The Best of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, Vol. 1 [2 Discs]The Best of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, Vol. 1 [2 Discs]

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MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

    The films of Abbott and Costello have undergone a major upgrade for the first time in decades on The Best of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, Vol. 1. A handful of their movies, including Buck Privates and In the Navy, were previously available early in the DVD era from Image Entertainment as direct conversions of their old laserdisc masters, with the same dirt, occasional missing frames, bad splices, and other flaws that prevailed on the laser editions. (Just to show how much DVD consumer economics have changed since 1999, at that time the Image edition of Buck Privates by itself cost as much as this set of eight movies.)

    This two-disc set contains the eight feature films that Abbott and Costello made in their first two years in Hollywood: One Night in the Tropics (1940), Buck Privates (1941), In the Navy (1941), Hold That Ghost (1941), Keep 'em Flying (1941), Ride 'em Cowboy (1942), Pardon My Sarong (1942), and Who Done It? (1942). The movies that overlap with the earlier Image discs have all been transferred anew from distinctly cleaner, sharper sources, although there are still small flaws, such as a hair visible on the lower-left-hand corner of the screen in the opening credits for Hold That Ghost, which otherwise looks beautiful. The full-frame (1.33:1) transfers are as sharp as the technology will allow, at the practical limits of resolution so that they shimmer on shots of striped garments. Each movie has been given a detailed production and release history, and all but one (Pardon My Sarong) come with trailers (principally reissue trailers from Realart), which are usually a little on the scratchy side. One surprise, however, is the trailer for Keep 'em Flying, which was prepared in conjunction with a government-sponsored "Keep 'em Flying Week" intended to attract volunteers, and which runs a full nine minutes. Each film looks as good as has likely been seen over the past 40 years, be it in broadcast, on laserdisc, or theater screens. All come with 18 chapters (except for Buck Privates, which gets 19) and optional French and Spanish subtitles and English captions, and all four disc sides open automatically to a menu that goes three layers deep. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:
  • Region: 1
  • Number of Discs: 2
  • Subtitle: Eng/Fre/Spa
  • Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 (Pre-1954 Standard)
  • Audio: Dolby Digital Mono
AWARDS
  • Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
  •     Nominated Best Score - 1941 (Charles Previn)
  •     Nominated Best Song - 1941 (Hughie Prince, Don Raye)
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
REVIEWS:
  • Fans of Abbott and Costello will have a field day with Hold That Ghost; those not so in tune with the boys will be less enthralled, but even they may find themselves chuckling several times throughout Ghost. Coming quite early in the duo's film career, Ghost finds the boys still in fresh form -- and their timing has rarely been better. Timing, of course, is ultimately what Abbott and Costello are about. The personalities that they created and the gags that they performed are important, but it's the timing that makes their routines rise or fall. Ghost features several set pieces that are guaranteed to get a laugh (the moving candles, the dance with Joan Davis, etc.) The screenplay is not much, little more than a hook to hang gags on, the "bookended" musical numbers are an unnecessary drag, and the film does sag toward the end. But Costello is a natural for "scare" reactions, Joan Davis is a great match for his character and when it's "on," Ghost provides plenty of laughs. Throw in a cameo by Shemp Howard, and Ghost is good fun. ~ Craig Butler, Rovi
  • If it weren't for the fact that it introduced Bud Abbott and Lou Costello to the screen, One Night in the Tropics would be forgotten today. Not that it doesn't have some assets aside from the soon-to-be-famous comic duo. For one thing, it boasts a score by Jerome Kern and Dorothy Fields, and if the music is not Kern at his best, it's still Kern -- and that counts for a lot. Allan Jones is also on hand to lend his sterling voice to a couple of the stronger numbers, and Robert Cummings is on hand to add his comic charm to the proceedings. Nancy Kelly and Peggy Moran contribute some femme flavor, and Mary Boland and William Frawley are, as always, fun to be around. But the script is a mess from top to bottom. Structurally, it's not helped by the interpolation of some Abbott and Costello routines that have little if anything to do with the plot. But those interpolations are what make One Night in the Tropics memorable. The duo come across as fresh and energizing. Those who don't care for their style of comedy will find nothing here to change their opinion, but those who love them will enjoy seeing them in this nascent form. Several classic routines -- including the "mustard" and "Jonah" are here, as is a much shortened "Who's on First?" They stop the plot cold -- but they provide a great deal of fun. ~ Craig Butler, Rovi
  • One of the best Bud Abbott and Lou Costello films, Buck Privates not only marks the film that put them on the map of stardom but also contains, as do many of their films, some of their classic vaudeville material. While these routines are hilariously funny, they work better mostly because of the situations the boys find themselves in. Bud and Lou enlist in the army to avoid being sent to jail and soon are in boot camp under the command of the police officer who was set to arrest them. While the rigors of military discipline naturally provide all sorts of opportunities for hijinks and pratfalls, the film holds up because it doesn't overdo them and actually has an interesting secondary plot involving a well-heeled dandy trying to use his family's influence to get out of service and his former valet, now also vying for the attention of the same woman. This may seem to be a diversion but it allows for a breather between the madcap routines that take over the film and provide the belly laughs. Veteran comic actor Nat Pendleton gives Abbott and Costello a run for their money as their drill sergeant, and the Andrews Sisters have a prominent role as themselves, appearing in many of the musical numbers that crop up throughout. Although the combination of all of these bits has a cumulative effect to make the film feel a little over-stuffed, by limiting the appearances of Bud and Lou on-screen it makes their performances that much more effective and avoids the fate some of their later films suffer in which they wear out the welcome of their good-natured characters. Stooge Shemp Howard has a small role as a cook. ~ Dan Friedman, Rovi
  • Sure, the plot of In the Navy isn't worth very much, but since when does plot have anything to do with whether an Abbott and Costello picture is any good. Truth to tell, making art was never high on the duo's list (nor on the list of any filmmaker who engaged them for a project); making fun was, and there's plenty of fun in Navy. It's silly fun, to be sure, but fun nevertheless. Naturally, anyone who tires quickly of the pair's personalities and typical high-jinks will soon lose interest in Navy, and it's for these viewers that the lack of a decent plot becomes a liability to Navy. The one that has been slung together, involving Dick Powell avoiding his fans by enlisting and Costello pretending to be an admiral, is a lot of hooey. When not letting Powell sing, that stretch of the film gets awfully boring awfully quickly. And it also must be admitted that the tunes concocted for Powell and for the terrific Andrews Sisters are not really top drawer; the performers do very well by them, but in lesser hands they would produce yawns. Fortunately, director Arthur Lubin keeps that focus on the performers, on the vocalists during the numbers and on the star comics at every other possible opportunity, and that's all to the good of the film. There are some classic bits here, including the multiplication sketch; the last named should amuse even those who don't ordinarily count themselves among Abbott and Costello's fans. ~ Craig Butler, Rovi

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