’m the master of comedy) but it’s definitely on my list. Even though this was meant to be a parody, I found myself captivated by the more dramatic details of the story. It did have some funny parts but humor aside, this was actually a good movie. I expected the invisible man would be played by Vincent Price though since he provided the voice in Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein.

Abbott and Costello meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: Boris Karloff finally gets into the act as the “good” doctor. Karloff originally didn’t want to be involved, believing parodies of the classic monster films was a bad idea but after seeing the film series success and how reverent the films were to the original monsters he agreed to sign on. It was great to see Karloff in a monster role once more and Abbot and Costello’s hijinks were great (the film actually keeps them together long enough to play off of each other for once!) The plot you could take it or leave it but these movies are more about the gags anyway.

Abbott and Costello meet Jerry Seinfeld- What!?! No this is not an installment in their monster parodies. No it does not pit the classic comedy duo against a monstrous version of observational humorist Jerry Seinfeld. It’s simply a 45 minute documentary about Abbott and Costello hosted by Jerry Seinfeld. It was a decent documentary. Glad I watched it.

The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap- I have saved the best for last. This film was hilarious from start to finish. A man (Costello) finds himself legally required to care for a woman and her 16 children in a rough old west town. Since no one wants his job, he becomes virtually omnipotent which leads to him becoming sheriff. Suddenly, the once timid and diminutive Costello is emboldened with a newfound and unlikely confidence.  It was so funny I won’t spoil it for you. The plot is hilarious. The execution is hilarious. It features Marjorie Main of Ma and Pa Kettle fame and if we’re being honest, she’s basically playing an old west version of Ma Kettle which is alright by me. This film may be guilty of the crime of frequently separating Bud and Lou too often and for too long but the comedy still stands. Such a great film. You must see this one.