Rio Rita

Best friends Doc (Bud Abbott) and Wishey (Lou Costello) get fired from their jobs. They sneak into a car trunk thinking it's a ride to NYC. Instead, they arrive in a Texas resort border town and stumble upon a Nazi spy ring. Abbott and Costello are basically in their own movie as the story unfolds. They are a duet while the rest of the movie is playing different tunes. I don't mind it that much since I like the duet plenty. It's not perfect but I like the idiotic banter. Costello is always good for some fun idiocy. If only the movie is about them...

Copyright 24 March 1942 by Loew's Inc. A Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer picture. New York opening at the Capitol: 7 May 1942. U.S. release: 11 March 1942. Australian release: 31 December 1942. 9 reels. 8,187 feet. 91 minutes. SYNOPSIS: Nazi 5th columnists attempt to send coded messages on radio broadcasts originating from a dude ranch in Texas. COMMENT: Abbott and Costello's first film for MGM is nothing if not handsomely photographed. And the boys themselves are in fine form. Their usual gag writer has provided some clever routines involving typical puns, misunderstandings and comebacks, plus a number of slapstick knockabouts which actually come across satisfactorily thanks to deft special effects. The boys also have help from a director with a bit of imagination and sense of camera fluidity. Above all, they are surrounded by a particularly able support cast. True, the principals are not so graciously served by both script and sound recording (though the songs themselves are pleasant enough, and Miss Grayson is attractively photographed), but Tom Conway is menacingly suave, Peter Whitney makes an admirable stooge, whilst stunningly costumed Patricia Dane turns in such an exotically glamorous performance her presence alone elevates Rio Rita to a must-see category. She is a great foil for the boys too and is able to stand up to them with both convincing aloofness and involving patronage. Altogether perfect, it's a pity Abbott & Costello failed to realize what a gifted, heaven-sent asset she was to both them and the film and that they didn't make sure she was employed subsequently (as the Marx Brothers were clever enough to realise what a goldmine they had with Margaret Dumont). OTHER VIEWS: I saw a program on Cinematography on television the other night and was amazed that the first photographer one of the interviewees listed as a prime example of artistic craftsmanship was George J. Folsey. He was right up there with Arthur Miller, Charles Lang, William Daniels and James Wong Howe, despite the fact that he never won any prestigious awards (though nominated quite a few times) and that his is hardly a well-known name even among dedicated film buffs. This feast for the eyes is a good example of Folsey's work, even though he was unable or unwilling to disguise some obvious backdrops and glass shots... Despite their hokey words (in a stage show I saw the songs were deliciously sent up, but here of course they are played perfectly straight by the humorlessly wooden Carroll - effecting a phoney accent - and the inexperienced if lovingly photographed Grayson - this was only her second movie after all), the old tunes still thrill the ears. It's an ingenious script device that brings in the Ranger's Song and reprises it for the climax. The staging is rather elaborate too, with pans across both sides of the screen and an editor's nightmare of studio process and real outdoor shots. Mind you, it doesn't quite work, principally because Carroll is so deadly dull... Abbott and Costello indulge us with some typical amusing routines ranging from smart one-liners and clever puns to well-rehearsed slapstick falls and chases. They are obviously both enjoying their work. -- JHR writing as George Addison.

