Almost everything I've ever read about this 1940 film has been negative, and a lot has been downright hostile. I think much of the resentment stems from the simple fact that Karloff, Lugosi, and Lorre all appear together, but they're wasted in a silly musical comedy and their roles aren't even very big. In fact, that's what I thought when I was a kid.
However, YOU'LL FIND OUT has grown on me over the years, and now it's a big favorite of mine. It's a hoot to see the stars going along with the joke yet playing it straight. As in the later A&C MEET FRANKENSTEIN, the script treats them with respect, providing a tailor-made part for each of them (Karloff as an aloof but crooked lawyer, Lugosi as a phony medium, Lorre as a quack psychiatrist). And for once they're not enemies but allies, working together on a deadly plot to murder an heiress and grab her cash.
The film's real star, Kay Kyser, was a bandleader who had big success in radio and records (the first scene depicts his radio quiz show, The College of Musical Knowledge). His band played the smooth, "sweet" style of swing, but their specialty was goofy novelty songs. One number, where the musicians dress as little kids to browbeat "The Bad Humor Man," must be seen to be believed. I view these guys as the predecessors to Spike Jones and The Bonzo Dog Band. One horn player, Ish Kabibble wears something like a Beatle haircut (and so does his dog, the actual hero of the film). There an interesting gimmick in the Sonovox, a voice-distorting mechanism that Lugosi uses for his seances until Kyser discovers it and incorporates it into his act. It's effective either way.
In short, I'd like to stand up for this foolish flick. Any other opinions?
However, YOU'LL FIND OUT has grown on me over the years, and now it's a big favorite of mine. It's a hoot to see the stars going along with the joke yet playing it straight. As in the later A&C MEET FRANKENSTEIN, the script treats them with respect, providing a tailor-made part for each of them (Karloff as an aloof but crooked lawyer, Lugosi as a phony medium, Lorre as a quack psychiatrist). And for once they're not enemies but allies, working together on a deadly plot to murder an heiress and grab her cash.
The film's real star, Kay Kyser, was a bandleader who had big success in radio and records (the first scene depicts his radio quiz show, The College of Musical Knowledge). His band played the smooth, "sweet" style of swing, but their specialty was goofy novelty songs. One number, where the musicians dress as little kids to browbeat "The Bad Humor Man," must be seen to be believed. I view these guys as the predecessors to Spike Jones and The Bonzo Dog Band. One horn player, Ish Kabibble wears something like a Beatle haircut (and so does his dog, the actual hero of the film). There an interesting gimmick in the Sonovox, a voice-distorting mechanism that Lugosi uses for his seances until Kyser discovers it and incorporates it into his act. It's effective either way.
In short, I'd like to stand up for this foolish flick. Any other opinions?
