Abbott and Costello

[The Green Crusader]

As big a film enthusiast as I am, i shamefully confess i have yet to see an Abbott and Costello film, Can anyone recommend a good film to start on or are they all super?

[Susan Foreman]

Not a big fan of Abbott and Costello. To me they were the poor relations to Stan and Ollie

Their best routine, of course, is 'Who's On First?'



which was memorably parodied by Slappy Squirrel:



When it comes to films, the horror comedies are probably the best:

1948 Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein
1949 Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff
1951 Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man
1953 Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
1955 Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops
1955 Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy

[The Green Crusader]

Thanks Susan
Was swaying towards those naturally being a big horror fan

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

I recently picked up the 8 film UK box set as it has the best regarded of their films in it.

I've watched the majority of them now. The last i saw was Go To Mars.

I have to be honest and say they are all dreadful. The slapstick is painful to watch and the verbal jokes unfunny.

I love Laurel and Hardy and was really hoping for something similar. Abbott and Costello aren't similar, they don't deserve to be in the same sentence as Stan and Olly.

Somewhere under all the 'laughs' there might be half decent Universal monster movies in one or two of them, but in my opinion, and it is only my opinion, the films waste Karloff, Chaney etal.

[The Green Crusader]

Thanks demlike

I watched a clip of the Frankenstein one and it did seem fairly amusing, think you just save me £8 though, will have to see if they crop up on film 4 or something

[Demdike@Cult Labs]

Originally Posted by green-crusader

Thanks demlike

I watched a clip of the Frankenstein one and it did seem fairly amusing, think you just save me £8 though, will have to see if they crop up on film 4 or something

The thing is it's just what i think. I know others on here like them so perhaps try and check them out before purchasing.

[The Green Crusader]

yes i think i will try and catch them for free as opinions seem very split, do not want to waste money

[Godewind]

I agree with most fans, L&H are the classic comedy masters and A&C can't reach them in any way shape or form. I still bought the R2 box-set recently, mainly for the monster entries. Would've prefered the R1 set but too expensive.

[Dave Boy]

If you want to check out A/C then go for A/C Meet Frankenstein, the best of the 'Meet The..' series. Also 'Hold That Ghost'. The DVD's have two films on each of the discs so you can get a good idea of what other films will be like. Most films are a bit of chore to get through. Same routine every film and even Lou's whining becomes tiresome.
My recommendation would be the two films I mentioned. The two films are in my opinion the best, with Universal Horror production values.

[The Green Crusader]

Thanks Dave Boy, my instinct was to go for the Frankenstein one as the clips i saw were amusing, the effects seemed effective enough so hopefully i can find that dvd for a nice price!