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• Pretty weak material delivered with little energy or wit posted on 30 Aug 2009

  A series of misadventures sees orphan Orville get onto the base for the space rocket launch and be mistaken for an imminent scientist. Lester is having none of it and puts him to work but the two of them manage to get into the rocket and accidentally launch it. They assume they have gone to Mars and the vast array of weird creatures convince them of as much. Of course they are unaware that they have actually landed in New Orleans and fit right in wearing their spacesuits. Coincidentally two escaped criminals see what is happening and understand it better than Lester and Orville and decide to take advantage.It has been years since I last watched an Abbott & Costello film and I decided recently to record some of the various movie channels and watch them. Years ago my TV options used to be limited to 4 terrestrial channels and as such my film watching was heavily influenced by the matinees that BBC2 used to put on during Saturday afternoons and the old films they used to show during school holidays – A&C being a regular part of those slots. With access to more (hell, I can even get DVD's posted to my flat) I rarely go back into the archives except for accepted "classics", which one could not really put on many of the A&C films. In hindsight, starting watching them again with this film was maybe not the best idea because it is a pretty weak affair.The basic plot allows for three or four scenarios, each of which are played out for longer than the basic gags can sustain. Of more concern though is the lack of energy and wit that the film has, it feels tired and basic throughout the whole film (which feels longer than it is). The material is lacking for sure but strong delivery can spice up things in some cases. Shame then that the majority of the cast just seem bored. Abbott and Costello both do their usual shtick but do it like men going through the motions. It perhaps isn't as bad as I make it sound but it is not either of them at their best. The rest of the cast are obvious criminals or lovely, lovely ladies – that's it. Nobody really gives the guys a lot to play off apart from a nice scene with Dr Orivia and Orville.Overall this is a basic film without much to recommend it for. Fans will appreciate it the way they do but for the casual viewers it is best left to kids rather than adults. The material is weak but it is the lack of energy in the delivery that caused problems for me, making it feel weaker as a total film. I will continue to watch some more of the A&C films but this is a bad place to start.

• Duck Miss Liberty posted on 30 Aug 2009

  Thanks to having director Charles Lamont on this one this film actually is better than some of the other films A&C made including their much inferior A&C Meet Captain Kidd. While this one does not have Charles Laughton & a lot of terrible music to support the boys, it doesn't need either of them.This film actually holds up better because there is less music & more A&C comedy. Both are welcome here. The slowest part of the film seems to be when they land on Venus. Even though there are a lot of attractive women on Venus, things slow down there.A critic when this film came out said "Go To Mars- And About Time". That comment really isn't fair to A&C as the special effects in this are sleazy & the script is grade B, yet A&C pull it up to a B Plus without much to work with. I am sure Charles Lamont's Direction had a lot to do with that.

• great Abbott and Costello film. posted on 30 Aug 2009

  this is another great bud Abbott and Lou Costello movie and because of all the same reasons it has great comedy in it it has good acting in it the actors in it are good it has a good story line to it everything in it is good. so i'm sure that you will not be disappointed with bud Abbott and Lou Costello go to mars. so make sure that you rent or buy bud Abbott and Lou Costello go to mars because it is really good. and i'm sure that you will have a good time watching it and you will watch it over and over again.overall score ******** out of ********** ***1/2 out of *****

• Not the worst A & C film posted on 30 Aug 2009

  This film has been referred to numerous times as "the worst of Abbott and Costello". I haven't seen that many A & C pictures so far, but from those that I HAVE seen I'd say "Comin' Round the Mountain" and "Lost in Alaska" and maybe even "Meet the Keystone Kops" are worse than this one, therefore the above statement cannot be true. The best thing about "Go to Mars" are the special effects, which are creative and at times even ingenious; before you complain about them from a "modern" perspective, consider that they are about on the same level with those of, say, "Superman IV" - and that was made 34 years later! Unfortunately, much like "Meet the Keystone Kops", this film gives you the impression that more time was spent on the technical tricks and effects than on providing enough funny material and routines for Abbott and Costello. The funniest exchange in the movie comes early on: Dr. Orvilla: "Why did you tell them that you are Dr. Orvilla?" Lou: "I didn't tell them, THEY told ME!". And although the absence of songs is welcome, the two escaped convicts who eventually join A & C in their trip to Venus get too much screen time on their own. (**)

