2hotFeature one of my absolute favorites!

Stoutor It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.

Sammy-Jo Cervantes There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Phillida Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

boscopa-1 Having recently watched "The Noose Hangs High" for the first time in probably 25 years I was delighted to find it extremely funny. Having grown up watching Abbott & Costello on Sunday mornings I have subliminally memorized many of their movies in the deep recesses of my brain. While the gags from this movie kept coming back to me seconds before they actually happened I found myself laughing out loud and enjoying this film thoroughly. "Noose" is essentially a series of gags held together by the flimsiest of plots. The boys run afoul of gangster Nick Craig and must return the $50,000 Lou has misplaced or else. In the midst of this A&C manage to shoehorn in many of their most famous routines; all of which are well-known to their fans but within this film they are done with such gusto that one overlooks their familiarity. The film also dispenses with the insufferable romantic subplots that derail many of their films and the annoying musical numbers that further slow down the story. Cathy Downs, who portrayed the title character in John Ford's "My Darling Clementine," adds a touch of feminine interest but doesn't bog the proceedings down. Two standout sequences for me were the dentist scene and the scene where Lou gets attacked by an automobile. At the beginning of the film Lou has a toothache and finds himself in the chair of nearsighted dentist Murray Leonard, who portrayed the wacky prisoner tormenting Costello with the "Slowly I Turned . . ." bit in "Lost In a Harem." The scene is so fresh and spontaneous I defy anyone not to laugh. And watching Costello tangle with the unruly car nearly had me in stitches. Besides A&C, who are superb, the supporting cast is very strong. Joseph Calleia as Craig is both menacing and hilarious minus his trademark mustache. Leon Errol, whom I find annoying in almost everything, is actual entertaining as a goofy gambler that never loses. And Mike Mazurki is really hilarious in a scene where he gets scammed out of $10 first by Bud and then Lou. He stumbles over some words in his exchanges with the fast- talking Costello but this only adds to the humor. A pleasant surprise, "The Noose Hangs High" is a delightful film that is superior to anything the boys did after 1946 with the possible exception of their classic rumble with the Universal monsters in "Meet Frankenstein."

Robert J. Maxwell I don't know. I hate to be a spoilsport but this is mainly a comedy made for kids. And I got a big kick out of Abbott and Costello when I was ten. But I'm not ten anymore, and hearing Abbott always snarling at his partner is something of a turn-off. If it ever seemed funny, it doesn't now. It just sounds rude. And Costello flipping his hands and wriggling his fingers like worms when frightened or confused. Much of their schtik came from vaudeville and burlesque. It must have gotten big laughs from the patrons while they waited for the burlesque queen to do her number. Strip tease dancing -- there's a bundle of lack of talent for you. It's disgusting. I used to try to get into the Empire Burlesque in Newark but they wouldn't let me in because I was underage.The story has something to do with a lot of money being mis-delivered by Abbott and Costello, two window washers who are mistaken for a bookie's messengers.The most amusing scene is supposed to take place in a dentist's office near the opening. It struck me as the lowest form of vaudeville-derived slapstick.It's too bad because you can do a lot with dentists. Think of both versions of "The Little Shop of Horrors" or "Ten", or even a Red Skelton comedy -- "A Southern Yankee", maybe -- in which the scene with the dentist's chair was staged by Buster Keaton. W. C. Fields did a number on it. There is a hilarious episode of "Married With Children", called "Tooth or Consequences", in which Joe Flaherty plays a dentist named "Dr. Plierson," and calls for his assistant to bring in a tarpaulin because he'll soon be "up to my knees in blood." They're all funnier than the dentist's chair pushing Costello's head through the ceiling.I am happy, though, that others enjoy it as much as they seem to. I'm certain the kids will feel the same rush I did. You know, in the end, you pay a price for growing up.

bkoganbing The Noose Hangs High marks Abbott&Costello's only film for the short lived Eagle-Lion Productions. This was an effort by J. Arthur Rank over across the pond to break into the American film market with his own production and distribution company.Bud&Lou are a pair of window washers who are mistaken for messengers that are employed by bookie Joseph Calleia. It seems as though he's been taken to the cleaners by one of his bettors and though it hurts he has to pay off. The messengers are to get the money from Ben Welden and deliver it to Calleia.Of course Welden has ideas of having the boys held up and stealing the money for himself. Costello actually eludes the crooks, but sends the money to Cathy Downs by mistake. Now he and Bud have 48 hours to come up with the money or ELSE.Leon Errol is along for the ride as his usual drunken playboy and he subs for Abbott as Lou's straight-man a couple of times. Though in those routines I can't tell who's the one really getting the laughs.What always gets me about The Noose Hangs High is Calleia and how he could be that dumb to mistake these two for good help. What's that say about him. Proof of that is a routine where both Abbott and Costello make a monkey out of big dumb leg breaker Mike Mazurki. The Noose Hangs High is a remake of the Universal film For Love Or Money. I haven't seen the original, but the material was definitely rewritten to suit Bud&Lou. It becomes nothing more than a vehicle for the boys to do several of their burlesque routines. Which for their fans is more than enough.

george.schmidt THE NOOSE HANGS HIGH (1948) ** Abbott and Costello comedy with the boys in trouble with stolen loot and some crooks. Some classic bits including the famous "Mudder's Fodder" and "Mustard".