Hit the Ice (1943)
After two films that attempted to go in a different direction for Abbott and Costello, Hit the Ice returned to the more standard formula of trying to force other musical acts in Universal’s unnecessary attempt to liven things up. Fortunately, Hit the Ice is just good enough to recommend for at least one viewing.
Abbott and Costello are Flash Fulton and Tubby McCoy, aspiring newspaper photographers who inadvertently get caught up in a bank robbing scheme and take the fall for it. In an attempt to clear their name, they follow the real crooks to a ski resort where the head crook is posing as a sick patient and attempt to blackmail them with pictures they took at the crime scene. Only one problem: they didn’t actually capture the robbers’ faces in their photograph.
Hit the Ice is actually a bit misleading, as the beginning leads you to believe that it isn’t really a musical at all. Then, suddenly, you get three songs almost back-to-back-to-back; and, no, none of the songs rise above mediocrity. What’s worse is that there is no variety to them at all; previous Abbott and Costello films at least had a few different acts performing the songs, but here, the songs are all performed by the same group, Johnny Logan and His Orchestra featuring Ginny Simms.
If there is one lesson Universal seemed to learn by this time, it was that the roles of the romantic interests needed to be reduced in order for the movies to feel less tedious. Here, the romantic interests’ roles are still pretty small, but much like in Pardon My Sarong, they’re written so terribly that they still come across as annoying. The doctor in particular seems pretty idiotic considering he gets tricked into thinking the main robber is a sick man despite the nurse’s attempts to convince him otherwise. Some doctor he is! The only interesting supporting player in this film is Sheldon Leonard. Leonard, who would later become a successful television producer, was most known at the time for playing heavies in films and on radio, and he’s just as effective here as he was in most of his other appearances.
One of the main saving graces of this film is its setting. The snowy setting is absolutely beautiful here and they take advantage of it as much as possible, showing off characters on the ice-skating rink as well as a very entertaining chase involving skiing down a mountain.
Abbott and Costello tie pretty well into the main storyline here, and the way they handle the misunderstanding with the gangsters when they first meet is actually pretty clever. Among the comedic highlights are a scene where Costello is tricked by a couple of nurses into thinking he’s had a baby as well as Costello mistaking the term “teller” for the words “tell her.” There’s also a great physical routine involving Costello and a suitcase he constantly has to pack and unpack due to Abbott’s indecisiveness.
For me personally, the funniest scene of the film is the piano routine, also sometimes referred to as the “Alright!” routine. Costello tries to impress Marcia (Ginny Simms) by pretending that he can play the piano. This is accomplished by having Abbott play a recording behind the piano and having Costello play along to the point where it appears he is actually playing the piece. The trigger word to start and stop the recording is “alright.” In addition to showing just how much we use the word “alright” in our common language, this is a great showcase for Costello to do wild takes and sprints in order to maintain the illusion whenever the trigger word gets said, even if it’s not by him. Even if some of the more serious stunts in these films weren’t by Lou, I’ve still got to appreciate all the effort it took to film a scene like this, especially since he hits some chairs along the way.
Hit the Ice has many tedious moments, but it still makes for a fun viewing experience in parts, especially the skiing chase. If you want to see it for the routines only then I’d recommend skipping since the best routines are available to watch elsewhere, but if you’re intrigued by the concept and setting, you’ll probably like it just fine.
7 out of 10
Abbott and Costello are Flash Fulton and Tubby McCoy, aspiring newspaper photographers who inadvertently get caught up in a bank robbing scheme and take the fall for it. In an attempt to clear their name, they follow the real crooks to a ski resort where the head crook is posing as a sick patient and attempt to blackmail them with pictures they took at the crime scene. Only one problem: they didn’t actually capture the robbers’ faces in their photograph.
Hit the Ice is actually a bit misleading, as the beginning leads you to believe that it isn’t really a musical at all. Then, suddenly, you get three songs almost back-to-back-to-back; and, no, none of the songs rise above mediocrity. What’s worse is that there is no variety to them at all; previous Abbott and Costello films at least had a few different acts performing the songs, but here, the songs are all performed by the same group, Johnny Logan and His Orchestra featuring Ginny Simms.
If there is one lesson Universal seemed to learn by this time, it was that the roles of the romantic interests needed to be reduced in order for the movies to feel less tedious. Here, the romantic interests’ roles are still pretty small, but much like in Pardon My Sarong, they’re written so terribly that they still come across as annoying. The doctor in particular seems pretty idiotic considering he gets tricked into thinking the main robber is a sick man despite the nurse’s attempts to convince him otherwise. Some doctor he is! The only interesting supporting player in this film is Sheldon Leonard. Leonard, who would later become a successful television producer, was most known at the time for playing heavies in films and on radio, and he’s just as effective here as he was in most of his other appearances.
One of the main saving graces of this film is its setting. The snowy setting is absolutely beautiful here and they take advantage of it as much as possible, showing off characters on the ice-skating rink as well as a very entertaining chase involving skiing down a mountain.
Abbott and Costello tie pretty well into the main storyline here, and the way they handle the misunderstanding with the gangsters when they first meet is actually pretty clever. Among the comedic highlights are a scene where Costello is tricked by a couple of nurses into thinking he’s had a baby as well as Costello mistaking the term “teller” for the words “tell her.” There’s also a great physical routine involving Costello and a suitcase he constantly has to pack and unpack due to Abbott’s indecisiveness.
For me personally, the funniest scene of the film is the piano routine, also sometimes referred to as the “Alright!” routine. Costello tries to impress Marcia (Ginny Simms) by pretending that he can play the piano. This is accomplished by having Abbott play a recording behind the piano and having Costello play along to the point where it appears he is actually playing the piece. The trigger word to start and stop the recording is “alright.” In addition to showing just how much we use the word “alright” in our common language, this is a great showcase for Costello to do wild takes and sprints in order to maintain the illusion whenever the trigger word gets said, even if it’s not by him. Even if some of the more serious stunts in these films weren’t by Lou, I’ve still got to appreciate all the effort it took to film a scene like this, especially since he hits some chairs along the way.
Hit the Ice has many tedious moments, but it still makes for a fun viewing experience in parts, especially the skiing chase. If you want to see it for the routines only then I’d recommend skipping since the best routines are available to watch elsewhere, but if you’re intrigued by the concept and setting, you’ll probably like it just fine.
7 out of 10
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