• "Put the hose on him, put the fire out, and put him in the dungeon." posted on 30 Aug 2009

  "Abbott and Costello Go To Mars" is one of the better remembered films from my childhood, along with their romp with Frankenstein, and other Million Dollar Movie favorites like "Godzilla" and "King Kong". Perhaps it was the memorable New Orleans Mardi Gras setting with it's outlandish cast of costumed "martians", it would have been an even better visual treat in color. It's pure and simple fun, and doesn't use a lot of scientific mumbo jumbo to explain space flight, unless you rely on the comments by a couple of Orville's (Costello) young friends in the opening scene.The fact that the boys never do get to Mars is easily overlooked, particularly as they get sidetracked by a couple of bank robbers and take off for Venus. There we get an early look at the 1950's version of a Star Wars type land speeder, and get to see Venusian girls testing their accuracy in a game using saucers that pre-date the Frisbee. Presiding over the man-less Venusian landscape is Queen Allura, portrayed by Mari Blanchard and looking nothing short of gorgeous. Universal could have done a lot worse than populating the movie with an array of Miss Universe contestants.The funniest bit for me was probably meant to be serious; as the boys take off in their rocket for the second time, Dr. Wilson (Robert Paige) needs only about one second on a slide rule device to determine the ship is heading to Venus - huh, how'd he do that? Then there was the comment made by Orville when confronted by a foggy landscape in an unknown world - "Being I can't see a foot in front of me, I'd say it's Los Angeles." Wow, I didn't think L.A. became known for it's smog until the sixties!It's a shame that as time goes by, movies like "A & C Go To Mars" have less and less of an audience. It's charm lies in it's wholesome fare from a simpler time that doesn't have a message, without pretending to be anything more than fun. I think I'll get me a Venusian balloon.

• a lousy film that seems to be written for kids--adults will find it tough to sit through. posted on 30 Aug 2009

  This is, perhaps, one of the worst and most unfunny Abbott and Costello films. Not only does the team look old and bored, but overall there is hardly any energy about the film. And, unlike films such as Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, this movie would ONLY appeal to younger kids. Any sane adult would be annoyed by the amateurish quality of this film. It's pretty sad that the funniest(?) part of the film is everyone mistaking Costello ("Orville") with Dr. Orvilla--wow, that's funny.Our haggard team actually never even makes it to Mars but lands on an Amazon-infested Venus. Apparently, these women must have been VERY horny and lonely to have found either of these two irresistible. I'm feeling really tired and bored just thinking about it.I think this film has a respectable score on IMDb mostly because there are a lot of Abbott and Costello fans. While some of there films are pretty good, perhaps their love of the team may be coloring their ratings somewhat. A case in point is that this movie is not that different than CAT-WOMEN OF THE MOON and yet its overall IMDb score is half this film. Abbott and Costello have definitely done better.

• OK A&C . . . Not their worst, yet far from their best. posted on 30 Aug 2009

  This film isn't as bad as some of its detractors claim. It's not in the same league as Hold that Ghost or A&C Meet Frankenstein, but it's still a lot of fun in places. The duo meets a couple of dim-witted crooks who are actually almost as funny as A&C themselves. The scenes during Mardi Gras are quite amusing. Costello's argument with Dr. Orvilla (Joe Kirk) is a total hoot. The special effects are loads of fun. The Venusians are real campy in a 1950s atomic space age kind of way (although I must admit, I had forgotten about what an exotic and lovely woman Mari Blanchard was until I saw the film again recently). Despite all of these good qualities, and some of the funniest sight gags in any A&C movie, the film also has lots of stale dialogue and the boys look quite tired. Except for A&C Meet the Invisible Man, there's something kind of depressing about watching A&C's 1950s movies. You sort of know they're on the downward slope (which began after they met Frankenstein), and the descent is evident in this film. And why the movie wasn't called "Abbott and Costello Go to Venus" will always be a mystery. Still, it's much better than some of their worst films (e.g., Mexican Hayride, Jack and the Beanstalk, A&C Meet Captain Kidd), and when "The End" flashes up on the screen, true fans won't feel like they've wasted their time.

