Product Details

• Actors: Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Lee Bowman, Alan Curtis, The Andrews Sisters
• Directors: Arthur Lubin
• Writers: Arthur T. Horman, John Grant
• Producers: Alex Gottlieb
• Format: Black & White, Closed-captioned, HiFi Sound, NTSC
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Universal Studios
• VHS Release Date: March 1, 1992
• Run Time: 84 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• ASIN: 630018191X
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #148,124 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Universal Studios hit box-office gold when they drafted vaudeville comedians and radio stars Bud Abbott and Lou Costello and turned them into one of the most successful screen teams of the 1940s and 1950s. After a tryout as supporting characters in the musical One Night in the Tropics, they starred in Buck Privates as con artists who accidentally enlist while hiding out from New York street cop Nat Pendleton. Naturally he winds up their drill sergeant and comic foil as they wreak havoc on the armed forces. It's vaudeville in fatigues, with the bare bones of a story provided by spoiled millionaire playboy Lee Bowman, his strapping All-American former chauffeur Alan Curtis, and the girl-next-door they both pursue, Jane Frazee. The lackluster subplot is directed with little verve by Arthur Lubin, and the film's energy comes completely from the snappy by-play of the comedians and Costello's flustered double takes and jumpy physical comedy (including a hilarious rifle drill in which the out-of-step soldier marches to the direction of a different compass). The Andrews Sisters sing "You're a Lucky Fellow, Mr. Smith" and "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy," among others, and future Stooge Shemp Howard shows where the "mess" in mess hall comes from as a cook on the receiving end of Costello's KP tomfoolery. This modest comedy became a smash hit and made Abbott and Costello Universal's most valuable commodity, prompting a quick follow-up with another peacetime armed forces comedy, In the Navy. --Sean Axmaker

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Your In The Army Now!, January 9, 2000

By 

Joe Libby - See all my reviews

This review is from: Abbott & Costello: Buck Privates [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Made for peanuts, BUCK PRIVATES was a tremendous hit for Universal studios and firmly established Abbott and Costello as movie stars. Bud and Lou's routines are among their best; indeed, the film is really not much more than a string of burlesque routines held together by a simple plotline. "The Dice Game," "The Drill Routine," "You're 40, She's 10," and several others burlesque bits are here to keep you laughing. The romantic triangle plot is rather forgettable, although one can certainly understand why both Lee Bowman and Alan Curtis are pursuing lovely Jane Frazee. The Andrews Sisters contribute some great songs, including the immortal "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy." Dated but still very entertaining, BUCK PRIVATES delivered just what the movie going public needed in 1941. And it still delivers today.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bounce Me Brother With a Solid Four!, August 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Buck Privates (DVD)

This great work of entertainment from l942 can be watched repeatedly and for different reasons. Sometimes I watch it just to catch the hysterical routines of our beloved A&C. The funniest is when Bud is trying to instruct Lou how to carry his rifle. Notice the tallest of the soldiers at the end of the row who can barely keep from screaming with laughter. His mouth trembles, he bows his head so you can't see his face, etc. Also, The Andrew Sisters are their peak, bouncing everybody with their classic, "Boogey-Woogie Boy" toe-tapping extravaganza with Patty dynamic. Even better in some ways is the fantastic "Bounce Me Brother With a Solid Four" which comes towards the end. Look at those jive-cats, circa l942 swing and sway and shake their groove thangs. This was a perfect antidote in that year because of the horrible news pouring in from war-torn Europe and Americans were over there risking life and life. Buck Privates moves so fast you're startled when it ends with "You're a Lucky Fellow Mr. Smith". You wanna just reverse and start it all over again. Bravo to Patty, Laverne and Maxine, not to mention Abbott and Costello.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Abbott and Costello meet the Andrew Sisters., June 9, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Abbott & Costello: Buck Privates [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Fun, World War II period piece. A & C in one of their best but the Andrew Sisters and the great swing music are what really set this apart. Just to hear and see "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" and "Apple Blosson Time" is enough to recommend this movie. And don't miss the killer jitter-bug scene toward the end of the movie. It rocks! (Any of the so-called swing kids out there, worthy of their high-rise drapes, should already have this movie in their collection.) Also, don't miss Shemp Howard, sans Moe and Larry, as the mess cook.