El rey del pánico

Mystery, horror, music, slapstick, suspense - you name it - is all here. And with the all-time greatest horror actors - Lugosi, Karloff and Lorre. All we needed was Chaney with the Larry Talbot character and it would've put the icing on the cake. Who cares about the musical numbers and the singing? It all tied in to the storyline. Kay Kyser is at his best, I think, as the bumbling bandleader who gets all tangled up in this mess of a mystery. With the comic help of Ish Kabibble (who does look like a cross between Jim Carrey and Moe Howard, more the latter) this film manages to deliver chills, suspense and many, many laughs. Peter Lorre alone could've carried the suspense factor but with the other masters added it proved to be a classic.

It's wonderful how the storyline was meshed into that of a musical. That was brilliant writing. The story centers around the typical 40s mystery/horror genre - old mansion, creepy happenings, things flying around in the dark, people stuck because the bridge washed out, and music to shake in your boots by. I can certainly recommend that you check this out if you're a fan of slapstick because the horror line will definitely keep you watching. Great stuff!

In a previous post I expressed my opinion (heavily influenced by the Maltin guide) that this movie sucked. Subsequent viewings have radically changed my mind. This is a NICE little picture!

It's one of those so-corny-it's-hep 1940s comedy-horror farces that came into fashion with "The Ghost Breakers" and reached its full flowering with "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein." Here, Kay Kyser and his Kollege provide rather more palatable comedy relief than Bob Hope or Bud and Lou, as well as some first-class musical interludes. Horror fans may regret that Lugosi and Karloff are not given quite as much screen time as Ish Kabibble, but will be pleased to find they are both handled with warmth, delicacy and a certain gravitas befitting such grand gentlemen of the cinema. As for the top-billed "bad humor man" Peter Lorre, in no other film has his exotic decadence been showcased so deliciously.

Classic horror film fans will salivate at the thought of seeing Bela Lugosi, Boris Karloff, and Peter Lorre all at their devilish best in any film even if it's not a horror film per se. But the star of this film was noted band-leader and radio personality Kay Kyser who back in 1940 was enormously popular for his music and his Spike Jones lite type of orchestra comedy.

You'll Find Out features Kay and the boys hired to play at a party that their manager Dennis O'Keefe has arranged for his girlfriend Helen Parrish. She's an heiress whose money is held in trust by her aunt Alma Kruger. But Kruger is in the thrall of fake swami Bela Lugosi who's got a séance also planned for the evening. Also in attendance in addition to Parrish's girlfriends are Boris Karloff as the family attorney and Peter Lorre as a psychologist hired to expose Lugosi as a fake.

If you liked as I do Abbott&Costello Meet Frankenstein than you should like this film as well. In fact Bud and Lou also did Hold That Ghost which is even more similar to this film. But it's a double treat if you like the music of the era as I did.

Kay Kyser's orchestra also featured singers Harry Babbitt and Ginny Simms who introduce I'd Know You Anywhere which gained for You'll Find Out an Oscar nomination. Kyser himself was good as both comedian and musician.

Even though it's a comedy and not a Gothic horror film one should never pass up seeing Karloff, Lugosi, and Lorre in the same film.

I've loved this movie since childhood! Even if you're not sure who the heck this "Kay Kayser" is, you will love the performances of Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, and Peter Lorre (who steals every scene he's in). The musical numbers are catchy enough to insinuate themselves into your head when you least expect it, and the one-liners come fast and thick. Ish Kabbible just slays me every time I watch it; he does great deadpan with those Eddie Cantor eyes.... And the dog Prince provides yet more comedic antics!

All in all, this is a great movie that the whole family can enjoy. From quick repartee to visual slapstick, it delivers from beginning to end. A refreshing break from the heavy-handed comedy too often found today.

I LOVE THIS MOVIE!!!

This may seem like slight entertainment, and of course it is. But I am recommending it as must viewing until I find an earlier example with this structure.

The setup is simple enough: it is explicitly a self-aware movie. In fact Kyser comes on at the end and assures the audience that Lorre, Karloff and Lugosi aren't really murders. Within that are several performances of the band, performances I assume are similar to what they did in non-movie-land. Two performances.

Added to that in a clever way is a third. For this you need some background.

From about 1880 to 1910, many North Americans were spiritualists. Yes, about as many as today call themselves evangelists, the movement that displaced spiritualism. The rapidity of the change is breathtaking in a sociological context and interesting in itself. By the thirties, the "next" generation was making serious fun of spiritualism, usually in terms of uncovering a fake séance.

I've found several earlier fake séance movies, but they are all in the context of detective movies. That's another story all together. Superficially, they look like the fakery in this movie: a secret room, microphones, special effects, gullible participants holding hands.

But this is the first I think that references it as a performance. A lot flows from that tipping point on both sides: movies and the religious show.

Three layered performances, here.

Ted's Evaluation -- 3 of 3: Worth watching.