A waste of 90 minutes of my life

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

When MGM lost a contract deal to sign Abbott and Costello in 1941, Universal Studios in a conciliatory gesture loaned them out to their movie rival. Universal was willing to put the comedy team in as leads rather than support roles and the boys apparently had a talented agent to wrest them away from the larger studio. MGM was so aggrieved that they almost filed a lawsuit but apparently cooler heads prevailed, with "Rio Rita" the first of three pictures MGM put the boys in.For fans of Abbott and Costello who have seen plenty of their films, one of the first things you notice here are the absence of their many recycled film bits like 'Slowly I Turned' and 'Who's on First?'. The MGM writing staff did a decent job of coming up with their own funny dialog for the pair like the 'Pike's Peak' gag. Production values run a notch above Universal as well, obviously MGM had a lot more money to spend on extras as evidenced by the rather lavishly costumed Volusia dance number. It would have looked a lot better in color though.The setting is the Hotel Vista del Rio in Del Rio, Texas, which wouldn't mean much to most viewers, but that was also the home town of Imus in the Morning's fictional radio character, the Reverend Billy Sol Hargus. Imus hasn't used that bit for many years now, but once you've heard it you remember it.As for the story, things get muddled rather quickly after the main plot element is revealed. Radio station KPKO is a front for a Nazi fifth column enterprise attempting to smuggle bombs into the country. There's some business about a secret code book and planting information in the radio's broadcast commercials, but not a lot comes of it all. Even the presence of a 'talking' German Shepherd held some potential for Nazi intrigue, but instead the talented canine did an amusing roll-over gag with Costello.In fact, one could almost make a case for the picture being a musical, but with widely disparate genres in play. There's an early riders on horseback segment doing a Texas Rangers song, while John Carroll and Kathryn Grayson offer up a few tunes as well, with Grayson showing amazing voice control in an operatic number that in all other respects was virtually unlistenable. Things eventually come together to expose the Nazi bad guys in the end, but once it's over, one begins to wonder what the picture was all about.

I'm watching several of the Abbott & Costello films that TCM is running, and I began to wonder why I had only watched the collection I already had only once. And watching this film, I finally got it. Abbott & Costello cannot compare to Martin & Lewis, and here's why. It's not the fault of Lou Costello. The man is hilarious, and much more able to combine that hilarity with pathos than Jerry Lewis. The problem is/was Bud Abbott. The main had a very limited talent -- he could feed lines to Lou Costello, he could slap Lou Costello around, he could yell at Lou Costello. But Dean could sing and be the romantic lead. So, you could put Martin & Lewis together in a movie and have a complete film. But with Abbott and Costello, Lou could provide all the comedy, but Abbott could not sing or be romantic or dance or do anything to carry part of the film. And that is very clear in this film.Don't get me wrong. This is an entertaining film, And the focus is Abbott and Costello. But, most A&C films have to bring in some romance, so here they bring in John Carroll and Kathryn Grayson. In most A&C films they have to bring in some music, so again, here they turn to John Carroll and Kathryn Grayson. As a result, as with most other A&C films, "Rio Rita" becomes a musical-comedy-variety film...and who does that better than MGM with its high production values? But as a result, some focus is thereby shifted away from Abbott & Costello. But, A&C are very funny here, both in terms of Lou's slapstick, and the team's witty dialog.Due to World War II, the plot of the old musical (by the way, almost every song from the original Ziegfeld production has been eliminated) has been modified to bring in a Nazi spy plot to trigger the action; but it works.As Abbott & Costello films go, this is pretty good, and well worth a watch.

For me, this film is a weaker attempt compared to the films Abbott and Costello were making at Universal. This fact is actually shocking, because MGM was one of the biggest and most important studios around at that time, and comedy wasn't new for them. The opening scenes in the pet shop are hilarious, and the film has its share of funny jokes, such as the car repair shop, and the washing machine scenes. However, I think the scene where the donkey(having swallowed a Nazi radio) sticks its head in the window, and speaks in Hitler's voice, is my favorite in the film. I always crack up laughing at that moment, and Lou's comment, "I've heard your voice, but this is the first time I've ever seen your face."

This was Bud and Lou's only film for MGM, which was their good fortune. It's surprising that Universal Studios, for which A and C were prime money-makers, would have lent them out. They must have sent someone to Universal in exchange. Most of the team's Universal films, no matter how silly the premise, were usually tightly constructed around their personalities and abilities, which were mostly a series of set pieces within a flimsy plot, except The Time of Their Lives, when they portrayed characters in the story line, without any of their routines. Many consider this their best film, though I don't agree, despite its departure from their formula. At any rate, MGM showed itself unable to use their talents to the foremost, as was the case in their use of the Marx Brothers in their three last MGM films. There are several excellent routines, but they are submerged in a tedious and unbelievable plot of romance and espionage. MGM was developing Kathryn Grayson (who does not get star billing) as a contract player, and would probably have taken advantage of A and C's box office appeal to showcase her. Unfortunately, her performance is quite wooden; though perhaps she could not do much with the material given. Later on she developed at least a degree of charm, if not strong acting talent, in some of MGM's large-scale musicals, especially Show Boat. If you are an A and C fan, make good use of your fast-forward.