• This is not A&C's worst film posted on 30 Aug 2009

  "Go to Mars" has been unfairly maligned as Abbott and Costello's worst film.
  A careful comparison to "Mexican Hayride" or "Dance With Me, Henry" would certainly prove this point. While it doesn't rate in their Top 10, "Go to Mars" has many funny and wonderful moments.Among the great gags: Costello asking Abbott for a nickel to go through the Lincoln Tunnel; The Statue of Liberty ducking out of the way of the rocket.
  Costello's reactions to space flight are also funny.What drags the film down for me in the rankings are the following two items.
  First, the "space map" the rocket scientist uses to point out Venus and Mars; How can he find the two small planets among numerous pictures of large galaxies? If the map were accurate, Venus and Mars would not be in the Solar System, they would be two stars between galaxies! If these nitwits were in charge of the space program we would have never gotten to the moon!
  Second, the last 20 or so minutes are rushed compared to the rest of the film. It seems that in no time at all, Costello has gone from a prisoner on Venus to king. And then, just as quickly, is dethroned. This portion of the film is over too quickly, especially considering the bevy of Venus beauties we get to see!Take a quick look: that's Harry Shearer of "The Simpsons" and "Spinal Tap" fame in an uncredited role as a boy at the orphanage early in the film. Not their best, but certainly not their worst. 6 out of 10.

• It's about time! posted on 30 Aug 2009

  Along with the Bowery Boys, the Three Stooges and perhaps Elvis, no one was as good at churning out motion pictures quickly and on a tight budget than Abbot and Costello. Even present day comedians such as Carol Burnett and Jerry Seinfeld have heaped praise on the boys' slapstick brand of comedy. I've always felt they were greatly underappreciated in their day. And as the years pass by, their presence on the tube has, sadly, decreased. Most kids today probably have never
  been exposed to the thin straight man and his rotund buddy.I own only one A&C comedy. And this is it. Why? Maybe its because of "Allura", the queen, played by the beautiful B-movie siren Mari Blanchard. Discarding the "spell" theory one must assume the special effects are superb. And the fantasy elements are enjoyable and surprisingly well thought out and executed. The rocket ship nearly decapitates the Statue of Liberty, fails to pay the toll at the Lincoln Tunnel and scoots underneath the Brooklyn Bridge. But the movie is simply a ride through a different era: a time of comedy, scientists and space babes. Well, everyone should be afforded one guilty pleasure.

• Slapstick sci-fi is vintage 50's fun. posted on 30 Aug 2009

  Often cited as the team's worst film (which it's not!), this will likely fall in the `guilty pleasure' category for most fans. Vigorous juvenile slapstick merges with Freudian sci-fi in this late entry for the comedy duo (only a handful of movies remained on their Universal contract). Sci-fi elements are of the Saturday matinee variety, totally implausible and full of hokum (eg. CAT WOMEN OF THE MOON). Yet somehow, this provides the appropriate blend for A&C's `dumb and dumber' charades, in which camp elements become a part of the parody and the results are unbridled fantasy nonsense (populating the planet with Miss Universe contestants only adds to the fun). Universal would soon become a heavyweight contributer to the pulp sci-fi cycle of the 50's, yet surprisingly, this surreal spoof pre-dates them all! Thus far, this film has only been issued on VHS, the quality being overall quite good, in keeping with MCA's generally high standards for this format ... however a DVD would be most welcome.

