Mexican Hayride

An Abbott and Costello movie that comes off as something of a misfire, especially following right after the great ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN, often considered one of their very best. Based on a play, this story is sort of awkward in the realm of Bud and Lou misadventures. We have Costello as a fugitive who's just won a contest where he danced a samba for 68 hours, and is now pursued by the police to Mexico. Of course, it's not poor Lou's fault; he was swindled by the character played by Abbott, and Costello needs to catch up with Bud and get his money back, and clear himself.

Naturally we get some gags here and there, but they're not among the comedy duo's finest. One running joke that really gets boring after the first couple of tries is Lou uncontrollably conditioned to dance the samba from force of habit, whenever hearing the music played. Another routine has Lou confronting a wild bull in an arena (what else would you expect in a Mexican comedy?). There are a couple of humorous scenes with assistance from guest stars like Fritz Feld (who attempts to teach Costello how to speak properly), and my personal favorite involving Sidney Fields as a fast-talking interviewer who won't let Lou get a word in edge-wise (Fields would later go on to play A&C's landlord on their TV show). Lou's brother Pat Costello has a steady role here as one of the cops constantly trailing Lou. He'd made brief appearances in other movies and often as Lou's stunt double, but Pat is pretty much a wooden Indian throughout. **1/2 out of ****

Abbott & Costello play two con-men who sell phony stock to gullible would-be buyers, who are now pursued by the police. They then flee to Mexico, where they travel incognito, and meet up with an old friend who is now a bullfighter, which of course creates lots of opportunities for Lou to get chased around by an angry bull, and who also has recently been in some kind of a dance marathon, so now whenever he hears a Samba, can't help himself dancing uncontrollably, no matter the situation. Entirely forgettable(and forgotten) comedy is competently made but utterly unfunny, and the team play rather unlikable characters this time, despite their ineptitude.

Lesser Abbott & Costello film sees the boys hiding out in Mexico because Lou is wanted for being a forger and swindler. Except Lou is just an innocent dupe of Bud, who's the real crook. Part of the problem with this one lies right there in that description. Abbott & Costello aren't friends in this and Bud is kind of a tool. So you have Lou performing several routines with other characters instead of Bud. There are lots of pretty senoritas hanging around, so that's a plus. Lovely Virginia Grey is another plus. Some of the gags are pretty corny. A repeated gag involving Lou and samba music is particularly unfunny. It's not a bad movie and there are some laughs but something just doesn't click.

Fresh from the hit "Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein," the comedy duo set out on "Mexican Hayride." Costello plays Joe Bascom, who is on the trail of Harry Lambert (Bud Abbott). Lambert coerced Bascom into swindling friends in Iowa, and Bascom has followed him into Mexico to force him to pay up. Through a series of misunderstandings, Bascom becomes "Amigo Americano" and is honored and feted. Lambert sees this as an opportunity for further land swindles in Mexico, and again tries to use Bascom as an unwitting pawn.

If this description sounds like an unusual plot for an Abbott and Costello film, you would be right. The story is based upon a Broadway show. A&C stalwart screenwriter John Grant does his best to interject A&C humor and routines into the existing Broadway storyline. Two of his best examples are the scene where Abbott rips off Costello's clothes in an effort to hide his initials, which are sewed on every piece of clothing; and the scene with Fritz Feld as an diction specialist.

"Mexican Hayride" is considered one of the weakest films in the A&C series, and I agree. The main problem lies in trying to interject A&C into a Broadway storyline built for other actors. A&C give it their best as usual, but the storyline simply isn't for them. One expects Abbott to take advantage of Costello here and there; it was seen in many of their best comedies. But for Abbott to swindle many people besides Costello simply isn't funny. There are also many gaps in the humor that result in dull moments. I really tried to like "Mexican Hayride," but the storyline simply didn't fit A&C snugly, and the humor is not consistent enough to generate many laughs. 3 out of 10.

MEXICAN HAYRIDE (1948) **1/2 Bud Abbott, Lou Costello.

A&C comedy south of the border with con man Bud bilking samba-loving Lou who unwittingly foils some phony silver stock plans. Highlight: the bull fight.