Movie Review: Dance with Me Henry (1956)
Synopsis: Amusement park owner Lou Henry is a foster father to two children, Duffer and Shelley but is in danger of losing his kids because welfare worker Miss Mayberry doesn't think he's a fit father. Complicating matters is Lou's friend, Bud Flick, a gambler who is $10,000 in debt to a local mob boss, Big Frank, who either wants Bud to pay him in full or go to work for him laundering money through the amusement park. Seeking to help his friend and gain some leverage in his child custody battle, Lou goes to the district attorney. However, when the DA is murdered at the amusement park, Lou becomes the primary suspect.
Who's in it? The movie stars Lou Costello, Bud Abbott, Gigi Perreau, Rusty Hamer and Mary Wickes.
Review: Even though I consider myself a bit Abbott & Costello fan, I had not taken the time to watch their final film together, Dance with me Henry. I finally decided to change that this morning and after seeing it, I think their final film might have been one of their best.
The thing that really surprised me about this movie was, even though it stars the famous comedy team, it could also be considered a dramatic film as well. Lou Henry (Costello) seems like a likeable, caring father who is being wrongfully targeted by Miss Mayberry (Wickes) and is even willing to take on a mob boss (Ted de Corsia) to ensure he keeps custody. Later, he is wrongfully accused of murder and even tortured a bit by the police. It was everything you would expect to see in a film noir movie, only with comedy mixed in.
As for the comedy itself, it too was surprisingly unique compared to other Abbott & Costello films. It wasn't anything that dominated the screen time and served to lighten the mood without necessarily being the focus. In other words, unlike many of their other later films, they weren't rehashing old routines simply for nostalgia. My favorite scene was when Lou was having a conversation with Flick (Abbott) while Flick was tied up. I'm not sure why, but that one made me laugh quite a bit.
While I'm not usually a fan of "cute kid" moments in movies like this one, I did actually the part at the end with all the neighborhood kids coming to Lou and Flick's rescue. It was something that made sense in the context of the movie (albeit not as much sense as simply getting the police) and just worked. Of course, if the movie were made today, I'm sure someone would complain about all the violence they were committing.
If I had any real complaints about this movie, it would be the lack of a backstory involving Miss Mayberry. It was very unclear why she had it out for Lou, especially considering he had the endorsement of the local priest (Frank Wilcox), was a business owner and had a "dirty" house that was a lot cleaner than mine is. Was it simply because he was a man, or did she have other reasons?
Final Opinion: The movie exceeded my expectations and was a great last hurrah for my favorite comedy team. I'm glad I finally took the time to watch it.
My Grade: A
_______________________________________________________________
Here are some reviews of other Abbott & Costello movies:
Movie Review: Abbott and Costello Go to Mars (1953)
Comments
Post a Comment