• quite a good comedy. posted on 30 Aug 2009

  ***SPOILERS***This film is surpisingly underrated, seeing as a lot o h jokes are hilarious, especially the ones in the bank. The thing that let the film down however, is that the scenes on planet Venus were stupid and unrealistic and Miss. "New Jersey", was really, really, really, rubbish in it. Bud and Lou are funny though (especially Lou), as the two bumbling, though well meaning civil servants, who go to L.A., and think it's mars (cue funny gags), then they land on Venus and think it is L.A. (cue unfunny gags), silly but excitin, and supeb SFX, considering it ws the 50's, the two bank robbers are quite funny too, but, the custard pie gag at the end lowers the film, because it s a stupid ending.Classy at parts, Z-rate acting at parts, always fun though. **1/2 out of ****

• I think this is one of their best posted on 30 Aug 2009

  I cannot understand the negative reviews of this film. To me it was hilarious and ranks right next to "A & C meet Frankenstein" as the duo's best work. The scenes at Mardi Gras are a scream. I highly recommend this one.

• They never DID get to Mars! posted on 30 Aug 2009

  Your appreciation or otherwise of this little flick might depend on your level of whimsy and whether or not you were actually AROUND in the 50's and can recall the fervor of anticipated space travel and the films of those days. DESTINATION MOON, THIS ISLAND EARTH, TOBOR THE GREAT, WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE - there were so many! To see it now and compare it ..probably unfairly, with A & C's work of the late 40's, it indeed falls short of the standards they set for themselves. However as many have correctly commented, the younger viewer still finds it funny and gets something out of it.The film was NOT made on the cheap and indeed many of the sets hold up rather well today. The title remains a misnomer in that Bud and Lou only THINK their comandeered rocket has landed on Mars. As it turns out, it is in fact just a mardi gras in southern Louisiana. This sequence was the highlight of the movie. By the time they wing their bumbling way to Venus, there is only 27 minutes of the film left.Probably fair to say that ABBOTT AND COSTELLO GO TO MARS was made during the downside of their career and the "Space setting" was intended to net them a new generation of fans. In that regard it probably was not the success they would have hoped for. Still....ANY opportunity to see Anita Ekberg, even for a glimpse, was always worth the price of admission.Probably not held up as classic A & C but still it is part of their legacy and should be viewed with some affection.

• Abbott and Costello Go to Mars! posted on 30 Aug 2009

  This Abbott and Costello movie is good. The duo is always good! Mari Blanchard was good. The movie is funny and has some good moments! The spaceship effects were really cool! Good music! Look for Stanley Blystone, Jean Willes, and Dudley Dickerson who were in many Three Stooges shorts! If you like Abbott and Costello see Abbott and Costello go to Mars!

• 50's space-age theme. posted on 30 Aug 2009

  Fans of rocket-age science fiction films will find interest in this wacky spoof. The early 1950's saw the start of the atomic age rocket ship film genre with ROCKET X-M and DESTINATION MOON in 1950 and WHEN WORLDS COLLIDE and FLIGHT TO MARS in 1951. These movies were all hits and the trend lasted through the sixties with MAROONED and JOURNEY TO THE FAR SIDE OF THE SUN in 1969 (one year after 2001 A SPACE ODYSSEY). In 1953 Abbott and Costello quickly updated their old vaudeville routines to capture a younger, modern audience and try their hand at this phenomena.
  They had success spoofing the horror genre with A&C MEETS FRANKENSTEIN and A&C MEETS THE INVISIBLE MAN a couple years earlier and the young audiences who had watched Universal's monster films were now watching rocket films and would soon be watching alien monsters devour entire cities. Though flights to Mars were now a typical plot device, A&C GO TO MARS was ahead of the game by going to Venus six years before FIRST SPACESHIP ON VENUS (1959)! Abbott and Costello start off toward Mars but end up back on Earth during New Orleans Mardi Gras. They are fooled by fanciful costumes with giant masks and believe they are on Mars. Eventually they flee to Venus populated by beautiful women and all's well that ends well.The production values were very good, considering that studios were rushing out poorly produced imitations of ROCKET X-M and DESTINATION MOON after their success. After the quick patter routines of the duo that serviced them well in the forties had become so familiar to the audience it was refreshing to have them do something else. Though certainly not a classic and not on the list of best A & C films, for those tiring of the same routines this film is visually exciting filled with space-age fun, beautiful models and hilarious gags. Kids love the film and older adults love the 50's space-age theme. Grab the popcorn.

