This Abbott and Costello comedy brings to mind the earlier rather similar "Road to Zanzibar", staring Hope, Crosby and Lamour. Both involve interactions with gorillas and cannibals. They differ in that the gorilla in the present film is friendly and helpful toward Costello because be rescued it from a pit fall trap. Also, we get a look at a King Kong-sized gorilla, which just stands there. It's unclear if this is supposed to be the Orangutan gargantuan-a fabled giant form of orangutan that the expedition supposedly was seeking. All present naturally occurring orangutans are confined to the islands of Sumatra and Borneo, no where near Africa. Partial fossils of a long extinct giant form of Orangutans (Gigantopithecus) have been found in parts of eastern and southern Asia.
Getting back to the movie, Lou is afraid of all animals. We see him cracking a whip at some unseen animal, which turns out to be a house cat. Doesn't sound like a good candidate for a safari to darkest Africa! Nonetheless, he's invited to go on such an expedition organized by Diana Emerson, who seems to be an independent wealthy young woman, who was actually after diamonds rumored to be plentiful in one small area of the Congo basin. Lou claims to have memorized the lost map of where these diamonds are. Abbott invites himself on the expedition. Ex-boxers Max and Buddy Baer: Diana's henchmen are also present, while Shemp Howard, of The Three Stooges, plays gunner, who is nearly blind, despite very thick glasses. Incredulously, he's supposed to be ready to shoot any dangerous animals, in case the primary shooter misses. He appears as the focus of attention occasionally, serving as a running gag. We also have wild tropical animals experts Clyde Beatty and Frank Buck. Clyde snaps his whip to encourage some lions to do his bidding in a large bamboo enclosure. Lou enters this enclosure, locking the door, confident that he can get along with the lion inside, thinking it's Abbott, in his lion suit. When he sees Abbott outside the cage, he panics, and later hides under a wicker enclosure. Abbott returns and doesn't see Lou, thus supposes the lion ate him, clothes and all(right!). Later, Abbott finds Lou, who finds a large clear stone. Abbott declares it's a diamond(very unlikely). As they walk along the jungle path, they find more, until they come to a native village, where they see that a native has been planting these stones to make them come to their village. They're tied to poles, while a big cauldron of water is being boiled. A gorilla comes along and unties Lou's ropes, then he unties Abbott's ropes, and they skedaddle. Abbott has the stones in a sack, which he hides in the jungle while Lou is elsewhere. When Abbott returns for his diamonds, they aren't to be found, as the gorilla took them. Meanwhile, the Baer brothers are roaming the jungle when a group of chimpanzees decides to have fun with them. They pile palm leaves on the trail, which one trips over. They hit one with a pea shooter. Soon, the two are fighting each other. The chimps end the fight by dropping coconuts on their heads.
We see Abbott paddling a raft down the river, when Lou yells he wants to go with him. But Abbott refuses, saying, since his diamonds were stolen, he's going home. The next scene is in front of a tall skyscraper in NYC. Lou gets out of a car, smartly dressed, enters the skyscraper, and goes to the elevator. Abbott is the elevator operator. He asks Lou if he can have a raise. Lou says he will have to consult with his business partner. Guess who his business partner is. You got it!
Although this was filmed in B&W, I saw the colorized version at YouTube, which was quite good. This was a relatively short A&C film, at 75min....Hillary Brooke, who played Diana, had an extensive film and TV career. She played a pirate captain in "Abbott and Costello meet Captain Kidd.", and was Lou's usual girlfriend on "The Abbott and Costello Show"
This is a moderately interesting film, especially for children, with some childish performances here and there.
Getting back to the movie, Lou is afraid of all animals. We see him cracking a whip at some unseen animal, which turns out to be a house cat. Doesn't sound like a good candidate for a safari to darkest Africa! Nonetheless, he's invited to go on such an expedition organized by Diana Emerson, who seems to be an independent wealthy young woman, who was actually after diamonds rumored to be plentiful in one small area of the Congo basin. Lou claims to have memorized the lost map of where these diamonds are. Abbott invites himself on the expedition. Ex-boxers Max and Buddy Baer: Diana's henchmen are also present, while Shemp Howard, of The Three Stooges, plays gunner, who is nearly blind, despite very thick glasses. Incredulously, he's supposed to be ready to shoot any dangerous animals, in case the primary shooter misses. He appears as the focus of attention occasionally, serving as a running gag. We also have wild tropical animals experts Clyde Beatty and Frank Buck. Clyde snaps his whip to encourage some lions to do his bidding in a large bamboo enclosure. Lou enters this enclosure, locking the door, confident that he can get along with the lion inside, thinking it's Abbott, in his lion suit. When he sees Abbott outside the cage, he panics, and later hides under a wicker enclosure. Abbott returns and doesn't see Lou, thus supposes the lion ate him, clothes and all(right!). Later, Abbott finds Lou, who finds a large clear stone. Abbott declares it's a diamond(very unlikely). As they walk along the jungle path, they find more, until they come to a native village, where they see that a native has been planting these stones to make them come to their village. They're tied to poles, while a big cauldron of water is being boiled. A gorilla comes along and unties Lou's ropes, then he unties Abbott's ropes, and they skedaddle. Abbott has the stones in a sack, which he hides in the jungle while Lou is elsewhere. When Abbott returns for his diamonds, they aren't to be found, as the gorilla took them. Meanwhile, the Baer brothers are roaming the jungle when a group of chimpanzees decides to have fun with them. They pile palm leaves on the trail, which one trips over. They hit one with a pea shooter. Soon, the two are fighting each other. The chimps end the fight by dropping coconuts on their heads.
We see Abbott paddling a raft down the river, when Lou yells he wants to go with him. But Abbott refuses, saying, since his diamonds were stolen, he's going home. The next scene is in front of a tall skyscraper in NYC. Lou gets out of a car, smartly dressed, enters the skyscraper, and goes to the elevator. Abbott is the elevator operator. He asks Lou if he can have a raise. Lou says he will have to consult with his business partner. Guess who his business partner is. You got it!
Although this was filmed in B&W, I saw the colorized version at YouTube, which was quite good. This was a relatively short A&C film, at 75min....Hillary Brooke, who played Diana, had an extensive film and TV career. She played a pirate captain in "Abbott and Costello meet Captain Kidd.", and was Lou's usual girlfriend on "The Abbott and Costello Show"
This is a moderately interesting film, especially for children, with some childish performances here and there.