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The Best of Abbott & Costello - Volume 1 (8 Film Collection)

The Best of Abbott & Costello - Volume 1 (8 Film Collection)

List Price: $19.98
Your Price: $14.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Abbott & Costello Movie Collection Vol. 1
Review: This is great if you are a fan of Abbott & Costello. I figuered with 2 discs for 8 of their movies it would be poor quality. I was very surprised to see the excellent quality of the movies on these discs. Very Very Good. Worth every penny.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: 8 Movies at This Price!!!!!!!!
Review: I have always been the fan of Abbott and Costello Movies, and this DVD set dos'nt disapoint. The 8 movies are Abbott and Costello's first, from 1940 - 1942. As these movies are made during wartime, theres a little bit of propagander, and a lot of the Andrew Sisters, singing their songs. The humour however is great, just as funny today as it was 50+ years ago, even my brother who has never watched a black and white movie in his life, laughed through them. Only thing that I'm not to keen on about most Abbott and Costello movies,is that it seems like every time a door opens, or they are just sitting around, they all break into song and dance, specially if the Andrew Sisters are in the Movie. If your a Abbott and Costello fan, this DVD set is a must!!! and at this price why wait?

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A First-Rate Product and Amazon is a Great Distributer
Review: I am a huge Abbott and Costello fan who has been waiting for years for these movies (and others) to come out on DVD. I did have problems with the DVD freezing (in the middle of 'Hold That Ghost'); however, I went online did the return (took me less than 5 minutes) on Amazon's web site, and they sent me a perfectly working DVD in 2 days.

The movies are very good quality considering their age and subtitles are a great feature. It is a great deal and Amazon's service is awesome.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: BEHOLD...THE GENIUS OF BUD AND LOU
Review: For everyone who is satisfied with the comedy that they see today, you havn't seen anything yet! Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were, and are still the undisputed champions of hillarity. There comedy bits they put in there movies are nothing short of brilliant. The best part of their comedy, is that you can watch it with the whole family, from the newborn to grandma, everyone in the family will love these great classics. If you watch Def Comedy Jam, Everybody Loves Raymond, or Friends, then you've seen the Rest, now watch the best!!!
This collection contains 8 films:

ONE NIGHT IN THE TROPICS,
Their first film, they get caught up in a fony "Love Insurance" scam.

BUCK PRIVATES,
The boys join the army to avoid getting arrested, but their lives get hard when the cop they wanted to avoid becomes their drill sergent.

IN THE NAVY,
A famous hollywood actor joins the navy to get away from all the fame, and becomes friends with the boys in the navy training camp.

HOLD THAT GHOST,
The boys inherit a haunted house, formerly owned by a gangster.

KEEP 'EM FLYING,
The boys join the army air corps, and become mechanics.

RIDE 'EM COWBOY,
The boys must hide out when Lou accedently proposses to an Indian girl.

PARDON MY SARONG,
The boys head to the South Seas, where Lou is mistaken for a native god.

WHO DONE IT?
A Murder happens during a radio program, and the boys to solve the murder themselves, thus making them the prime suspects by the real cops.

Eight Abbott and Costello films for (this price), that is an offer you can't refuse.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Buy it quickly before they take it away!!/PRE-REVIEWING
Review: When I first saw this DVD at $21, I thought to myself that there must be a mistake. Eight Great Movies for this price? They must be "cheesy" transfers or something must be wrong. What a surprise-Great Video and Good to Great Audio. What I like about these old A&C movies is that, not only do you get to see other great actors and actresses, but there is almost always, Great Music. The Andrews Sisters appear in a lot ot these movies, and they add a Great sidebar to your viewing pleasure. A&C are not always in the limelight, and this is good. If you like Abbott & Costello, Great Comedy, the A&C routines like "Who's on First", watching out for your favorite old-time actors and actresses, or ANY or ALL of the above, then this DVD is for you. Get it before they sell out and sell the rights to some "cheeseball" outfit that releases a sub-standard version with infomercials that you can't by-pass.
LOOKS LIKE REVIEWS HAVE HIT A NEW LOW. I THINK IT'S WRONG FOR PEOPLE TO REVIEW A MOVIE THEY HAVEN'T SEEN, SINCE THE DVD QUALITY IS IMPORTANT TO KNOW, BUT TO GIVE A "1 STAR" BECAUSE SOMEBODY ELSE REVIEWED IT WITHOUT SEEING IT, IS A NEW LOW. SOMETIMES WHEN AMAZON LISTS A PRE-ORDER, THEY DON'T TELL YOU WHAT'S ON THE DVD (OR VHS, OR CD), SO I THINK IT'S GREAT THAT SOMEBODY GOES THROUGH THE TROUBLE OF FINDING OUT AND LISTING IT AS A "PRE-REVIEW". THEN, TO DO SO, YOU MUST GIVE A STAR-RATING OR AMAZON DOESN'T LET YOU LIST YOUR REVIEW, IN THIS CASE, THE TITLES ON THE ITEM. SO, WHY NOT "5 STARS". HOWEVER, LET'S AGREE THAT, WHEN ONE, AND ONLY ONE REVIEWER DOES SO, NO ONE ELSE SHOULD GIVE A RATING UNLESS THEY HAVE SEEN THE MOVIE OR PLAYED THE CD. LET'S GET TOGETHER ON THIS, FOLKS !!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A penny a laugh!
Review: MCA/Universal is giving comedy fans a tremendous comedy package of eight early Abbott & Costello films for less than 25 bucks -- I work that out to about a penny a laugh, a great bargain in this day and age!

It's probable that today's younger crowd doesn't appreciate how enormously popular Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were in their day, simply the kings of comedy on radio, the stage, movies, and TV. They were the #1 box office draw in America at one time, and the highest paid entertainers in show business. The best of their films rank with near the top of any list of movies for sheer belly-laugh quotient!

ONE NIGHT IN THE TROPICS (1940) is the team's film debut, a slight romance with Allan Jones, Bob Cummings, and Nancy Kelly. A&C provide supporting comedy relief and do some of their best bits, including an abbreviated version of "Who's on First?"

BUCK PRIVATES (1941) is considered by fans to be their "real" film debut, and it's arguably the funniest movie they ever made. Caught in the draft, A&C were in top form. Lotsa laughs and good music, too, including the Andrews Sisters doing "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy". The film made a mint for Universal.

IN THE NAVY (1941) is a pretty good follow-up. Dick Powell is the romantic lead, and the Andrews Sisters and Shemp Howard are back from the previous film. The ending had to be rewritten to suit the U.S. Navy!

HOLD THAT GHOST (1941) is another gem; lots of classic haunted house routines, including the famous "moving candle" gag. The Andrews Sisters are back, joining Richard Carlson and Evelyn Ankers.

KEEP 'EM FLYING (1941) was the team's fifth film in only a year. After stints in the Army and the Navy, it was sure that the Air Corps would be next. Martha Raye plays twin waitresses in a very funny scene.

RIDE 'EM COWBOY (1942) puts the boys out west, and features cowboy star Johnny Mack Brown (and occasional cowboy star Dick Foran). Ella Fitzgerald is in this one.

PARDON MY SARONG (1942) could well have been called THE ROAD TO MONTEZUMA, as it seems to have been influenced by the Hope/Crosby pictures. This time, music is provided by the Ink Spots.

WHO DONE IT? (1942) is another comedy/mystery, with a patriotic twist, as the boys uncover a Nazi plot to take over a radio station.