• Peurile posted on 30 Aug 2009

  At the very real risk of sounding pedantic I should perhaps point out that the title of the movie is a misnomer--they land on Venus and ,indeed ,it is over halfway through the movie before they do. The less than dynamic duo are accidently launched into space ,and first come down near New Orleans in Mardi Gras time ,while believing they are actually on Mars . This is the best segment of the movie as they mistake the elaborate Mardi Gras costumes as signs of alien life.When eventually they do make the space voyage they have two escaped convicts on board and discover that Venus is a planet ruled by women . There are some good scenes early on --the Mardi Gras scenes,a sequence involving slow motion speech and a less than speeding bullet etc .On arrival on Venus the movie becomes bogged down and not even the presence of several beauty queens of the day can lift the spiritsTired and lacking any inspiration ,this is routine and one for die hard fans only

• 'Abbott and Costello Go To Mars', but land on Venus instead. posted on 30 Aug 2009

  1953's Abbot and Costello Goes To Mars has a misleading title. They got to Venus instead. Though the film had a relatively large budget, the film's plot is not saved and the special effects are average B-Movie effects. The film was definitely one of A+C's wort of all time.The ending is at an all time worse, where the Venus women are attracted to Bud and Lou after they were defeated in a war against the females. What a plot, eh?While this is one of the worst A+C films ever, A+C are not to be blamed. They were going through a fanatical problem with the government, which could have very well ruined their careers. The budget is not to be blamed since it was rather high, and the sets were rather lavish (especially for a B-movie!). What couldn't be saved, however, was the plot, which needed to be edited much further than it was. It was an interesting concept, but it was done without heart. A+C's talents were wasted. MPAA Rating: NRMy Rating: 5 and upMy * Rating 5.2/10

• Great fun for kids from 8 to 80; better than fans will tell you. posted on 30 Aug 2009

  This was one of the first movies I ever saw, well before television came to Australia. As a child I simply loved it, and I've not changed my views on the movie in the intervening four or more decades. It seems usual for fans of A & C to deride the movie, but I rate it as the best they made after the end of the 1940s. Of course the SF aspects left me in awe at the time as I'd seen nothing like it. I even appreciated the Miss Universe entrants :) Even now the special effects seem pretty good for the period. The scenes aboard the space ship seem pretty silly, and did way back then, but that's the only glaring fault. One either loves or hates A&C. Put me in the former group.

• funny, and kids learn the ways of the world (or Venus, at the least) posted on 30 Aug 2009

  I can't understand the generally low review of this movie. I though it was a riot. My kids were happy and laughed a lot. Many puns, sight gags, and beautiful women rounded out a mostly wonderful, no worries, romp amongst the planets. I'd like to see this one remade for the current decade (why haven't we come up with a name for the current decade, anyway?, but that's another story....)

• Bud, Lou, rockets, and girls!!! posted on 30 Aug 2009

  Bud and Lou play maintenance men who accidentally blast off in an experimental rocket. Despite the movie's title, they don't actually go to Mars, they go to Venus -- and only during the last twenty-five minutes of the film. Before they get there they waste thirty minutes of the story by landing in New Orleans -- which they think is Mars because of all the weird Mardi Gras costumes (a painfully unfunny gag).Two escaped criminals stowaway aboard the ship and try to hi-jack the rocket after a second accidental lift-off, but the boys outwit them and the finally lands on Venus.Admittedly Venus is worth the wait; all the Venusians are gorgeous contestants from the Miss Universe Pageant, and their queen is Maria Blanchard (`She Devil'). The men were defeated long ago in a war with the females, but some of the girls miss them so badly that even Bud and Lou look go to them. Queen Maria wants Bud to be her king!Anita Ekberg (Miss Sweden) is one of the gals, but you'll have to look quick to spot her. Sets, props, and special effects are excellent. Watch for several props which were also used in other Universal sci-fi films (the death ray device in `It Came from Outer Space' and the bullet car from `This Island Earth'). Not the funniest A & C comedy, but decidedly enjoyable for 1950s sci-fi fans. The prerecorded tape looks good.