The Noose Hangs High (1948) Reviews

• An undervalued A&C gem...one of their best

  jimtinder2001-02-08

  If you're a fan of Abbott and Costello routines, then "The Noose Hangs High" is for you. Numerous routines are packed into this film, including "Dress/Undress," "Someplace Else," "Fodder/Mudder," etc. The boys display these routines with flair and show how much they enjoy them. The plot involves A&C as window washers mistaken as messengers by a bookie who must make good a $50,000 bet with a man who never loses a bet (played by Leon Errol). The money ends up in an envelope sent to a secretary (Cathy Downs) who spends all but $2,000 of it. The comedy and plot follows A&C and Downs as they try to raise the rest of the money. "Noose Hangs High" was filmed in late 1947 at Eagle-Lion studios. A&C's new contract with Universal allowed them one independent production a year, and "Noose" was it. Not part of the Universal package when their films were syndicated to television, "Noose" has fallen through the cracks and is one of their least familiar films to moviewatchers. The fact that the film has almost no reputation does not hinder its quality; the laughs are constant and the plot is good, ranking this film among A&C's best. 8 out of 10.

• The Noose Hangs High (1948) ***

  JoeKarlosi2005-06-01

  THE NOOSE HANGS HIGH is not really one of the more commonly known films from Abbott & Costello, but it has been recently released on DVD and is recommended for fans of the comedy team. It features Bud and Lou as window washers in the big city who get unwittingly involved with crooks and $50,000 of their loot. While the plot itself may be typical and no great shakes, the selling point of this comedy are the funny A&C routines that are peppered throughout the movie... We get to see Abbott prove to a gangster that he is not actually here but rather "Someplace Else"; funnyman Leon Errol drives Costello bonkers by discussing horses and how "Mudders eat their Fodder"; Bud makes Lou continually "Dress and Undress". The real gem of this feature is a terrific scene near the end, as Abbott and Costello engage in an endless array of crazy conversations, and it's one of the best things they ever did that managed to get captured on film: the boys are eating dinner at a fancy restaurant in an effort to run up a huge bill to get deliberately arrested when they cannot pay the check... all the while they're tangled up in a delicious diatribe where Abbott rants about the values of "Mustard", going into the "Ball Park," having a "Headache," asking Costello how he could "Marry a 10 Year Old Girl", and more! This one's worth watching for these golden exchanges alone. *** out of ****

