This is among the best of Abbott and Costello's films because it is so much fun. It also didn't hurt that it is one of their films that combined monsters with comedy--a sure recipe for success. The first of these films, ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN happens to be their best film, but followup films with the Invisible Man, the Mummy and Dr. Jekyll were also among their best films.

The film begins with Bud and Lou inexplicably working for the London police. Because they are Bud and Lou, they naturally get fired. So, they spend the rest of the movie trying to solve the big case, a serial killer, in order to get back on the force.

The trail takes them to Dr. Henry Jekyll (Boris Karloff) and despite his very pleasant demeanor, he's a real jerk. Underneath this nice facade, this incarnation of Jekyll is quite different from versions of the story starring John Barrymore, Frederic March or Spencer Tracy. Unlike these previous versions, Jekyll is truly evil and likes becoming the monster. In other words, he uses this new guise to kill with impunity because he is a horrible person. However, he really looked little like the movie Mr. Hyde when he transformed. Instead of the usual transformation, this time it looks like they used a rubber mask and it looked more like the Frederic March version of Jekyll combined with the Wolf-Man! The main reason to make his so unrecognizable was because this was a very active role (involving a lot of climbing and stunts) and Karloff was simply too old to handle these rigors. Frankly, though Hyde and Jekyll were quite different, this didn't bother me.

So what is so good about the film? Well, the most important plus this film has is no singing!! Hallelujah! Too many of Abbott and Costello's films (particularly the early ones) were heavily padded with songs that distracted the audience unnecessarily and added nothing to the plot. Additionally, like many of their best films, this one was plot and character-driven--not a bunch of semi-related vignettes and Vaudeville routines thrown together. In addition it sure didn't hurt that the ending was quite clever and funny as well--leaving the audience laughing as the credits rolled.

Overall, a film I'd place in the top five of the Abbott and Costello films. If you really care, and you might, this is how I'd place them in order from best to worst:

1. ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN

2. WHO DONE IT?

3. ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE

4. ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET THE KILLER

5. LITTLE GIANT (yes, I know most people hate this one but I liked it).

Not one of their absolute best and inferior, with the feminist subplot being unnecessary and slowing things down a bit and it does try a little too hard for laughs towards the end. It is however one of their better declining years outings and one of their livelier ones as well. It looks handsome and atmospheric, especially the sets though the film is very competently shot as well. The score is appropriately eerie and jaunty, fitting with the creepier and comedic elements very nicely. The dialogue is witty and the gags on the most part do work especially with in the wax museum and rooftop chase scenes. As well as having comedy, there are some foreboding moments too especially with Karloff as Mr Hyde. The film is solidly directed, and the performances are good. Helen Westcott and Craig Stevens are just okay, but Bud Abbott and Lou Costello are still a great double act and their performances are appropriately pitched. Boris Karloff manages to be both hammy and menacing and most effectively, not everybody can succeed in some way making Dr Jekyll almost as sinister as Mr Hyde but Karloff does and remarkably. Overall, very entertaining and while not Abbott and Costello at their best it is worthy. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is directed by Charles Lamont and loosely based on the novel The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde written by Robert Louis Stevenson. It stars Bud Abbott, Lou Costello and Boris Karloff. Plot finds Bud and Lou as two coppers in old time London who become involved with the hunt for a monstrous killer. A hunt that brings them into contact with the mysterious Dr. Jekyll.

It would be the fourth from last movie the popular comedy duo would make together, and the latest to see them paired with a famous monster from 30's cinema. Although it's a touch weak in the comedy stakes, and it does kind of feel like they are winding down after such a fruitful career, the film holds up well as a polished picture. The writers have varied the Jekyll & Hyde legend by actually having Jekyll himself be evil, wonderfully essayed by Karloff, and a couple of sequences are genuinely laugh out loud funny: think mouse head, think hypodermic needle; while the involvement of the Suffragettes in the story gives it some historical interest. It's also good on atmosphere, be it the moody streets of London, or Costello alone in a wax museum, Lamont and photographer George Robinson give it a creepy veneer before the anarchy breaks out.

Unlikely to encourage new fans to their work, but a safe addition for those who enjoy the majority of their output. 7/10