The Ghost Breakers
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Movie Reviews of The Ghost Breakers
Movie Review: cute
Summary: 5 Stars
I had never seen this one before, but I really enjoyed it- imagine Bob Hope pretending to be scared!Movie Review: One of Bob Hopes Best Movies!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is one of Bob Hopes best movies...and has some good "scary" stuff in this movie too!Movie Review: great movie from the past
Summary: 5 Stars
i remember this movie from my childhood and still love it todayMovie Review: Easily one of Bob Hope's finest films
Summary: 4 Stars
Bob Hope was never truly a film comedian like Cary Grant or even Joel McCrea. He was primarily a radio personality who also appeared in a few films. For the most part, his later career was progressively weaker and weaker, and his celebrated series of Road Pictures with Bing Crosby were more notable for their spirit and energy than for much in the way of genuine humor. Indeed, of the famous comedians of the 20th century, Hope was one of the least funny. But for those who, like myself, do not count themselves among Hope's fans, there are two films that he made, both with Paulette Goddard, that are both remarkably entertaining and fun: THE CAT AND THE CANARY, released in 1939, and THE GHOST BREAKERS, released in 1940. What made these two films so much more successful than those that followed? First and foremost, there is a balance between the rest of the film elements and Hope's strong screen personality. For many of us, a little Bob Hope goes a long way, and in small amounts can even be entertaining. Although shockingly few of his one liners are actually funny, he does possess a nice physical timing, a great energy level, and a pleasant persona. He was never more pleasant or well presented as in these two films. The balance was achieved partly by not focusing as much on Hope as in his later films, and partly by including a very strong supporting cast. The very beautiful Paulette Goddard adorned both THE CAT AND THE CANARY and THE GHOST BREAKERS (her marriage to Charlie Chaplain ending in between efforts), and this film included as well Paul Lukas, Richard Carlson, and a very young Anthony Quinn (and for once the Mexican Quinn--born Antonio Rudolfo Oaxaca Quinn in Mexico--gets to play an Hispanic). The sets are fun, the direction fast-paced and never dull, and while the one liners don't elicit many out and out laughs, they at least engender a spirit of enjoyment. I can imagine only the most curmudgeonly viewer not having fun with one.
One of the most fascinating aspects of the film is the role of Alex the manservant played by Willie Best, who along with other black actors such as Fred 'Snowflake' Toones played a host of frightened, illiterate, stupid, and lazy colored servants, red caps, and porters during the thirties and forties. In this film as well he is often fearful, frequently mangles his sentences, and is definitely subservient. Nonetheless, this is one of the most interesting of this kind of performance in any film I know from the era. Partly this is because you get the feeling that his character is far more intelligent than he at first lets on, and although he is often fearful, he always manages to get the better of his fear, and in fact intervenes physically more than once to help Hope when he is in danger. He and Hope seem more like companions the pure master and servant, and almost approximate Don Quixote and Sancho Panza. Best does reinforce the stereotype in his role, but he comes very close to making something more of it. Sadly, it would remain one of the better roles for an African-American actor in a film mainly featuring white actors for some time (excepting several roles by the very talented and immensely dignified Rex Ingram, who is arguably the lone African American male who managed to completely shatter the stereotype in the 1940s, with several superb roles from THE THIEF OF BAGHDAD as the Genie, to Jim in HUCKLEBERRY FINN, to Da Lawd in GREEN PASTURES, to Lucifer in CABIN IN THE SKY, to Sgt. Tambul in SAHARA).
The DVD has a number of excellent features, including excerpts from some of Hope's USO tours (Hope was, of course, one of the foremost entertainers of U.S. troops in WW II, perhaps surpassed only by Marlene Dietrich, whose efforts were truly heroic, with her actually living with and entertaining troops in the front lines while the invasion of Germany pushed forward)
All in all, this was a very enjoyable film that will show Bob Hope at his very best.
Movie Review: Early Bob Hope vehicle with some great one-liner comebacks
Summary: 4 Stars
I have copied some of Lawrance M. Bernabo's cogent review and edited it to my view:
The plot of this 85-minute black & white comedy has Bob Hope as Lawrence Lawrence (Larry), a radio star who has made his reputation as a muckraker. Fleeing from a murder in a hotel he mistakenly thinks he committed, he ends up in the trunk of Mary Carter (Paulette Goddard) who is on her way to Cuba, where she has inherited the haunted Black Island and its haunted Castillo Maldito. Once on the island, Mary runs into the charming Parada (Paul Lukas), her old friend Geoff Montgomery (Richard Carlson), and the surviving scheming Mederos twin (Anthony Quinn and Anthony Quinn). Meanwhile, at the castle awaiting Larry and Mary are the Mother Zombie (Virginia Brissac) and her giant zombie son (Noble Johnson). Larry and his trusted valet Alex (Willie Best) go ahead to the castle to make sure everything is safe for Mary, at which point wackiness ensues.
The biggest downside of this film is that it embraced black stereotypes throughout; however, you must consider that this was a product of 1940. It is useful as an illustration of what society's expectations and treatment of blacks was during that period. I bought this to show to my teen-age children who have no idea of what society was like in the 20th century much less before WWII; as well as, to show who Bob Hope was and his type of comedy.
My favorite one-liner/come-back of Hope's was in the scene where Mary, Larry and Geoff Montgomery are present and Larry asks Geoff what he knows about zombies.
Larry, "Maybe you know what a zombie is.
Geoff explains "When a person dies and is buried, it seems a certain voodoo priest who . . . who have the power to bring him back to life."
Mary, "How horrible."
Geoff, "It's worse than horrible because a zombie has no will of his own. You see them sometimes walking around blindly, with dead eyes, following orders, not knowing what they do, not caring."
Larry, "You mean like Democrats?"
This is a light comedy written, produced and acted by products of the early 20th century with their view of the world. If you are not so politically sensitive as to recoil from the lack of 21st century political correctness which evolved seven decades later, you can appreciate the talent and chemistry of Hope and Goddard.