When Lou Costello decided he wanted to be in show business, one of his first jobs was as a stuntman at M-G-M during the late '20s. After he and Bud Abbott made a success of themselves on radio and Broadway, that same studio made an offer to them for less then $20,000 for a couple of spots in Ziegfeld Girl. Lou turned that down saying to Bud: "I want to be a star, not an 'also featuring' credit behind Judy Garland and Clark Gable." Universal then offered them $35,000 for One Night in the Tropics which featured them in more scenes though they wouldn't be the stars of that one. After their first two starring pictures-Buck Privates and In the Navy-did blockbuster business for Universal, M-G-M head Louis B. Mayer still wanted the team for his movies so a deal was worked out for Metro to give $300,000, half to their home studio and $75,000 each to Bud & Lou for one picture a year. This was their first one. They initially play pet shop employees but, of course, that ends in disaster so they then wind up in Texas near the border at a hotel where some Nazi villains are sneaking around. I'll stop there and just say they're plenty funny courtesy of their routines written by John Grant. John Carroll and Kathryn Grayson are the romantic leads and sing some opera-like songs that are tolerable (That kind of music is usually associated with Laurel & Hardy) but Eros Volusia shakes things up with her number. The M-G-M gloss permeates which is a stark contrast to the more low-budget Universal outings of the team. They did fine in their first film for Leo the Lion. So that's a recommendation for Rio Rita. P. S. Lou's brother-in-law Joe Kirk appears as the pet shop owner at the beginning, Bud's nephew Norman Abbott as a washing machine attendant, and Lou's brother Pat did some of his brother's stunts. So as we leave the team's first M-G-M movie, we'll next visit Laurel & Hardy in their second for the studio, Nothing But Trouble.

When MGM lost a contract deal to sign Abbott and Costello in 1941, Universal Studios in a conciliatory gesture loaned them out to their movie rival. Universal was willing to put the comedy team in as leads rather than support roles and the boys apparently had a talented agent to wrest them away from the larger studio. MGM was so aggrieved that they almost filed a lawsuit but apparently cooler heads prevailed, with "Rio Rita" the first of three pictures MGM put the boys in. For fans of Abbott and Costello who have seen plenty of their films, one of the first things you notice here are the absence of their many recycled film bits like 'Slowly I Turned' and 'Who's on First?'. The MGM writing staff did a decent job of coming up with their own funny dialog for the pair like the 'Pike's Peak' gag. Production values run a notch above Universal as well, obviously MGM had a lot more money to spend on extras as evidenced by the rather lavishly costumed Volusia dance number. It would have looked a lot better in color though. The setting is the Hotel Vista del Rio in Del Rio, Texas, which wouldn't mean much to most viewers, but that was also the home town of Imus in the Morning's fictional radio character, the Reverend Billy Sol Hargus. Imus hasn't used that bit for many years now, but once you've heard it you remember it. As for the story, things get muddled rather quickly after the main plot element is revealed. Radio station KPKO is a front for a Nazi fifth column enterprise attempting to smuggle bombs into the country. There's some business about a secret code book and planting information in the radio's broadcast commercials, but not a lot comes of it all. Even the presence of a 'talking' German Shepherd held some potential for Nazi intrigue, but instead the talented canine did an amusing roll-over gag with Costello. In fact, one could almost make a case for the picture being a musical, but with widely disparate genres in play. There's an early riders on horseback segment doing a Texas Rangers song, while John Carroll and Kathryn Grayson offer up a few tunes as well, with Grayson showing amazing voice control in an operatic number that in all other respects was virtually unlistenable. Things eventually come together to expose the Nazi bad guys in the end, but once it's over, one begins to wonder what the picture was all about.

Bud and Lou tangle with Nazi spies in Mexico. The Nazis are led by suave Tom Conway. This is a loose remake of a 1929 Wheeler and Woolsey picture. I haven't seen that and likely won't anytime soon since I don't care for Wheeler and Woolsey much. This is also the first of three movies A&C did for MGM. None of these were among their best movies and this is easily the least enjoyable of the three. Nice cast backing up the boys but far too much focus on the bland romance between Kathryn Grayson and John Carroll, a poor leading man I've never been a fan of. He uses a particularly laughable Latin accent here. Also too much singing! And it's that "opera-y" type singing, too. You know what I mean - deep bass from the guy and high soprano from the girl. Not my thing. As for the comedy, it's pretty by-the-numbers Abbott & Costello material. A few good lines and gags but nothing for the career highlight reel. The car spinning gag ("Push the button!") is probably the movie's best scene and that's in the first twenty minutes. For die-hard A&C fans or fans of Ms. Grayson's singing. Everybody else would be advised to find one of the many superior Abbott & Costello films to watch.

