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ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN (1948) (****)

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At first glance at the title, the film seems gimmicky. Universal crammed three of its iconic horror characters into a mass appeal comedy with stars Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. Costello was rumored to have said that his five year old could have written a better script. However, he warmed to it once production got under way… and Universal offered him more money. On the page it must have seemed like a lot of scared reactions and running around, but what he might have missed is how it all plays together. It is a simple premise where the pieces build into comic genius.

Chick Young (Abbott) and Wilbur Grey (Costello) are railway baggage clerks assigned the task from House of Horrors owner Mr. McDougal (Frank Ferguson, PEYTON PLACE) to handle crates purportedly filled with the bodies of Dracula (Bela Lugosi, DRACULA) and Frankenstein's Monster (Glenn Strange, HOUSE OF DRACULA). Meanwhile, Larry Talbot (Lon Chaney Jr., THE WOLFMAN) calls to stop the guys from delivering the crates, while hiding the secret that he is a werewolf. Moreover, Chick scratches his head at how Wilbur landed his beautiful girlfriend Dr. Sandra Mornay (Lenore Aubert, ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET THE KILLER). Well it turns out that she is working for Dracula (posing as Dr. Lahos) to obtain a dimwitted brain to place into the Monster in order to keep him obedient.

Every action in the film builds one upon another. Costello's stupid persona is utilized as a primary plot point. McDougal adds tension with his demands that Chick and Wilbur are trying to steal his attractions, which leads to insurance investigator Joan Raymond (Jane Randolph, CAT PEOPLE) investigating Wilbur, which leads to a funny play on another pretty woman wanting the short, pudgy fellow. The use of the monsters as both enemies and allies gives the film a nice balance and offers surprises when Talbot can't control his animal side. It's funny that the most popular monster Frankenstein gets his name in the title when he's the least involved. The original title of THE BRAIN OF FRANKENSTEIN made more sense.

As part of Abbott and Costello's usual routine, Chick doesn't believe Wilbur's claims that the monsters have come alive and are on the loose. A great deal of the humor rests on what the audience knows is true and what the other characters don't know. The more proof of the monsters Wilbur gets the more frustrated he gets at proving his claims to Chick and the others. Costello is a master at comedic aggravation. The same unknowing character humor is played well with Sandra and Dracula talking about liking Wibur's brains.

One of the surprising successes is moments that play to create tension also play as humor. A great example is when Talbot is trying to free Wilbur, looks out the window, sees the full moon and transforms into the Wolf Man. Wilbur's savior turning into a threat creates tension, while it also creates laughs. The entire film works on this duality, which makes it special and compelling.

Boris Karloff turned down Universal's request for him to play Frankenstein's Monster again, because he felt the parody would demean his other work. (He is missed because Strange just doesn't have the same presence.) But he was wrong. The Monsters are played straight, while the comedians provide the humor. This approach is why the film holds up. It never seems like it's mugging for laughs. This was a problem with Charles Laughton hamming it up as his notorious pirate in ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET CAPTAIN KIDD.

This horror comedy mixes humor and horror so delightfully. The scares aren't what horror fans know as scares today, but it doesn't create tension. The humor never goes ridiculously over the top. It's this balance that keeps it the film from becoming gimmicky. In turn, it becomes a classic parody of classic horror films.

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Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks