Ghost Chasers

I've seen a few of these "Bowery Boys" romps by now, and they all seem to follow a similar pattern: no matter what the plot or the (supposed) setting, they ultimately end up in a single set (after all, they were made by the infamously cost-conscious Monogram studios), where the boys chase, and are chased around, by crooks. "Ghost Chasers" is no different, except that there is a rare - if brief - dramatic component, with a mother trying to get in contact with her dead son. The film is padded and overlong (even at 69 minutes), though there is the occasional funny line, and "Edgar", the one real, friendly ghost, is amusingly played by Lloyd Corrigan. ** out of 4.

"Ghost Chasers" surprised me, as it's a very enjoyable Bowery Boys film...something I just didn't expect...especially when I learned that the picture was shot in just 6 days!!!

The story involves some phony psychics who are bilking customers out of their money with promises they can talk to their dead loved ones. Oddly, the only one who doesn't fall for any of this is Slip...and he's an idiot! Well, the story gets very strange when Edgar, a 300 year-old ghost shows up because he, too, is mad about the phony psychics and offers to help Sach uncover the gang's dirty tricks. However, no one else seems to be able to see Edgar and you can only assume he appears to REALLY dumb folks!

Overall, this is actually a rather cute installment of the series. Edgar is a very likable character and I loved when he stopped to talk to the audience early in the story! In addition, the film offers some nice twists and kept my interest. Is it brilliant entertainment? Certainly not but it is a very watchable B-movie--and better than you'd expect.

Ghost Chasers (1951)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Funny entry in the never-ending series has Slip (Leo Gorcey), Sach (Huntz Hall) and the other boys trying to bring down a medium who is charging people large sums of money for her fake spiritual advice. These victims include Slip's neighbor who recently lost her son in the war and is now trying to get in contact with him. At just 68-minutes this movie has a few too many slow spots but overall this is one of the better entries in the series and it's certainly one of their best when it comes to mixing comedy and the darker horror elements. I think some of the funniest moments happen early on when a few of the boys are in the back of Louie's shop doing a fake séance and Louie himself walks in and gets scared out of his wits. Bernard Gorcey is again back as Louie and he has some really funny moments as the screenplay makes the right decision to include him in on some of the action and the viewer gets rewarded with some nice laughs. Lloyd Corrigan gets a rather large part of a ghost who helps Sach get out of the various bad situations he gets himself into. I thought some of the stuff between the Hall and Corrigan was funny but after a while it started to get somewhat boring. With that said, Hall certainly steals the show with his idiot character constantly doing one dumb thing after another. He gets some pretty big laughs especially during the scenes where he gets scared for the various things going on. The scene where he first sees the ghost is priceless and he certainly helps keep things moving. Leo is in fine form as well, although he's part isn't nearly as big as usual. Lela Bliss isn't too bad as the medium but it's Bernard Gorcey that really nails everything home. Fans of the series will certainly want to check this one out but I think this one is good enough to the point where even non-fans will probably find themselves laughing.

GHOST CHASERS turns out to be a well-paced comedy, and a little better than usual. It involves Slip, Sach and the gang trying to expose a phony clairvoyant (or"clairvoyage," to quote the ever-prolific Leo Gorcey). Good fun all around, with some humorous assistance added courtesy of Bernard Gorcey (Leo's dad) as Louie Dumbrowski.

This is my favorite period for The Bowery Boys films (1946-1956), which was the point where they became all-out comedies. Unfortunately, as of this writing, there are no DVDs planned. Hopefully, Warner Bros. will put them out very soon.

**1/2 / ****

When Leo Gorcey's mother's neighbor Argentina Brunetti starts spending money and borrowing from people to talk to her dead son, it becomes time for the Bowery Boys to spring into action. In their own inimitable style Gorcey, Huntz Hall and the gang track down a whole gang of these fake mediums led by Lela Bliss.

In their quest they're aided and abetted by a real ghost, a gentlemen in a Quaker suit played by Lloyd Corrigan. Corrigan also communicates to the world through a medium and the one he's chosen is Huntz Hall. He finds him an amiable fellow and one with 'a nose like Cyrano'.

Corrigan is pretty useful when the guys invade the haunted house where the fake mediums do their thing. Of course he creates some real tricks, my favorite being the creation and disappearance of doors when needed.

All in all a good Bowery Boys film, the best scenes are those that involve Lloyd Corrigan and Huntz Hall.