Ghosts on the Loose

This isn't the best East Side Kids Movie ever made, but it is a decent film. If your gonna buy this movie for Bela Lugosi being in it, then don't. It gives him a minor role as being in charge of a Nazi spy group. If your looking for a film that has The East Side Kids in it and Lugosi then buy Spooks Run Wild.

The movie spends about 30 min on a wedding for Glimpy's sister, then it goes to the little bit of haunting in the movie. Still the movie is good.

If your looking for a creepy Lugosi film don't buy this. But if your looking for a film to add to your East Side Kids collection then check this one out.

The Director, William Beaudine, also known as, "One-Take Beaudine, believed in filming one take of one scene. Get it right the first time. Bela Lugosi, as a gag, said a bad four-letter word in the first take of one specific scene. Bela Lugosi standing still as a portrait, while sneeezing expelled the expletive. Director William Beaudine kept the take in the film. This may be the first time a very bad expletive word had ever been heard and used in a film, with the exception of Gone With The Wind (1939), in which Clark Gable said in his memorable last line, used the word "damn", Bela Lugosi used the word "shit" uncalled for and not in the script. Ghosts On The Loose was released in 1943.

The boys attend their friend's wedding. They mistakenly renovate the wrong house. It's next door which is supposedly haunted. They find a Nazi printing press.

The two houses confused me as much as it confused the boys. The story should be simpler. Quite frankly, the boys try to hide the Nazi stuff when they thought it was their friend. I don't know if that's a good message during the war years. I understand the back and forth is supposed to be funny but there is something fundamentally unfunny about this one.

It is wrong to critize this film, it was a funny and enjoyable movie in the 1940's and it will remain a classic film in our libraries for many generations to come.

Bela Lugosi played a straight role as a Nazi, which he was proud of performing instead of his Horror roles. Ava Garnder received her first film credit and looked slim and trim and gave a great performance, the East Side Kids gave this film class all by itself, they are a talent to be long remembered.

I've tried to like this film, but at best it's merely tolerable. I thought that there would be more to it. There are basically two parts to the film: 1)Ava Gardner and Rick Vallin's wedding 2) At the two country houses. The first half of "Ghosts on the Loose" is a total gyp. It's got nothing to do with ghosts (neither does the second half) and is frankly quite boring. The only pluses in this half of the film are the moments with young Ava and her fiancé/husband Rick. The second half of the film is a let-down. The East Side Kids arrive in the country and spend many dull moments redecorating what they think is the honeymoon couples house. They move furniture around while the most awful, dreary canned background music is played (the same awful music that was used in "The Ape Man" and other Monogram films). By the time a printing press starts getting moved around from house to house this film almost becomes a sleep inducing bore. What a shame! If Monogram had used better background music I would have added a star to my rating. Lugosi has very little time on screen here. Like others have said "Spooks Run Wild" is the better of the two Lugosi-East Side Kids outings...much better!