THE GHOST BREAKERS - BLU-RAY REVIEW

Following their successful pairing in the previous year’s THE CAT AND THE CANARY (Eliott Nugent, 1939), stars Bob Hope and Paulette Goddard returned in George Marshall’s THE GHOST BREAKERS (1940), an undemanding yet quintessential horror-comedy. Brimming with perfectly-timed, zippy one-liners, Hope is at his comic best in this good-natured romp, which also doesn’t skimp on genuine scares and eerie atmosphere. 

 

After incensing local underworld boss Frenchy Duvall (Paul Fix) over the radio, popular gossipmonger Larry “Radio” Lawrence (Bob Hope) is sent for, so Frenchy can (quote) “give it to him straight.” In the ensuing mix-up, Larry mistakenly believes he may have shot one of Frenchy’s men in self-defense and ends up hiding inside a steamer trunk belonging to Mary Carter (Paulette Goddard), who is bound for Cuba. Having inherited Black Island and Castillo Maldito, its supposedly haunted castle (“Death waits for you on Black Island!”), it seems Mary’s inheritance also interests several other individuals, including the mysterious Medero brothers (Anthony Quinn) and Mr. Parada (Paul Lukas), whose (quote) “peculiar reputation” also comes into question. Upon her arrival, Mary also meets up with old friend Geoff Montgomery (Richard Carlson), who also warns her of this cursed island. Thus, in return for helping him out, Lawrence and his trusted valet (Willie Best) try and prevent some potential—and very real—threats pointed her way. 

 

In Lee Gambin’s informative audio commentary, he addresses the inherent issues with horror comedies and praises this film’s (quote) “finely acute balance” between the two genres, which is indeed one of the film’s major strengths. Despite all of Hope’s witty remarks and self-deprecating humour (“If there’s going to be any hysterics around here, I’ll have ’em!”), his quick-talking personality also reveals a subtle optimism and self-confidence, which plays well next to Goddard’s equally-strong character, Mary Carter. Holding her own among several deceptively suave swindlers vying to get at her potential inheritance, she proves to be as every bit resourceful as her male counterparts. At one point, against Geoff’s best advice, she makes her way to Black Island by herself, swimming to shore in the dead of night after her boatman refuses to dock his boat there.

 

Talented African-American character actor Willie Best is also on hand. Although his appearance herein is relegated to a stereotypical role as Lawrence’s dim-witted servant, he commits himself sincerely to the part, ultimately coming across as the shrewdest of the whole bunch. Despite some of the colourful (no pun intended!) and cringe-worthy digs aimed at him (e.g., “You’re like a blackout in a blackout!”), Best’s character emerges with a (as pointed out in Mr. Gambin’s audio commentary) “quiet dignity” thanks to some quietly subversive writing, which helps transcend this potentially benign and problematic role into one of the film’s most memorably noteworthy.

 

While THE GHOST BREAKERS is first-and-foremost a comedy, it also displays an astute usage of horror tropes with its atmospheric island setting (beautifully rendered via Farciot Edouart’s matte paintings) and in the impressive art direction of the castle set itself. This delightfully decadent haunted house comes complete with creaking doors, cob-webbed coffins, apparitions, and even mother-and-son zombies (Virginia Brissac and Noble Johnson, respectively) that function as the castle’s creepy caretakers; all of which modulate in harmony with the film’s lighthearted comedy elements.

 

Readily available on home video since the early ’Nineties on both VHS videocassette and Laserdisc, THE GHOST BREAKERS made its digital bow in 2002 when it debuted on DVD as part of Bob Hope: The Tribute Collection. While that edition was perfectly adequate for the time, Kino Lorber Studio Classics’ new Blu-ray is a major upgrade indeed. Sourced from a (quote) “brand new 2K master”, Kino’s transfer is a marked improvement over its SD counterparts, with better clarity and detail across the board. Black levels still tend to vary a little here and there, but it’s certainly nothing to complain about. Fans of the film should be more than happy with the work Kino have done here. Given the film’s age, the DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 is also perfectly fine, not exhibiting any real issues, such as hiss and/or crackles and whatnot.

 

The most significant extra here is the aforementioned audio commentary by Lee Gambin, who has plenty to say about the film, its performers, and numerous crew involved in the production. Some of the many topics discussed include George Marshall’s 1953 remake SCARED STIFF (co-starring Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis), the (quote) “trick photography” of Farciot Edouart, and how this film served as the inspiration for Ivan Reitman’s GHOSTBUSTERS (1983). Despite it being a zany comedy, Gambin is quick to point out that THE GHOST BREAKERS (quote) “never loses its sense of urgency” and “lays down a lot of ground for things to come” within the horror genre. Of course, Mr. Gambin seizes the opportunity to also talk about many of its connections to other films and genres, allowing him to go off on numerous interesting tangents. Like the film itself, it’s a breezy, entertaining, and informative listen. Other extras include an episode of Trailers From Hell with writer Larry Karaszewski championing the film, the original theatrical trailer (“Ghost Breakers Incorporated. You make ’em! We shake ’em!”), and several trailers from the Kino Lorber Studio Classics library, which are, one way or another, associated with the present title. 

 

Highlighted by the spot-on comic-timing of Bob Hope, THE GHOST BREAKERS amounts to one his funniest films and is a consistently entertaining crossover of obvious appeal to both fans of American film classics and straight-ahead horror movies. Needless to say, Kino’s new Blu-ray is an absolute must! Order it from Kino or Amazon.

MY CHAUFFEUR - BLU-RAY REVIEW

Synonymous with horror and exploitation movie fare, the American-based production company, Crown International Pictures scored a sizable hit with David Beaird’s MY CHAUFFEUR (1985), an amiable comedy showcasing the talents of that spunky ’80s darling, Deborah Foreman.  Although previously released countless times on a variety of different formats, this popular film has finally been given its proper due care of Vinegar Syndrome’s all-new and totally awesome dual-format Blu-ray! 