• It's Only Money

  lugonian2011-07-22

  THE NOOSE HANGS HIGH (Eagle-Lion, 1948) stars the comedy team of Abbott and Costello in their only independent venture outside their home base of Universal-International. Taking a western-sounding title as "The Noose Hangs High," that might have turned out as a spoof taken out of context from THE OX-BOW INCIDENT (20th-Fox, 1943), but rather than placing the comedic pair as cowboys in a western town with character types, they play a couple of window washers in an unnamed city providing enough material to a slight story, guaranteeing hearty laughs in true Abbott and Costello fashion. Previously filmed by Universal as FOR LOVE OR MONEY (1939), this remake revolves around Theodore "Ted" Higgins (Bud Abbott) and Tommy Hinchcliffe (Lou Costello), employees for the Speedy Service Window Washing Company. Upon completing their day of work by hanging up their uniforms in the hallway closet, Nick Craig (Joseph Calleia), a bookie, mistaking their uniforms for Speedy Messenger Service, hires the unwitting dual to go and collect $50,000 from a Mr. Stewart (Ben Weldon), return it to him, and get $50 a piece for the job. After getting the money, Ted and Tommy notice they're being followed by Sewart's two henchmen hired get back the money. Clever thinking finds Tommy entering the Plaza Mailing Service where face powder samples are mailed out. As he places the money into the envelope, addressing it to Nick Craig, Tommy rushes it into the mailing chute before the thugs catch up with him. Ted and Tommy return to Craig (who by then has realized his error after meeting with the real messengers) telling him of the circumstances, and are soon forced to spend the night under the careful watch of Nick's thugs (Mike Mazurki and Jack Overman) until the envelope arrives. The next day, the letter does arrive, but without the money Craig owes to a J.C. McBride. The angry mobster gives the window washers 24 hours to locate the money. With the use of the company's mailing list, Ted and Tommy eventually track down Carol Blair (Cathy Downs) as the one who received the money. Having only $2,000 of the $50,000, the trio, followed by Nick's men, set out to raise the money by betting on the horses. Along the way they are soon accompanied by an eccentric character calling himself Julius Caesar (Leon Errol), adding more to their troubles. Devotees of Abbott and Costello will generally be please with THE NOOSE HANGS HIGH, considering how they practically have 78 minutes to themselves, never slowing down for an instant. Aside from a generous amount of tried and true Abbott and Costello burlesque routines, they are supported by gangster-types, an odd-ball character and a pretty girl, all simply adding to the situations at hand. Interestingly, some of the most famous Abbott and Costello routines are shared with others. For instance, Abbott performs the "you're not here" routine with Mike Mazurki while the "Mudder and Fodder" routine goes to Costello and Leon Errol. One of my funniest and least performed is the dentist sequence where poor Lou, suffering from a toothache, finds himself at the mercy of Doctor H.G. Richards (Murray Leonard), with thick glasses and belting out a hideous laugh, as he is to try and yank out his bad tooth. This sequence was reworked again in one of the episodes of the TV series, "The Abbott and Costello Show." (1951-52). Fritz Feld is captured in a hilarious bit as a psychiatrist. A true highlight occurs where Abbott and Costello re-enact several of their routines on one scene while dining at the Copper Club. This six minutes alone shows them at their finest. There will never be another team like them again. While the Nick Craig role could have been enacted by Sheldon Leonard, Joseph Calleia shows he's the ideal choice, especially when playing it straight and getting laughs in the process. Cathy Downs makes a likable heroine while Leon Errol, a former headliner in the 1920s and "The Ziegfeld Follies," forgotten by today's standards, demonstrating how his sort of comedy hasn't gone out of style. Formerly displayed on video, THE NOOSE HANGS HIGH can be found on either DVD or occasional broadcasts on Turner Classic Movies. While not as better known of the Abbott and Costello comedies, it's certainly one worth considering. (***)

• Some Really Dumb Crooks

  bkoganbing2008-11-16

  The Noose Hangs High marks Abbott&Costello's only film for the short lived Eagle-Lion Productions. This was an effort by J. Arthur Rank over across the pond to break into the American film market with his own production and distribution company. Bud&Lou are a pair of window washers who are mistaken for messengers that are employed by bookie Joseph Calleia. It seems as though he's been taken to the cleaners by one of his bettors and though it hurts he has to pay off. The messengers are to get the money from Ben Welden and deliver it to Calleia. Of course Welden has ideas of having the boys held up and stealing the money for himself. Costello actually eludes the crooks, but sends the money to Cathy Downs by mistake. Now he and Bud have 48 hours to come up with the money or ELSE. Leon Errol is along for the ride as his usual drunken playboy and he subs for Abbott as Lou's straight-man a couple of times. Though in those routines I can't tell who's the one really getting the laughs. What always gets me about The Noose Hangs High is Calleia and how he could be that dumb to mistake these two for good help. What's that say about him. Proof of that is a routine where both Abbott and Costello make a monkey out of big dumb leg breaker Mike Mazurki. The Noose Hangs High is a remake of the Universal film For Love Or Money. I haven't seen the original, but the material was definitely rewritten to suit Bud&Lou. It becomes nothing more than a vehicle for the boys to do several of their burlesque routines. Which for their fans is more than enough.

• Not only had I never seen this, I'd never heard of it!

  Mr. OpEd2016-01-08

  It's 2016. I'm nearly 60. I've a LOT of comedies (and so-called "comedies") and this is one of the cleverest flicks. A&C are a favorite and this has some of their best patter, great physical comedy, and subtle double entendres. Leon Errol is a fine addition to the team as the not-so-menacing über villain who never loses. Cathy Downs is the fetching eye candy who gets caught up in the boy's shenanigans and makes the team a trio. And the older I get, the more I marvel at Bud Abbott's amazing straight man. Usually when a movie has 7 writers, you're looking at a bomb. Not here. Charles Barton had helmed some other A&C films in the past but this could be his best. And kudos to Walter Schumann's perfect score.