Product Details

• Actors: Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Buddy Baer, Shaye Cogan, James Alexander
• Directors: Jean Yarbrough
• Writers: Pat Costello, Nathaniel Curtis
• Producers: Lou Costello, Alex Gottlieb, Pat Costello
• Format: Black & White, NTSC
• Studio: Madacy Entertainment Lp
• VHS Release Date: August 4, 1998
• Run Time: 70 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (25 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000009DTP
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #462,419 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 4* for the print! Goodtimes version is the best yet on video, November 18, 2003

By 

Scott MacGillivray (Massachusetts, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Jack and the Beanstalk (DVD)

Abbott & Costello made only two color movies and most circulating copies have variable color quality (sometimes so bad that the video is released in black-and-white instead). But this version of "Jack and the Beanstalk" is the best I've seen, and Goodtimes Home Video deserves a round of applause for issuing it on DVD. The original "Super Cinecolor" (less expensive and impressive than Technicolor) is generally very good indeed; I noticed a few instances of Costello's green costume shifting to blue-green, probably owing to different surviving film elements. Goodtimes did a fine job restoring this, and this DVD offers excellent value for the budget price.

The movie itself is a pleasant children's story with music. After a "modern" prologue in monochrome, Bud and Lou adapt their usual sharpie-and-patsy roles to colorful fairytale settings, and Buddy Baer is an excellent foil as the fearsome giant. (Listen for cartoon-voice Mel Blanc playing several roles in the "I Fear Nothing" song.) Makes a nice kiddie matinee, best for small children but older A & C fans will enjoy it, too.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Bud and Lou in the classic fairy tale, October 17, 2002

By 

Blake Petit "Novelist, columnist & reviewer" (Ama, Louisiana United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Jack and the Beanstalk (DVD)

Perhaps I'm a bit biased here, but this film was my first exposure to Abbott and Costello, and I've loved them every since. My parents bought the VHS tape of this when I was very young and I was instantly mesmerised -- those guys were the funniest team of comedians I'd ever seen. They still are, really.

In retrospect, this may not be one of their greatest films (it's not on par with Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, for instance), but it's a fun retelling of the classic Jack and the Beanstalk story, casting Lou as Jack and Bud as the crooked butcher who swaps him magic beans for a cow. Transplanting the boys into the fanciful setting works, and although some of the stuntwork and sets seemed pretty threadbare at times the story and the comedy still click well. This is also one of the few films the boys ever made that could be classified as a musical.

For completists who love Abbott and Costello and are still impatiently waiting for the rest of their films to come out on DVD, this is a must-have. Also recommended for folks with kids -- it's a wonderful movie for the young.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GoodTimes Video Version hit a home run with the quality, July 13, 2009

By 

michael winburn (astoria, ny United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Jack and the Beanstalk (DVD)

No need for me to review the movie since you're purchasing this as a collector, right?
So heres the details on the Good Times Home Video Version

Filmed in 1951 (release 1952) using the "Spherical" Cinematographic Process in the Academy Standard Ratio of 1.37:1, this presentation gives us the Full Frame (1.33:1) which is exactly what the director intended us to see.
The original coloring of the film was as so:
** Modern Story:Black and White (Sepiatone);
** Fanasy story: Color (Supercinecolor)

This DVD-5, MPEG2 encoded Movie was about 7 Mbps on Average (with the total disc at 7.16 Mbps)

The audio is a little weak, but definitely clear and intelligible. Dolby Digital 2.0 (Dual Mono) at 192 Kbps.

While the film still appears a bit washed out in comparison to modern presentations, it STELLAR!!! for a 1952 public domain film presentation on DVD. Hence, on a scale of 1-5 (3 being average modern DVD) this would score at 2.85/5) Very good indeed. (Especially in comparison to the "Reel Classic Film" edition of this movie. Just don't buy that version as long as this one is available.)

Pick it up ... its worth the collection!