When Casey Meadows (Foreman) is clandestinely hired by corporate magnate Mr. Witherspoon (E.G. Marshall) to work at Brentwood Limousine Limited (one of his many business ventures), she is immediately met with hostility from the stuffy, male-dominated pool of other drivers, who, along with their boss, Mr. McBride (Howard Hesseman), are eager to get rid of her (“We are not interested in change!”).  This they try and engineer by setting her up with some of their most bothersome clients, and trouble soon follows.  Casey has to deal with an unruly British rock star (Leland Crooke), a conman and an Arab sheik (Penn & Teller, respectively, making their mutual screen debut), as well as an overworked, by-the-book businessman (Sam Jones), who turns out to be Mr. Witherspoon’s son, Battle, who eventually becomes smitten with Casey and her quirky charms.

Episodic in structure, MY CHAUFFEUR was originally envisioned by Crown as yet another formulaic sex comedy, but director Beaird decided to take it in another, less-exploitable direction by fashioning it into an updated version of a Golden Age of Hollywood ‘screwball comedy’ (such as Howard Hawks’ BRINGING UP BABY [1938]), with its rip-roaring dialogue and Foreman’s strong female character.  In one of the disc’s audio commentaries, director Beaird discusses Foreman’s use of the Meisner technique, and how the (quote) “pace can be slow”, but he wanted a faster tempo, so he had his leading lady watch some old Carole Lombard movies (including perhaps Gregory La Cava’s MY MAN GODFREY [1936]?) in order that Foreman might try to replicate some of Lombard’s energetic screen presence, which she does admirably.   

As with her earlier breakout role in Martha Coolidge’s VALLEY GIRL (1983), Foreman is a joy to watch from beginning to end, helped along by a terrific supporting cast which also includes Sean McClory (distinguished Irish-born character actor from such diverse films as John Ford’s THE QUIET MAN [1952] and Gordon Douglas’ THEM! [1954]) as Mr. Witherspoon’s personal driver, O’Brien, who is the only one willing to give the new girl a chance, unlike his stodgy, unwavering co-workers.  Playing the aptly-named Battle, then-recent ex-Flash Gordon Sam J. Jones also plays well alongside Foreman’s lighthearted, innocent charm, and their blossoming romance even reveals some inherent class struggles, a well-explored character arc which harkens all the way back to Frank Capra’s IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT (1934), co-starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert, and an angle which was also explored in other such ’80s mainstream fare such as the aforementioned VALLEY GIRL and, more memorably still, in Paul Brickman’s far edgier RISKY BUSINESS (1983).

As with some of Vinegar Syndrome’s other Crown International acquisitions, MY CHAUFFEUR comes to Blu-ray and DVD scanned in 2K from the original 35mm camera negative and, as expected, it looks downright sumptuous, boasting accurate colours and with nary an imperfection anywhere in sight.  On the Blu, the DTS-HD MA 1.0 mono audio also sounds spot-on, with much of the fast-paced dialogue coming through with crystal clarity; amounting to a nice bonus, VS have also included Paul Hertzog’s diverse score as an isolated soundtrack option.

Extras are plentiful. They begin with a wonderful on-camera interview with Deborah Foreman, the “Valley Girl” herself (15m59s).  In this featurette directed by Elijah Drenner, Foreman discusses both her days as a Maybelline girl as well as how she got her start in the motion picture biz.  She also speaks warmly of director David Beaird, even though the entire production had a (quote) “crazy schedule,” during which they would shoot up to 12-to-15 pages of script a day!  She also (quote) “can’t say enough kind things about Sam Jones,” and cites MY CHAUFFEUR as one of her favourite film roles.  The other big extras include two separate audio commentaries, beginning with Beaird and actor Leland Crooke, which is nicely moderated by Drenner.  After helming the (quote) “materialistic, childish” sex romp, THE PARTY ANIMAL (1984), Beaird was approached by Crown to direct yet another of their trademark sex comedies along the lines of George Bowers’ MY TUTOR (1983), only to instead opt to fashion an updated ’30s-style love story with (quote) “old-time banter and old-time screen tricks.” Beaird also discusses trying to hit a (quote) “sweet spot” in terms of theatricality and goes on to reminisce about some of his theatre work during his formative days in Chicago.  He also discusses how he (quote) “had a back-end” on the film, but never saw a dime of profit from it, something which is confirmed by Foreman when she alleges that Crown (quote) “lied about the numbers.”  For the second audio commentary, production assistant Jeff McKay casually chats about his time working on the film, which also includes plentiful factoids/trivia relating to the production, the cast and many of the Los Angeles locations.

Other extras include the film’s original theatrical trailer, numerous TV spots and some nice candid behind-the-scenes photos (courtesy of McKay) taken during the film’s shoot.  Reversible cover artwork includes the film’s original artwork, as well as a striking new rendering by illustrator Derek Gabryszak.  As per some of their other recent Blu-ray releases, VS also include a Limited Edition slipcover edition (1500 only), which is available directly from VS. 

Disarmingly charming and most engaging indeed, by virtue of its association with Crown International Pictures, MY CHAUFFEUR usually gets lumped-in with all those innocuous lowbrow sexcoms from the ’80s, but in actuality, it’s a much smarter – and far more memorable – film thanks to Deborah Foreman’s confident performance and director David Beaird’s commitment to trying something different… and yes, just as expected, VS’ first-class presentation allows you to appreciate everything that much more.  Highly recommended!  Order it from Vinegar Syndrome or DiabolikDVD.