Deux nigauds soldats

This movie contains the famous bantering and mind games that Bud Abbott always pulled on Lou Costello...this adds to the entertainment value and it is great to watch a movie that is just plain entertaining! This movie also contains the Andrews Sisters, who are so great! I love singing in a movie and the use of it is very well done. This movie also gives you a pretty accurate account of "going into the service" for that time era.The military point of view of "Buck Privates" shows the innocence of so many of our young men and women that enter the service of Uncle Sam.It is very interesting to see how things have changed in the last 60 years,as well,not only in T.V and movies, but in the service, too. Abbott and Costello bring humanity to the stiffness of military regimen in "Buck Privates". The cast that was chosen shows a great chemistry with the comedians. A "must- see" for movie buffs that appreciate the old black & white movies.

While this was the Abbott & Costello's second feature, and only Abbott's second film (Costello had appeared in several films as a stuntman and background extra in the late '20s), you sure couldn't tell, as the pair handled themselves like veterans. They are so assured and confident here that they appear to be making up their routines as they go along, although in reality they had polished them to near perfection during their years in vaudeville, burlesque and on the Broadway stage. This film is a terrific example of the flawless timing that not only convulsed their audiences but astounded other comedians (Steve Allen said that he had never seen anyone who could match them). Some criticism has been directed at the duo for the insertion of superfluous and usually second-rate musical numbers in most of their films--a decision made by Universal Pictures which the team had no control over--and while that may be true for several of their subsequent efforts, it isn't here. The numbers are well staged and the songs, especially "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy," are infectious. The "plot" about a spoiled rich boy and his servant who enlist in the army is lame, but it doesn't really matter. This is a showcase for Bud and Lou's talents, and they don't disappoint. Director Arthur Lubin said that he pioneered the use of two cameras to cover scenes mainly because Costello was so off-the-wall and bounced all over the place so much that one camera simply couldn't contain him, so he ordered up another camera and had it trained exclusively on Costello. The boys do their best routines here--The Crap Game, The Ten/Forty routine, the Drill routine--and they are a joy to watch. Anyone who thinks that Bud Abbott wasn't the best straight man in the business should watch the Drill routine and check out how he consistently and skillfully reins in Costello whenever Lou's manic energy takes him too far outside the skit while still allowing him the freedom to employ the ad-libs and improvisations he was famous for. Abbott never really got as much credit as he deserved, and this scene alone shows why he deserved it.

Abbott & Costello did make some films that were beneath their talents, and some that were just plain unfunny, but this is definitely not one of them. This is a tremendously enjoyable film. Highly recommended.

This is one of my favourite outings from Bud & Lou, the start of their phenomenally successful career in the service comedies and one of a series of smile-jerkers from them and Universal. This was also the one that made it for them in the movies and turned them into America's no. 1 box office stars during the War.

They're a couple of street tie-selling con artists who unwittingly join the Army (along with playboy Lee Bowman) in trying to escape the clutches of the Law in the shape of cherubic Nat Pendleton. It's not so easy to escape ones duty however, and so follows a series of unconnected inconsequential adventures learning to be soldiers or lovers all with that special lighthearted wartime Universal treatment. A&C went through their routines with impeccable timing and a professionalism that belied all the slapstick. Favourite bits: playing unintelligible (to me) clubhouse dice; Abbott inoculated and Costello's reaction; the mathematics of borrowing USD 50; the historic performance of Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy by the Andrews Sisters and then the sudden end to the boogie-woogie boxing match; the unusual deadpan arrangement to Jane Frazee's I Wish You Were Here. The Voice Of Hellzapoppin returns! No kidding but what chance did the Japanese and Germans really have - sorry for identifying who the enemies were in these socially inclusive times, because they weren't in the film - to pit themselves against all this? The American War Machine was awakening, with the might of Hollywood behind it and A&C playing their part with their entertaining flagwavers the same as George Formby did on a smaller scale for the British War effort.

The box office success - and critical praise too - of this took Universal by surprise and they didn't make nearly as much money as they could have, a mistake they never made again with A&C. Recommended, an antidote to now and to me always a joy to behold and hear.

My uncle who later served in France during the second World War was one of those whose lives was interrupted by the peace time draft before the USA entered World War II. It was with some touch of irony that he will mention to this day he never saw any camp hostesses like Jane Frazee or the Andrews Sisters.

But Buck Privates is an Abbott and Costello film, not a serious drama about the first peace time draft in American history. Bud and Lou got in the short run of this film several of their classic routines.

When Universal signed Abbott and Costello on the strength of their running appearances on Kate Smith's Radio Show, they were expecting to do a series of B programmers with them. They never dreamed that these two burlesque comedians would become the national icons that they did.

Shot on a shoestring the film made an exponential profit for Universal studios. Without the usual Hollywood ballyhoo that would have accompanied a major Hollywood production, Buck Privates returned many times the cost of production.

And through the serendipitous casting angel, Buck Privates also included the Andrews Sisters who got to sing three of their standards in this, I'll Be With You In Apple Blossom Time, You're A Lucky Fellow, Mr. Smith, and the immortal Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy from Company B.

There are in fact so many musical numbers and so many A&C routines in this short film, there's barely room enough for a plot which involves a playboy Lee Bowman, his former chauffeur AlanCurtis, and Jane Frazee the camp hostess they both want to get better acquainted with. But because of that the film doesn't drag for a second.

Buck Privates set the standard for the films that Bud and Lou did for Universal. No doubt about it, their best work was in the early Forties and Buck Privates is the best of all.

Legendary comedy duo Bud Abbott and Lou Costello play sidewalk salesmen / con artists Slicker Smith and Herbie Brown, who get into trouble with the law. To avoid being arrested, they cut into a line which they think is for a movie showing. Surprise, surprise...they're now on their way to enlist in the Army! Resigning themselves to their fate, they get another surprise when the cop who tried to arrest them, Michael Collins (Nat Pendleton), turns out to be their drill sergeant!

Bud & Lou earned this initial feature film vehicle for Universal due to their success on radio, and they really make the most of it. These guys really were naturals at their craft, and perform their material breathlessly. In order to get things to feature length, some time is devoted to musical numbers - especially by The Andrews Sisters - and a major subplot about spoiled rich boy Randolph Parker III (Lee Bowman) butting heads with his former employee Bob Martin (Alan Curtis) while they both aggressively pursue camp hostess Judy Gray (the very lovely Jane Frazee). But the movie is never more entertaining than when Bud & Lou are on screen. Some real hilarity comes from the way that they frustrate Collins with their antics; there are inspired moments of silliness. Bud is also a joy as he keeps devising ways to get Lou into trouble - note his ingenious method of helping Lou shed one pound so Lou can meet the maximum weight requirement.

Lively and engaging, "Buck Privates" is directed with brio by Arthur Lubin, features some catchy music ("Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy"), and wraps up in a traditional "misfits make good" manner. The supporting cast also includes folks like Samuel S. Hinds, Harry Strang, Nella Walker, Carleton Young, Tom Tyler, and Shemp Howard. It's good fun, and paved the way for further Bud & Lou big screen adventures.

Seven out of 10.