Customer Reviews

Dance with Me, Henry

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

That should have been a subtitle title for Dance With Me Henry. While it's not their best work, a complicated plot which gets more complicated as it goes along, Henry is enjoyable if you like mob films. This represents a change in the direction of A&C films, with Lou playing Lou Henry, a play-it-straight, intelligent proprietor of Kiddyland amusement park. All he wants is to keep the Welfare Board from declaring him an unfit parent and take away his two adopted children. Bud plays Bud Flick, the semi-shady friend of Henry, who runs up a $20,000 gambling debt and gets in hot water with the mob. Flick uses Henry's generosity and friendship to bail himself out, with disastrous results, even leading to Lou being wrongly arrested for the murder of the D.A.

As this was to be their last film together, the change in character was used to try something new. While Henry will often remind the viewer of a 1950s mafia film, such as The Untouchables, there are plenty of laughs along the way. For instance, the very last chaotic scene in the amusement park contains plenty of slapstick humor. Also, the slick talking Flick manages to confuse Costello into disagreeable situations, as in many of their earlier films. Granted this is an atypical A&C movie, but any A&C fan will appreciate the boys' work here. As with other atypical A&C films, such as Time of Their Lives and Little Giant, Dance With Me Henry includes some of their most creative work.

Dance With Me, Henry was the last film the great comedy team of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello made together, and far from their worst. Costello is the proprietor of Kiddyland, an amusement park, an appropriate character for his child like comedy style. Abbott is his gambling partner.
The main part of the plot concerns crooks Abbott is indebted to, but there's a subplot about orphans and Costello losing custody of his kids due to a nosy, prim social worker played to perfection by the great character actress Mary Wickes (Who Done It?, On Moonlight Bay, Father Dowling Mysteries).
The supporting cast also includes former child star Gigi Perreau, Robert Shayne (who played Inspector Henderson on Superman) as the district attorney, and, as the Priest at the orphanage, Frank Wilcox, recognizable from numerous TV guest shots like Brewster on The Beverly Hillbillies, Wally's principal on Leave It To Beaver, and a judge on Perry Mason.
Much of the comedy in this one may seem hackneyed or aimed at children - such as the extensive chase through the amusement park at the end - but there is some good original comedy as well, such as when Lou, suspected of murdering the DA, is questioned by cops, and gradually through the long, intense interrogation, he breaks down each cop, one after another. Plus, it's the only A & C film with rock music, or at least Rythm & Blues.
Dance With Me Henry is an appropirate final film for the great team, with higher production values than many of their other later films, certainly far better than Africa Screams, for instance, but more memorable for the characters they play than for laughs.

Their last film, uses the team in non-comedic team roles. Not the first time, but it really stands out here. For an A&C fan, worth looking to see the changes that they went through as a team and all. Mostly this is a Lou vehicle, worth a look, but certainly not a classic.

Here was another chance for Lou Costello to show his acting talents - a prior effort, The Time Of Their Lives - was also an impressive performance. Too bad he never got to play Mayor LaGuardia on film, as I've read. He's capable of generating much pathos, where an actor noted for frantic slapstick might exaggerate, or be overly sentimental. His role as the proprietor of "Kiddyland", a nearby amusement park convenient to the kids he's taken in, to the concern of a local social worker, gives him room to show what he can do. His buddy Bud is also effective, in a more, shall we say "humbling role", compared to the affable con-man he usually plays.
What's really wrong in this oddball but fun affair is the ill-conceived, overdrawn plot involving Bud's gambling habits and his less than honorable cohorts who occasionally supply his funding. The mix of kids and crooks is at times very awkward - in fact there's a very bizarre scene in which a young girl witnesses a murder at the park, later to be questioned. The victim is the actor who played the Inspector on "The Adventures Of Superman" TV series, interestingly enough, also directed by Charles Barton. It was very poor scripting not to provide for this character to appear at the end, recovered from the gunshot.
I enjoyed the use of the 1950s classic, "Dance With Me, Henry" (of course based upon the slightly risque "Work With Me Annie" by Hank Ballard And The Midnighters); theres a nice scene where the children dance to the General Audience version at Kiddyland when the bad guys are vanquished.

