Hold That Ghost (4K UHD Review)
Director
Arthur LubinRelease Date(s)
1941 (April 28, 2026)Studio(s)
Universal Pictures (Kino Lorber Studio Classics)- Film/Program Grade: B+
- Video Grade: A-
- Audio Grade: A-
- Extras Grade: C+
Review
Relatively new on the Universal lot, Bud Abbott and Lou Costello were already box office draws and bonafide stars by the time their fourth film Hold That Ghost hit movie screens in 1941, which was preceded by One Night in the Tropics, Buck Privates, and In the Navy. It’s their earliest foray into horror comedy, which they would primarily be known for after the release of Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, perhaps their most enduring and most popular film. However, many Bud and Lou fans often point to Hold That Ghost as the funnier forerunner.
Chuck (Abbott) and Ferdie (Lou) are recently-employed gas station attendants after being fired from their jobs at a fancy nightclub, with Ferdie dreaming of one day owning one of his own. While waiting on a customer, they’re accidentally whisked away in the back of a car driven by gangster Moose Matison (William B. Davidson), whose on the run from the police and subsequently shot and killed. However, according to his last will and testament, whomever he’s with in his final moments inherits his estate, which includes a dilapidated tavern. Charting a wildcat bus with three strangers—a doctor (Richard Carlson), a waitress (Evelyn Ankers), and a radio actress (Joan Davis)—Moose’s crooked lawyer Charlie (Marc Lawrence) escorts them all to the tavern during a rainstorm. They later discover that the tavern is also the hiding place of a stash of money, which Moose’s subordinates want their hands on, doing whatever it takes to scare the tavern’s new owners off the premises. The film also features appearances by Russell Hicks, Mischa Auer, Shemp Howard, Ted Lewis and his Orchestra, and The Andrews Sisters.
Compared to their performances in their latter years, particularly during their run up against movie monsters and maniacs, Hold That Ghost shows a fresh-faced Abbott and Costello still very much a tightly-knit two-man comedy duo, long before the pressures of celebrity and their personal lives began to interfere with their act. The rest of the cast is terrific all around, particularly Joan Davis whom really should have had a more successful career as a film comedian as she’s more than equal to Bud and Lou. It’s also worth noting that the moving candle gag in Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein was first introduced here, which is in a different way since Dracula’s coffin isn’t involved, but Lou’s involvement means that the scene is just as hilarious.
Hold That Ghost was meant to be Bud and Lou’s third released film after Buck Privates, but during test screenings audiences were dismayed by the lack of The Andrew Sisters, so re-shoots were ordered and they were added into the film at the beginning and the end, which if you’re already familiar with the previous Abbott and Costello films, you certainly wouldn’t know while watching it since they were an integral part of them up this point. It certainly helped as Hold That Ghost was another smash hit for Universal, and helped continue Bud and Lou’s domination at the box office as one of the most successful comedy acts of that or any era.
Cinematographer Elwood Bredell shot Hold That Ghost on 35mm film with spherical lenses. The results were finished photochemically and framed theatrically at the aspect ratio 1.37:1. Kino Lorber Studio Classics debuts the film on Ultra HD from a 4K scan of the original camera negative, which has been graded for High Dynamic Range in HDR10 and Dolby Vision, and encoded to a triple-layered BD-100 disc. Like the previous 4K releases of Abbott and Costello’s films released by Kino, the presentation is mostly a winner. There are obvious appearances of scratches and speckling, as well as some minor warp and instability in a few places, but it’s an overall organic picture with decently-handled grain and a healthy bitrate. Delineation is good with some nice grayscale, offering more solid blacks and whites, as well as variances in between. The HDR grade does help deepen the detail in the image and iron out the contrast, especially in scenes that are very dark, but the presentation as a whole is strong and natural to its source.
Audio is included in English 2.0 mono DTS-HD Master Audio with optional subtitles in English SDH. It’s a clean and satisfactory monaural experience with plenty of support for dialogue, score, music, and sound effects without any issues to speak of, faring slightly better than its video counterpart.
The Kino Lorber Studio Classics 4K Ultra HD release of Hold That Ghost sits in a black Amaray case with an insert and a slipcover featuring the original theatrical release artwork. The following extras are included:
- Audio Commentary with Alan K. Rode
- Audio Commentary with Samm Deighan
- Trailer (HD – 2:38)
The first commentary features author and film historian Alan K. Rode. There’s a few too many gaps and Rode is a bit rusty here and there, but he does delve into Abbott and Costello’s history and their rise to stardom, as well as their on- and off-set personalities. He talks about various members of the cast and crew and provides some much-needed context for some of the performers and routines. The second commentary features film historian Samm Deighan. It’s an unusual track in that she approaches the film by dissecting it for outsiders, specifically fans of Abbott and Costello’s horror comedies and not much else. She examines their comedy bits, storylines, and other their films, as well as various aspects of the film. She also speaks about the careers of the cast and crew and highlights this era in Hollywood. Last is a digitally re-constructed trailer.
Missing from Shout! Factory’s 2019 Abbott and Costello: The Complete Universal Pictures Collection Blu-ray collection that includes Hold That Ghost is an audio commentary with film historian Jeff Miller, an image gallery, and a set of production notes. For further viewing, there’s also a surviving appearance by Bud and Lou performing a slimmed-down version of Hold That Ghost on the Hollywood Premiere radio program hosted by Louella Parsons for the film’s premiere, as well as Robert Osborne’s Turner Classic Movies intro and outro from a TV airing of the film in 2015. All of this can still be found on Youtube, as of this writing.
Hold That Ghost is one of many Abbott and Costello fans’ favorites and still as entertaining today as it was in 1941. This is a nice UHD release of the film, though one can’t help but want to see it get a little more special treatment in the extras department. Still, it offers a terrific picture and comes recommended regardless.
- Tim Salmons
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