Retro Review: Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein

During the 1940’s Universal Studios found that they had two types of movies that were always guaranteed blockbusters; Abbott and Costello comedies and their monster movies. It was only a matter of time before some studio hotshot got the idea to combine the two. Today comedy and horror are often very closely linked with each other; perhaps its the fact that the two genres appeal to very different ends of the emotional spectrum that ties them together. I believe it was the filmmaker Stuart Gordon (though I could be mistaken) that pointed out that as an audience is coming down from the rush of  being terrified they inevitably let out a laugh as a sign of relief. Despite this at the time tying laughs and screams together no doubt seemed to be a risky venture, yet the studio took a risk and Bud and Lou met Frankenstein’s monster and his pals.

Casting this movie seemed to have been a cinch, naturally Abbott and Costello were cast as the comedic leads, Chick Young and Wilbur Grey; and as for the monsters the studio decided if it was not broke they should not fix it. Naturally Lon Chaney Jr. reprised his famous role as the Wolf Man and Universal brought back legendary actor Bela Lugosi to put the cape back on and for a final time play the role he was famous for. As for the role of Frankenstein’s monster, Boris Karloff had aged to the point where could no longer keep up with the physical demands of the role (though he did help in promoting the film) Universal brought back stunt man Glenn Strange who had been the monster in previous films to put the bolts on the side of his neck. Naturally there a bit of tension on set which came from combining these two schools of talent; Bud and Lou were notorious for goofing off on set and even hired a clown to keep things entertaining while working; on the other hand Lugosi was a notoriously strict professional throughout his career who was constantly sent into fits of rage because his cast mates did not take the work as seriously as he did.

The movie opens with Chick and Wilbur in the job of luggage managers, and as bumbling as they are its a wonder they have not been fired. They are tasked with the job of delivering the alleged remains of Count Dracula and Frankenstein’s creation to a house of horrors attraction in Florida. Despite the protests of Larry Talbot AKA the Wolf Man who has been trying to stop Dracula, the pair make the delivery and set up this exhibit. This allows them to perform one of their most popular comedy bits where the coffin lid opens and closes and poor Wilbur is the only one to see it as the straight man of the routine does nothing but berate him for his fears; the duo had performed this on stage and on film for years but never has it been better than it is in this film. As expected Dracula emerges from his tomb and resurrects the creature to do his bidding and they head off to set up headquarters in what must be the only spooky castle not in a theme park in all of Florida. The attraction owner makes an insurance claim on his missing exhibits and his insurance investigator happens to be a lovely woman who tries to get information by seducing Wilbur much to the chagrin of his current girlfriend who is trying to trick him into losing his brain for the sake of giving new life to the Frankenstein monster.

Wilbur and Chick receive a helping hand when the unwitting monster, the Wolf Man shows up in his quest to destroy Dracula. When he wolfs out in the hotel for the first time has always been a particular favorite laugh of mine, to see a werewolf quietly stalking poor oblivious Lou Costello always tickles my funnybone. The clownish duo of course end up at Dracula’s castle of horrors where Dracula and  Frankenstein’s creation hilariously chase poor Wilbur around trying to get his juicy cranium to power the monster all the while Chick remains oblivious to the rants of his pal. After their adventures in the castle, they go to a costume party where they reteam with the wolfish Mr. Talbot who is more than ready to confront the blood drinking Count, but too bad for him he did not check him Almanac before going out for the night and the full moon forces him to transform adding to the woes Chick and Wilbur have to endure.

The climax of the film takes place at Dracula’s castle when the bufoonish Wilbur is finally captured and Dracula is itching to open up his melon. While in the dungeon Wilbur takes to calling the monster, Junior which I find incredibly funny for some reason. Dashing to his rescue are Chick and the Wolf Man and monster filled chaos ensues. Dracula and the Wolf Man chase each other around the castle while Frankenstein’s monster emerges and gives the two comedians a run for their lives. In the tradition of the beloved Universal Monster movies it all ends when the monsters are all vanquished and the evil laboratory is blown to smithereens. Our two unwitting heroes get into their boat and sail off victoriously but not before one last twist as it appears (but not really) that the Invisible Man, voiced by horror legend Vincent Price, is onboard and jealous that he missed all the fun.

If I have one complaint about this movie is that the fact that the monsters do not look right. On the production side of things, Jack Pierce the legendary make-up artist responsible for the creation of all the iconic monsters had just been fired. He was a patient master of his craft who often put his actors through extreme discomfort in order to make the creatures look as scary as possible. Sadly when the new owners took over the studio they wanted a quicker and easier process using foam rubber as opposed to the expensive and laborious ways which Pierce had used. Taking great pride in his work, Pierce refused to change and was replaced by the notorious glory hound Bud Westmore who did the make up on this particular movie. While the new techniques may have been easier both the Wolf Man and Frankenstein’s monster look hastily put together in order to look serviceable, but not great, onscreen. But this is a minor complaint as the rest of this movie is everything a movie fan could want; Bud Abbott and Lou Costello are at the top of their funny game in this flick, not just with new twists on their classic physical routine but the banter between Abbott as the straight man and Costello as the poor clownish figure is absolutely priceless, one has to wonder how much of it is ad libbed. On the other side of the coin, despite being in a comedy film, the monsters have not lost any integrity as they are just as scary as ever which makes the trouble that the heroes are in that much more troubling. As a whole this movie has something for every movie fan and if you have not seen it you should.