The Ghost Breakers

Larry Lawrence, a radio broadcaster who believes he has been caught up in a gangland killing, hides in the luggage of a woman named Mary Carter while fleeing. Mary has inherited a castle in Cuba, and the castle is haunted. The two of them travel to the island. George Marshall directs. Bob Hope plays Larry and Paulette Goddard plays Mary. It counts among the most effective examples of horror married to comedy, and Hope's method is central: he does not play fear, he keeps confessing his cowardice out loud. That posture passed into every horror comedy that followed. Marshall remade the same story in 1953 as Scared Stiff for Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. The source is older still: a stage play filmed silent in 1922. The most troubling element now is Alex, played by Willie Best. The part is a direct instance of the frightened servant type imposed on Black actors at the time, and it is the most criticised thing in the film. Best's timing shows a fine comedian; the material locks him into a type. Who it is for: viewers interested in classic Hollywood comedy and the roots of horror parody. Who it is not for: anyone who will be troubled by racist stereotyping. The film is indefensible on that count.