Fox Horror Classics Collection, Vol. 2 (Dragonwyck / Chandu the Magician / Dr. Renault's Secret) Review

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(More customer reviews)In Fox's second set of "horror classics", Gene Tierney and Vincent Price are in 1946's "Dragonwyck", a Gothic period thriller, not a horror film, directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and set in the old mansion of title. It's based on a popular 1944 novel of the same name. Then there's 1932's "Chandu the Magician", based on the old serial, with Bela Lugosi in a battle over a death ray. Again, this film is more of an adventure (followed by sequels) and not really a horror film. And then there's 1942's "Dr.Renault's Secret" with horror vet George Zucco as the doctor and J.Carrol Naish as his "assistant" who's a tad on the simian side and capable of committing murder. This is a low budget affair, runs only around 58 minutes and it's played more like a drama--- not like a horror film. Of course, all of these films are worth a look for their casts (especially "Dragonwyck"), their rarity and their b&w restoration, but none of them really qualify as "classic horror". Except maybe "Dr.Renault's Secret", but judge for yourself. I was hoping for genuine classic horror films that Fox found and restored. Maybe next time.

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Disk 1: Chandu the Magician **Commentary by Author Gregory William Mank **Masters of Magic: The World of Chandu **Chandu the Magician Radio Serial Episode **Restoration Comparison **Trailer **Still GalleryDisc 2: Dr. Renault's Secret **By The Book: Horror, Suspense, and Literary Inspiration **Restoration Comparison **Trailer **Interactive Pressbook **Still GalleryDisc 3: Dragonwyck **A House of Secrets: Exploring Dragonwyck **Dragonwyck Radio Show Performed by Vincent Price and Gene **Tierney - October 7, 1946 **Restoration Comparison **Trailer **Interactive Pressbook **Still GalleryEpisode Description: Disc 1: Chandu the Magician (1932) Disc 2: Dr. Renault's Secret (1942) Disc 3: Dragonwyck (1946)

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Abbott & Costello: The Complete Universal Pictures Collection Review

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(More customer reviews)It is a shame that it seems this holiday season so many studios are just double-dipping previously released material. Abbott and Costello are probably worthwhile purchases because, as someone else has already pointed out, the previous collections were on double-sided discs. However, this does seem to hurt the true fan who bought those double-sided disc collections by making them purchase the same films yet again in order to get something that will last long term. The following is the press release for this set, which indicates that 1943's "It Ain't Hay" will be the only film in this set that is a new release.
DISC 1:
One Night in the Tropics (1940) - Bud and Lou get mixed up in a "Love Insurance" scheme.
Buck Privates (1941)- The duo accidentally enlists in the U.S. Army to avoid getting arrested
BONUS FEATURES:
Commentary with Film Historians Bob Furmanek and Ron Palumbo (Buck Privates)
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer

DISC 2:
In the Navy (1941) - Bud and Lou are sailors bound for duty on the high seas in this musical comedy.
Hold that Ghost (1941) - The boys inherit a haunted house formerly owned by a mobster.
BONUS FEATURES:
Commentary with Film Historian Jeff Miller (Hold That Ghost)
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
DISC 3:
Keep `Em Flying (1941) - Bud and Lou enlist in the Army Air Corps and get caught up in a love triangle.
Ride `Em Cowboy (1942) - The duo head to the Lazy S ranch to hide after Lou accidentally proposes to an Indian girl.
BONUS FEATURES:
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
DISC 4:
Pardon My Sarong (1942) - Bud and Lou travel to the South Seas where Lou is mistaken for a legend.
Who Done It? (1942) - The boys are suspected of murder while being targeted by the actual killer.
BONUS FEATURES:
Commentary with Film Historian Frank Coniff (Who Done It?)
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer

DISC 5:
It Ain't Hay (1943) - Only film not previously on DVD
Hit the Ice (1943) - Bud and Lou hit the slopes at the Sun Valley Resort after getting mixed up with gangsters.
BONUS FEATURES:
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
DISC 6:
In Society (1944) - The boys find themselves in hot water after a plumbing job goes wrong at a high society bash.
Here Come the Co-Eds (1945) - Bud and Lou head to campus and attempt to save Bixby College from closing down.
BONUS FEATURES:
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
DISC 7:
The Naughty Nineties (1945) - Set aboard the River Queen showboat, Bud and Lou perform their legendary "Who's on First?" routine.
Little Giant (1946) - Lou plays a little man with big dreams and ends up selling vacuum cleaners.
BONUS FEATURES:
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
DISC 8:
The Time of Their Lives (1946) - Mistaken as a traitor, Lou's ghost is trapped in Danbury Mansion until his innocence is proven.
Buck Privates Come Home (1947) - Bud and Lou return to civilian life and get involved in midget car racing in the sequel to Buck Privates!
BONUS FEATURES:
Commentary with Film Historian Frank Thompson (The Time of Their Lives)
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
DISC 9:
The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap (1947) - Accused of murder, Lou is forced to take care of a widow and her children on a farm.
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) - Bud and Lou encounter Frankenstein's monster, Dracula and The Wolf Man.
BONUS FEATURES:
Commentary with Film Historian Gregory W. Mank (Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein)
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
DISC 10:
Mexican Hayride (1948) - Bud and Lou head south of the border after getting mixed up in an oil stock scheme.
Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer, Boris Karloff (1949) - The boys meet up with Boris Karloff after a guest is murdered at their hotel.
BONUS FEATURES:
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
DISC 11:
Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion (1950) - Bud and Lou head to Algeria on business and are tricked into joining the Foreign Legion.
Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man (1951) - As novice private detectives, Bud and Lou come face to face with The Invisible Man.
BONUS FEATURES:
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
DISC 12:
Comin' Round the Mountain (1951) - Lou discovers he is heir to a secret fortune, and the boys search for the hidden treasure.
Lost in Alaska (1952) - Bud and Lou save an ex-sheriff, then discover he is the target of every hitman in the Yukon.
BONUS FEATURES:
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
DISC 13:
Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953) - The boys accidentally take off for Mars and end up in New Orleans during Mardi Gras.
Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1953) - The duo are American cops in London to study police tactics. They wind up in jail and are bailed out by Dr. Jekyll. Jekyll has been murdering fellow doctors who laugh at his experiments. He has more murders in mind. At one point the doctor's serum gets injected into the pair.
BONUS FEATURES:
Commentary with Film Historians Tom Weaver and Richard Scrivani (Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde)
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
DISC 14:
Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops (1955) - Harry and Willie buy the Edison Movie Studio in the year 1912 from Joseph Gorman, a confidence man. They follow Gorman to Hollywood where, as stunt men, they find him directing movies as Sergei Trumanoff and stealing the studio payroll.
Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955) - In Egypt Peter and Freddie find the archaeologist Dr. Zoomer murdered before they can return to America. A medallion leads them to a crypt where a revived mummy provides the terror.
BONUS FEATURES:
Production Notes
Theatrical Trailer
BONUS DISC (DISC 15):
Abbott and Costello Meet Jerry Seinfeld
Bud Abbott and Lou Costello Meet the Monsters
The World of Abbott and Costello - A compilation of clips from 19 Abbott and Costello features.

