Abbott & Costello Vol. 3, Halloween, Marx Brothers and W.C. Fields Titles COMING (1 Viewer)

[Jay E]

I'm also disappointed in the Fields set. It has my favorite, It's a Gift, but The Bank Dick has already been released by Criterion, and the other 3, IMO, are not among his best.

They definitely need to put out another set after this one.

 

[John Hodson]

www.lasersedge.com already has the Universal Marx and Fields collections at $41.99, and Hell's Angels at $10.49; that gives me a clearer picture of what I'm going to pay.

 

[Brook K]

For around $40 the Fields set is probably worth it. I just wish they'd inserted another film instead of me having to rebuy The Bank Dick.

No love for My Little Chickadee? Just saw this a few weeks ago and LOVED it. Fields has a ton of great lines, his delivery and timeing are exquisite. The story is fluff, but so what, it's FUNNY. I'll be very happy to own it.

 

[MatthewLouwrens]

Or those of us in r4 that only have a three-disc set minus Monkey Business.

Fortunately, I never bought that set. Was meaning to get the r2, but never got around to it. And now, instead I can get the r1. Yay!

 

[John Hodson]

Box shot of the Fields release at DVD Times here

 

[RudolphT]

A&C Vol 3 showed today. Great stuff. Any work on Vol 4?

 

[Nick Senger]

How does A&C Meet Frankenstein compare to the stand-alone version that's out already?

 

[RudolphT]

I will check to see if it's the same transfer. Frankenstein and Mummy werw great remasters so I didn't sell them. Vol 1 and 2 transfers weren't as good for whatever reasons (e.g., more compressed.

 

[Mark-W]

Well,
Abbott & Costello Meet The Mummy isn't on this set, so I will hold on to the single DVD for the time being.

Funny, it seemed so appropriate for this set with the other Abbott and Costello /Universal Monster collaborations.

 

[Mark-W]

Also, I just checked against my stand alone, Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstien and the bonus features (the audio commentary as well as and 33 minute documentary on the boys and the monsters), are NOT ON THE NEW SET!

I'm glad I didn't make the time to sell my copy.

 

[Gary OS]

I received my set yesterday, and quickly popped in the two disks and ran very quick scans to make sure there were no major tech problems (since the first two sets had major tech problems). I'll have to watch each film individually to be completely sure this 3rd Volume is completely "clean" though.

My initial thoughts are that Universal got much more sloppy, or lazy, with this third set. If you remember, Volume 1 had most of the trailers from the 8 films in that set. Volume 2 had a few less trailers, but at least had some. Now we get to Volume 3 and I see only 3 trailers. It looks to me like Universal put less time and energy into this set, and that's a real shame. I say that because I know for a fact that most of the films in this volume have trailers available, but apparently Universal didn't see fit to include them.

Also, as for the transfers, it unfortunately looks like these films (including FRANKENSTEIN) are not of the same digital quality many of the earlier films were. When I first saw BUCK PRIVATES on Volume 1, I was blown away by the quality! It was just incredible, as were most of the films on Volume 1 (some being better than others, but all being done well). Volume 2 seemed to have solid transfers as well. But yesterday, I was disappointed at what I saw. Most of the films didn't appear to be cleaned up at all. Certainly nothing like what was on the 1st Volume!

FRANKENSTEIN looked grainy to me. It definitely was NOT cleaned up! I have the older version released a few years ago, and it's much better. Why Universal wouldn't use a nice clean transfer for at least this one film (surely one of the most popular from the Boys) is beyond me. Again, it appears that Universal got lazy and didn't put nearly as much into this 3rd Volume as they did the first two. It really is a shame.

Gary "only one volume left now for Universal" O.

 

[Bob Furmanek]

Once again, it appears they are using whatever transfers are closest on the shelf. Even the first set had some problems, with replaced Realart titles, missing credits, etc.

These are definitely a rush job!

 

[Dick]

And don't forget IF I HAD A MILLION, a multi-part movie of which Fields had the best and funniest. That would be six more films for the next set right there, if you also include YOU'RE TELLING ME.

 

[Larry Sutliff]

It's a shame that the A&C MEET FRANKENSTEIN transfer is grainy, it sounds like the old transfer used for VHS and the original Laserdisc(before the film was sold in a boxset with the other MEET THE MONSTER flicks). And I agree that some of the transfers in the first and second set were sloppy; seeing ONE NIGHT IN THE TROPICS with a Realart Presents logo, clipping off the opening shot of Alan Jones and Bob Cummings, was very offputting. I will still buy this set, if only for A&C MEET THE KILLER, which is one of my favorites(I know I'm pretty much alone in that sentiment!).
One interesting footnote: about five years ago, a local revival house screened A&C MEET FRANKENSTEIN. The print used was beautiful, but it also had a Realart presents logo.

 

[Bob Furmanek]

"One interesting footnote: about five years ago, a local revival house screened A&C MEET FRANKENSTEIN. The print used was beautiful, but it also had a Realart presents logo."

We screened that print in New Jersey as well. It was made from the altered 1956 re-issue printing negative. Other than the altered title, I thought it looked great!

 

[Nick Senger]

Just to be clear, then: if I am only interested in Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein and want the best video and audio quality, should I buy the stand-alone over the new Best of Vol. 3?

 

[Joe Karlosi]

I just got the A&C set, and I watched MEET THE KILLER (which just never seems to grow on me -- sorry, Larry!)
But it looked quite good to me. I also watched some segments from FRANKENSTEIN and COMIN ROUND THE MOUNTAIN, and they looked pretty good to me, too. I didn't think FRANKENSTEIN looked different from the older disc, but then again I didn't do any side-by-side comparisons.

I'm one of the biggest complainers of "grainy transfers" (even though so many try to tell me that "grain is good") and so far what I've seen doesn't bother me. I WAS bugged by some of the Volume 2 transfers, though. NAUGHTY NINETIES looked sharp and smooth, while HERE COME THE CO-EDS (just for instance) looked soft and grainy. However - and here is another arguable point - I always find that video looks better when I'm watching it in a bright sunlit room in broad daylight (which was the case here)... it always seemed to me that flaws don't stand out as much this way; but watching them when it's very dark in the room at night, it's easier to see blemishes, graininess, what have you...

 

[Tino]

I also quickly scanned throgh most of this set, and watched a bit of A&C Meet Frankenstein and much of Mexican Hayride and I thought everything looked fine, including Frankenstein. I'll try to do an A/B comparison with the previous edition.

Still, anyway you cut it, $2 a pop ($15.99 at BB) for some of A&C's best films is a fantastic bargain!

 

[AnthonyP]

Slightly off topic with apologies.. Is Costello's character name in Naughty Nineties Sebastian Dinwiddle or Dinwiddie?

I've never seen the film but have seen conflicting listings for the character name.

 

[Joe Karlosi]

Isn't it "ie" (or with a "y")? Whatever is it, I don't recall it having the "L" sound at the end.

I recommend THE NAUGHTY NINETIES. I feel it's one of their best films of all - lots of good gags, including "Who's On First?"