csteidler Midway through this picture, there's a scene where the two leads (James Dunn and Florence Rice) find themselves momentarily alone in their room. It's their honeymoon, and they've had nary a second to themselves the whole movie, until now. But—before they even have a chance to breathe, people start pouring into their room, one at a time and in groups, until virtually all of the characters in the movie are right there in the same bedroom. –It ought to be funny, in a kind of Marx-Brothers-state-room sort of way….but somehow, it's just kind of flat. This whole picture is that way: full of scenes and gags that seems like they ought to be funny, but just aren't. The plot: Dunn and Rice inherit a house and decide to move right in, sight unseen. They bring along Sam McDaniel, who is apparently Dunn's valet and chauffeur. Mysterious doings are soon afoot; it seems the house was somehow connected with a recently executed convict and there may be some money around the place. Various characters turn up at the house to investigate, make trouble, or just hang around —a retired hangman, a police chief who writes detective thrillers, a dumb blonde and a sinister brunette, a couple of gangsters….the usual assortment.McDaniel, as chauffeur Harmony Jones, is the stereotypical frightened servant but somehow comes across as less dopey than any of the other characters; his wisecracks are occasionally clever. (He also advises Dunn on how to deal with married life: "Now take my wife, for instance. This morning I bawled her out for being so extravagant." What happened? Pause. "I'm giving up cigars.")Dunn and Rice as the newlyweds bicker and flirt and do their best to generate some energy but are largely defeated by dialog and plot that are woefully short on surprises. Certainly not the madcap laugh riot that it apparently aims to be, this picture is nevertheless mildly amusing and generally harmless enough. Call it a B picture that never rises above its budget.

dbborroughs A newlywed couple spend their honeymoon in their "new" house instead of going to California. They are invaded by the police, a retired hangman, an escaped prisoner, a band of crooks and several dead bodies, all looking for something, either the crook or the loot hidden somewhere in the house. a humorous mystery follows.(or not). This is a bad movie.Almost enjoyable it instead misses the mark and falls flat. Written by Morey Amsterdam it plays more as a series of loosely connected sketches rather than as a film as a whole. There are a good number of exchanges that have nothing to do with whats going on in the story (they are funny but belong somewhere else). There is humor but the acting by the two leads is so broad and over the top that the film becomes annoying rather than amusing. I kept wishing that someone would kill the happy couple so that I wouldn't have to do it myself. The whole film looks cheap and the sets appear to wobble as people pass by. The direction is a mess. Even allowing for a cheapness that often allowed for only one camera set up (count how many scenes are essentially done in one take) this film has been put together by someone who seems to know nothing about how people really behave. Look at the scene where the bride to be is yapping away on the phone with her friends; do people really stand around like that in real life as one of their number talks non stop on the phone? Its like the most annoying sitcom you've ever seen, only worse.Bad. Bad. Bad. While not quite one of the worst films of all time, there are some funny bits, this is a film thats sure to induce sleep or pained screams in most people who see it. Avoid.

Chuck Straub Although 'The Ghost and the Guest' is mistakenly described as a comedy/ horror movie, this film still has a lot going for it. I would say it is more a comedy/mystery movie. The setting is an old spooky house but there is never anything even remotely resembling terror. It's not hard to remember the date of this film. The terms used in the dialogue are from the 30s and 40s and I'm sure some of it will be lost with today's audience but much of it still brings a laugh. The film quality is not the greatest, and that does detract from the film. This movie does manage to keep your interest though and the comedy still comes through. The acting wasn't bad at all, and the strange assortment of characters was interesting. The plot is not believable but this is forgiven in the interest of comedy. It's a short, fast moving comedy that should be taken lightly and enjoyed for what it is.

exoticafan Even though listed (when you can find it) in reference books as a "horror/comedy", the shiver quotient is woefully absent. This is essentially a screwball comedy with a highly capable cast, in the typical "scare-the-newlyweds-out-of-the-abandoned-house-to-get-the-treasure" movie mold.Though dated by today's standards, most of the witty dialog (supplied by Dick Van Dyke's "Buddy Sorrell" Morey Amsterdam)brings a smile, with nary a straight man present. Florence Rice as bride Jackie seems to have a character that prefigures Lucy Ricardo, and husband Webster (James Dunn) attacks the role like Jack Haley. Chauffeur Harmony Jones (played by Sam McDaniel)seems the only sensible one in the bunch, wanting to return to New York where the only people wandering the streets are alive!The pace is quick, with nary a moment to think of the ludicrous plot machinations (a police chief who has time on duty to write pulp fiction) and illogic (the newlyweds move into the wrong house which is not questioned until the end of the movie). A bit of macabre humor is added with the inclusion of a retired county executioner who constantly wants Harmony to try on a noose for size ("You have the perfect neck for hangin'!"); the racial subtext is not lost on the modern audience.In all, a harmless and painless way to spend an hour.