George Taylor Rather than make the monsters jokes in this, they are their usual terrifying selves, with the jokes going around them. The last of the great Universal films featuring any of their classic monsters - there wouldn't be as good a horror comedy until Shaun of the Dead.

calvinnme Aside from the fact that the comedy team itself is in peak form here, the actors playing the monsters are allowed to play it straight and are all seen to great effect. Glenn Strange as the Monster has more screen time in this film than the Houses of Frankenstein and Dracula combined and his portrayal has to be the most brutish and inhuman of those performed by the various actors who took on the role at Universal. The fact that most viewers are not familiar with Strange's face, too, adds to his authenticity in the role, I feel.With Karloff, Chaney, and Lugosi you can see their well known faces though the Frankenstein makeup, and are conscious of the fact that they are playing the part. But seeing the unknown Strange's face in the same role twigs no recognition for the viewer, helping to accept him in the role even more so. At least, that's how I see it.Lugosi is at the last great peak of his career in this film in what was only his second time to play Count Dracula. (He was Dracula in Return of the Vampire in all but name, of course). Heavily made up because of his aging features, that white pasty face only enhances his other worldliness as the Count. Bela, of course, also brought an aristocratic dignity to the role.It's a shame that this terrific performance by Lugosi did not lead to him being hot and back in demand again in Hollywood but it didn't. Horror films were becoming passe and Lugosi, unlike Karloff, was only associated with that genre. Adding to the insult, though, when it came to promoting A & C Meet Frankenstein, Universal didn't ask Lugosi to participate, even though he was a key star in the film's success. Instead the studio asked Karloff to do it.Finally, I never found Lon Chaney more effective in the dual role of Larry Talbot and the Wolf Man. One of the reasons for this is that I think the Bud Westmore Wolf Man makeup that he wore in this film is more effective than the Jack Pierce makeup he had on in his previous outings as the hirsute one. Chaney hated the Pierce makeup because it took so long to apply it (his all time hatred for makeup applications was that of the Mummy, by the way, which took even longer to put on).I'd recommend it. The two Universal franchises of the 40's - Abbott and Costello and the remainder of Universal horror - blend effectively here.

pyrocitor Sometimes all you need is a good laugh, complexity be damned. Sometimes all you want is a warm bath of familiarly, dually titillated by belly laughs of the most finely honed, classic slapstick, while shivering in reverence (maybe even in fright, if you're of the right disposition) at some of Universal's finest monster mayhem. Which is why, sometimes, you can't do any better than romp around with Bud Abbott and Lou Costello, and their meeting with Frankenstein (and friends) is arguably the most purely joyful escapist fun any of their monster mashes have to offer. In terms of poduction-values, it's hard to knock three monsters for the price of one (Dracula, Frankenstein's Creature and the Wolf Man would never again reassemble until - shudder - 2004's Van Helsing), and the story actually does a decent job of weaving all three in without seeming too gratuitous, though an opening sequence in a wax museum house of horrors does poke fun at the constructed artificiality of monster scares. Additionally, Universal's classy treatment of their tentpole horror monsters, even in parody form, is always nice, as the mayhem is built around them, but never resorting to crass, embarrassing gags at their expense (few contemporary filmmakers do parody and pastiche so respectfully). Of course, the plot is ludicrously thin - it's never even explained why Dracula seeks to reinvigorate Frankenstein's Creature (naturally, with Costello's brain), the central point of conflict - and the dramatic irony of Costello being terrified, only for the spectre in question to vanish before a bemused Abbott can lay eyes on it is exploited to the point of pushing limits of patience. Meanwhile, monster nitpickers will grumble that the title is a misnomer, as Bud and Lou only meet Frankenstein's creation, not the mad scientist himself (though we do get a glimpse at his helpfully specific lab notes, apparently published in book form...). Ultimately, it's all in good fun, and such quibbles feel increasingly besides the point in the face of such a wall of laughs. What is the point is howling at Bud and Lou's priceless chemistry, hysterical physical slapstick, facial expressions, and immaculate wordplay ("I saw what I saw when I saw it" being the takeaway quote of choice here), and lapping up the joy of their tried-and-true personas - Abbott the curmudgeonly straight man, Costello the adorably dimwitted crybaby-cum-lothlorio - typecasting be damned. The Universal vets are more than willing to dive into the fun, and their commitment to character helps the silliness fly. Bela Lugosi (amazingly, in his only time reprising Count Dracula!) is as good as they come, slinking around with eerie-eyed menace undercut by a hefty undercurrent of silky charm, Glenn Strange makes for a fantastically gruesome, shambling Frankenstein's monster, while Lon Chaney Jr.'s wooden melancholic delivery as the world-weary Lawrence Talbot wins almost as many laughs as the headliners, just as his snarling, contorting Wolf Man is as fearsome as ever. Lenore Aubert and Jane Randolph also get in on the fun, both maintaining class and credibility and stealing some of the best laughs despite being largely treated like set dressing by the customary playful misogyny of the time. Dracula's castle also makes for a sumptuously Gothic set piece, and its labyrinth of secret swivelling wall panels, cobblestones and stockades makes for the perfect playpen for Bud and Lou. You pretty much get what it says on the tin with Abbott and Costello - and Meets Frankenstein, by privileging big recurring gags over zingers, isn't even their sharpest work in their oeuvre - so those aspiring for smarter or more substantial screwball frivolity would do best to bolt for the door (ideally screeching "CHIIIIIIIIIIICKKKKKK!!!" like Costello). But, for those willing to leave their brains at the door (and Dracula gratefully accepts your kind donation), Meet Frankenstein is their wildest, zaniest, and, arguably, flat-out funniest cinematic work. It's tightly paced, chock-full of all the gags and big reveal monster moments you can shake a vampire bat at, and the whole gang - spooks and funny men - are so cheerfully committed to entertaining, it's near impossible not to have a deliriously good time. Just remember not to go on a double-date with Costello, or you'll end up with nothing but a spookily fun story to tell. -9/10

Robert J. Maxwell I enjoyed this very much when I was a kid. I still enjoyed it twenty years later. Now much of it just seems silly, but it's still the best of the "Meet Monsters" movies. How can you go wrong with the original Dracula (Lugosi), the original Wolfman (Chaney, Jr.) and two lovely maidens, the sinister Lenore Aubert and the still sexy and mellifluous Jane Randolph. Boris Karloff was elsewhere, so the monster is played -- or played up -- by Glenn Strange, usually a bartender in cheap Westerns. True, the careers of most of the principals was on a downward trajectory, but so what? None seems to have lost his or her charm.The careers of Abbott and Costello were revived by this film but it was a dead cat bounce. Each sequel, each meeting with another of the Universal Studio monsters, was less innovative and enjoyable than this one. Besides, the two characters were pitched at a level that few people over the age of fifteen could get a kick out of. Who wants to watch tall, snarling, Bud Abbott kicking around short, plump, Lou Costello? Slapping him across the face and excoriating him at every opportunity. Certainly not us short, plump men! Most memorable scene, for adults, is the climax. It's a lot of slapstick but at moments comes to resemble late Marx Brothers. The funniest incident in the movie may be when Costello, in the middle of a frenzied brawl, yanks a tablecloth out from under a dinner service that remains in place. He stops for a second, stunned, glances at the camera with a big smile, and gestures at the table before dashing away. Charlie Chaplain used the gag effectively too, but we expected it from him.