Africa Screams (1949)

One of the weaker A&C films, 5 March 2005

With Costello poising as a big game hunter and guide, the boys tag along on an African expedition supposedly looking for a giant, undiscovered ape. What they don't realize is that the story of the ape is a hoax. The expedition is really searching for diamonds. Along the way, the boys run into crocodiles, cannibals, lions, a gorilla, a giant ape, and every other sort of trouble one could find in the jungles of Africa.

There are a lot of Abbott and Costello movies I enjoy - Africa Screams is not one of them. There aren't any of those Abbott and Costello "bits" that I enjoy so much. In addition, much of the movie feels too contrived. Take the gorilla that Costello accidentally saves from a trap. I realize that these movies are corny and in no way resemble real live, but the fact that the gorilla hangs around to help Costello out of one jam after the next is just too much for me to take.

There are several familiar faces in the supporting cast - Joe Beseer and Shemp Howard being the most recognizable. Shemp's character (an almost blind killer) gets old very fast. But, Beseer steals almost every scene in which he appears. My favorite is a very small moment where Beseer interrupts Abbot and Costello by running into a tent to get cup after cup of water. When the boys finally ask him why he needs so much water, he responds by telling them that his tent is on fire. Classic moment as far as I'm concerned.

By the way, I picked-up a copy with a decent transfer on one of those budget DVDs for $1.

5/10