Rio Rita used to run on TV along with the other Abbott and Costello features back in the 1970s, but it seemed to disappear in the video age. It has shown up recently on cable in what looks to me like a well restored version. Bud and Lou get mixed up with Nazi spies while working at a ranch hotel in the desert. It's got some decent gags and some good songs, but I think most people will enjoy it because it looks good. There are good southwestern sets, good scenes of the Rangers riding along singing, and Bud and Lou are still in their youth. It's not the best Abbott and Costello movie you'll ever see. This was their first feature with MGM, and they were better with Universal, but I missed this one from the TV days, so I was happy to finally see it again.

For me, this film is a weaker attempt compared to the films Abbott and Costello were making at Universal. This fact is actually shocking, because MGM was one of the biggest and most important studios around at that time, and comedy wasn't new for them. The opening scenes in the pet shop are hilarious, and the film has its share of funny jokes, such as the car repair shop, and the washing machine scenes. However, I think the scene where the donkey(having swallowed a Nazi radio) sticks its head in the window, and speaks in Hitler's voice, is my favorite in the film. I always crack up laughing at that moment, and Lou's comment, "I've heard your voice, but this is the first time I've ever seen your face."

Corny but likable Abbott and Costello comedy about the duo working at a dude ranch and discovering a Nazi plot (this was filmed during WWII after all). Most of the the comedy is their usual Who's-On-First-like word play and like a lot of Marx Brothers and other comedy pictures of the time, this one features several musical numbers. You also have Tom Conway and Kathryn Grayson, so there's a solid supporting cast, for this otherwise forgettable but entertaining enough of Abbott and Costello picture.

The Haughty MGM Studios had to Have it All. Borrowing Abbott and Costello from Universal, because the Comedy Team was a Big Hit, the Studio Managed to Cobble Together a Number of Elements in this Awkward Amalgamation of Opera On a Ranch, and Nazis Out West, and Set A & C Loose Among this Bizarre Combination. None of it Works. There is an Awful Lot of Awful Singing with Crooners on Horseback and Operatic Scale Sliding. The Comedy Team's Routines are OK and Quite Amusing with Slapstick, Sight Gags, and Word Play. But the Combination of Bud and Lou with the Other Parts Never Come Together. The Nazi Threat is Hardly Realized, and the Ranch Setting is Never Used for Any Advantage. The Love Interest is Never Interesting and the Only Thing Worth Watching is When Abbot and Costello are On the Screen. Everything Else is Embarrassing at Best and Atrocious at Worst.

I'm watching several of the Abbott & Costello films that TCM is running, and I began to wonder why I had only watched the collection I already had only once. And watching this film, I finally got it. Abbott & Costello cannot compare to Martin & Lewis, and here's why. It's not the fault of Lou Costello. The man is hilarious, and much more able to combine that hilarity with pathos than Jerry Lewis. The problem is/was Bud Abbott. The main had a very limited talent -- he could feed lines to Lou Costello, he could slap Lou Costello around, he could yell at Lou Costello. But Dean could sing and be the romantic lead. So, you could put Martin & Lewis together in a movie and have a complete film. But with Abbott and Costello, Lou could provide all the comedy, but Abbott could not sing or be romantic or dance or do anything to carry part of the film. And that is very clear in this film. Don't get me wrong. This is an entertaining film, And the focus is Abbott and Costello. But, most A&C films have to bring in some romance, so here they bring in John Carroll and Kathryn Grayson. In most A&C films they have to bring in some music, so again, here they turn to John Carroll and Kathryn Grayson. As a result, as with most other A&C films, "Rio Rita" becomes a musical-comedy-variety film...and who does that better than MGM with its high production values? But as a result, some focus is thereby shifted away from Abbott & Costello. But, A&C are very funny here, both in terms of Lou's slapstick, and the team's witty dialog. Due to World War II, the plot of the old musical (by the way, almost every song from the original Ziegfeld production has been eliminated) has been modified to bring in a Nazi spy plot to trigger the action; but it works. As Abbott & Costello films go, this is pretty good, and well worth a watch.