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The Best of Abbott & Costello, Vol. 3 (Abbott & Costello Go to Mars / Abbott & Costello in the Foreign Legion / Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein / Abbott & Costello Meet the Invisible Man / Abbott & Costello Meet the Killer / Comin' Round the Mountain / Lost in Alaska / Mexican Hayride) (1950) Review

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(More customer reviews)This set is as solid a value as Volume One, perhaps more so. There are more weak films in this package than in the first volume but the strongest films included are among the pair's best. The transfers, once again are excellent. Because the material is newer the audio quality is better. This should be a must for all fans of Bud and Lou.
Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein ****
This is (without a doubt) one of their best features. Between the presence of the full line of Universal Studio's famous monsters and the duo in top form there's hardly a moment in this film that doesn't work. The film features one of their strongest takes on the "moving candle" routine. The interplay between the pair while they read the about the legends of the monsters is fabulous. Lou's scene in the Monster's lap is not to be missed.
Mexican Hayride ***
This is a bit off the beaten track for Bud and Lou. It's one of the few times that Bud played somebody who was actually bad as opposed to just being frustrated with and (prone to) taking advantage of the slow-witted character Lou played. It is funny though. The bullfight is not to be missed. There's also the logic of how the stock " has to be good" and the bit with the "Mother-lode". It's not their best but is far from their worst. What it lacks in consistency it often makes up for in warmth.
Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer **
This should have been far better. The plot is sound enough and the cast was strong. Boris Karloff wasn't used nearly as well as he could have been. He's central to the film's best (and funniest) scene but languishes as a secondary character afterward. There aren't enough of the regular exchanges that take place between Bud and Lou. The ones that are there are too short. Because of it the film relies mainly on slapstick to generate laughs, a device which, without the character development created by those exchanges, doesn't work.
Abbott and Costello in the Foreign Legion ****
There's a level of spontaneity here that makes this one of the crown jewels of the set. It's true that some of he special effects look badly dated but that's not a big problem. This film, unlike a few of their vehicles (A&C meet the Killer to name one) gives plenty of opportunity for the two to play off each other. Even better, a lot of it looks to be "off the cuff", as if they were given a framework and allowed to run. Whatever was the case they're in top form. Hilarious!
Abbott and Costello Meet the Invisible Man ****
This is probably second in stature only to Bud and Lou meeting all of the monsters. It deserves that ranking-it comes very close to being just as good. Lou's reaction to Tommy Nelson turning invisible is priceless. The big fight is a hoot. The special effects, for the time, are great. What's really impressive is how well the film maintains an atmosphere of mystery around outrageous comedy. Hats off to (Director) Charles Barton and the crew for that.
Comin' Round the Mountain ****
This one is a riot from the pair's first appearance to the end of the film when they finally get to the treasure. The sequence with the love potion is hysterical. That "clean country air" Lou got courtesy of the skunk in his suitcase was a howler. A lot of people writing about this movie complained about Dorothy Shay and her singing. I thought she was great. For the most her numbers ran with the flow of the story and helped keep the mood bright.
Lost in Alaska ***
Leave it to Lou to get into trouble with a piece of Whale meat. This film is uneven mostly because some of the gags are repeated too often. The boomerang episodes are one example; Lou's sinking for the third time is another. On the plus side there are times when the humour is right off the wall. Lou's attempt to save Tom Ewell is one. His encounter with the Alaskan Crabs is a riot. The incident with the Eskimo Medicine man is a replay of a scene with the Monster from the boys' meeting with Frankenstein but it's just as fresh as the first time. It's easy to imagine that the guy playing the witch doctor had just as much trouble getting through this scene as Glenn Strange did the first time around.
Abbott and Costello go to Mars **
The premise for this one is completely preposterous. A spaceship couldn't be built by a private company without government knowledge of it. The 1950's special effects don't stand up at all. The sequences they're used for are lame. It's far from being all bad though. Bud and Lou bring hilarity to the unbelievable. The Mardi Gras scenes and the interstellar lie detectors are pure fun. The sentiment the Venusian's Queen feels for Lou is something we all identify with. Weak outing or not the boys' charm is still there.

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