Eight films, including some of their best. Universal has slapped a "Vol. 1" on the box, so hopefully future volumes are on the horizon. And even more hopefully, Universal will follow through with some W.C. Fields pictures!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: THE RATING APPLIES TO THE BARGAIN
Review: These are the first eight movies from Universal.Opinions will vary for each one.But What a great way to start an Abbott & Costello movie collection! Disc1 worked fine. Disc 2 experienced some freezing.I forgot to check for smudges before inserting disc.A SPRITZ OF WINDEX AND A THOROUGH WIPING WITH A CLEAN WHITE T-STIRT WILL REMEDY THAT.Be sure to leave no lint.Now my set plays nicely.Trailers and production notes for each movie plus easy access menus.YOU CAN"T GO WRONG WITH THIS SET.Minor caution advisory:DVDs get played from the bottom so side 1 which is literal for this set gets placed face down instead of face up.At least that's how MY set works.None of my other dvds work this way,but I can live with that.I HOPE THIS INFORMATION WAS HELPFUL TO YOU.I have fond memories of when they ran Abbott and Costello movies on WPIX CHANNEL 11 every Sunday morning at 11:30. I'm sure many of you feel the same way that grew up in the TRI-STATE area.OH! one more good thing before I forget.Subtitles are displayed below person that is speaking instead of just bottom center.Maybe the other studios that A&C worked for will put together a set for release to fill in the missing gaps.But just remember their best work was at Universal Studios.WHY ARE YOU STILL READING THIS? YOU SHOULD HAVE GONE OUT AND BOUGHT YOUR OWN SET BY NOW! Go go go!Get get get!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: How can you pass this up?
Review: I must say, Universal has been settting the standard recently for making their library available on DVD in the most affordable way possible. Like the Monster Legacy Collection, this is a reasonably-priced set of 8 movies for the same price you could typically pay for only a single movie.

The set features 8 of Abbott & Costello's best early movies on 2 double-sided discs. At first that seems like a tight fit, but after viewing them, i'm amazed at the sound and picture quality. Compare the movies with the trailers to see for yourself what an improvement and top-quality job has been done to present these movies in near-immaculate condition for the digital format.

The features are also great, although there could have been some improvement. As mentioned, the quality of the trailers is lacking; there didn't seem to be any restoration on that part, but that's not too big of a deal (and typical for older movies, just like on the Monster Collection) as long as the feature movies are decent for viewing. Universal usually does such an excellent job with audio commentaries on their classics (also see the Monster Collection, and Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein for an excellent commentary), but all that is provided for each of these movies are a few pages of interesting production notes (did you know production on "Hold That Ghost" was interrupted to make "In the Navy", a follow-up military movie to "Buck Privates"? i didn't). I'm not complaining by any means, because what has been provided is still excellent material.

All in all, there is no acceptable reason that this set, and the following sets, should not be in your collection.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent!!!
Review: We all know Abbott & Costello, so no more praise needs to be done for their movies. Well... sure it does!!! It's just like you remember going to the movies for a nickel ;-) or on Sunday mornings with your parents/grandparents. The movies have not changed one bit, and they are still the exact same as I remember them. OUTSTANDING job by the studios to release these. (Now I wish they would release Charlie Chan. That is another story.)

The only downside to this release, is the DVD themselves. There are two DVDs, with two movies on EACH side. I don't like this. With the "normal" DVD, the top can get scratched, and it will still play. (The laser uses the bottom.) With this style, scratch the top, and you lost two movies. They should have put them on four discs instead of two.

Also, I have heard that people have had problems playing these DVDs. I did as well; however, I have to admit, I don't have a top or mid line player. Mine is a basement bargain, and it may be the cause, though, it does play other movies with out problems. Sometimes when I put it in, it reads the movie and other times it does not. Just have to fiddle with it to get it going. And on some, I noticed the color fades in and out. That could be the DVD of the movie itself.

Other than that, I am quite thrilled with this release, and I do hope they release all of the Abbott & Costello films, clips, etc soon. And while the studios are reading this: Release Charlie Chan and all Three Stooges too!!!!! :-)

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Abbott & Costello Movie Collection Vol. 1
Review: This is great if you are a fan of Abbott & Costello. I figuered with 2 discs for 8 of their movies it would be poor quality. I was very surprised to see the excellent quality of the movies on these discs. Very Very Good. Worth every penny.


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