I love that song, but, sadly it wasn't used in the show, except for a short musical stretch. It seems unreal that this movie was made in 1956ad & this was their last movie together. A & C were good, but the movie didn't seem to have the fun or zip that was in most of their shows, but it was still enjoyable & cute with the children & animals plus something that is disappearing from America: the small hometown amusement parks (we had Whalom Park & now it is the place of ugly condos). If you want something that the family can watch, then this will help especially considering the junk that they are calling entertainment nowadays. The VHS was in very good shape, but, if you get this movie, try to get it on DVD whenever they put it back out again, except, don't pay too much, unless, of course, you are a real die-hard fan of them & you want it at any cost. +JMJ+

DANCE WITH ME, HENRY (1956)
United Artists
Release Date: December 22, 1956
Runtime: 79 minutes

Director:
Charles Barton

Producer:
Robert Goldstein

Writing Credits:
Devery Freeman
Leslie Kardos
William Kozlenko

Cast:

Bud Abbott....Bud Flick
Lou Costello....Lou Henry
Gigi Perreau....Shelley
Rusty Hamer....Duffer
Mary Wickes....Miss Mayberry
Ted De Corsa....Big Frank
Ron Hargrave....Ernie
Frank Wilcox....Father Mullahy
Sherry Alberoni....Bootsie
Eddie Marr....Lt. Garvey
Richard Reeves....'Mushie' Nolan
Robert Shayne....Martin Proctor
Walter Reed....Drake
Paul Sorenson....'Dutch' Bleer
John Cliff....Knucks (uncredited)
Phil Garris....Mickey (uncredited)
David McMahon....Savoldi (uncredited)
Gilman Rankin....McKay (uncredited)
Rod Williams....Janitor (uncredited)

Cinematography by:
George Robinson

Film Editing by:
Robert Golden

Art Direction:
A. Leslie Thomas

Set Decoration:
Morris Hoffman

Assistant Director:
Herbert E. Mendelson

Other Crew:
Eleanor H. Donahoe....script supervisor
Paul Dunlap....musical director
Max Frankel....property master

Plot Summary:

"DANCE WITH ME, HENRY" was the screen swang song for the comedy team of Bud Abbott and Lou Costello. Most of the action takes place in Kiddieland, an amusement park owned by soft-hearted Lou Henry (Costello). An inverterate collector of strays, Lou has adopted orphaned kids Shelley (Gigi Perreau) and Duffer (Rusty Hamer), and has also provided a safe harbor for chronic gambler Bud Flick (Abbott). Bud's enormous gamnbling debts bring Lou under the scrutiny of gangster Big Frank (Ted De Corsia), who in turn is being monitored by District Attorney Proctor (Robert Shayne). When Proctor is murdered, Lou finds himself the number one suspect. The film concludes with a riotous chase through the carnival grounds, with Bud and Lou just a few steps ahead of the bad guys.
Both Abbott and Costello seem tired and worn out in "DANCE WITH ME, HENRY", but a few bright moments manage to seep through the malaise of moldy old jokes and half-hearted sight gags.

ROUTINES & HILARIOUS MOMENTS:
Coffee In Hot Water Bottle
Bud with long beard and dark glasses.

Trivia: Robert Shayne(1900-1992) is best remembered for his role of Inspector Bill Henderson in the classic TV series "ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN"(Syndicated. 1952-1958).

Charles Barton does fine job directing the team's swan song to the big screen. The boys play the owners of an amusement park, who get mixed up with notorious gangsters. The film teams the duo up once again with Mary Wickes - who co-starred with the team in their classic film - "WHO DONE IT". Look closely, and you'll notice actor Robert Shayne. Best known for his role of "INSPECTOR HENDERSON" in the 1950s TV series - "ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN" - which starred George Reeves.

Charles Barton does fine job directing the team's swan song to the big screen. The boys play the owners of an amusement park, who get mixed up with notorious gangsters. The film teams the duo up once again with Mary Wickes, who co-starred with them in their classic film "WHO DONE IT ?" . Look close and you'll notice actor Robert Shayne. Best known for his role of "INSPECTOR HENDERSON" in the "ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN" TV series.

Typical Abbot & Costello movie. Campy.

Movies today are too serious. This is light entertainment.

We love all the works of Abbot and Costello...so don't miss out on any one of them....collect them all! We are getting replacements on DVD for all the VHS copies we had....what great fun and laughs even the younger generation is getting into this series!