A Spooky Screening at the New Beverly Cinema

Halloween is almost here and it’s time to break out the ghost stories. I love a good ghost story but I’m kind of a wimp. Edgar Allen Poe I can handle. Wes Craven I cannot. If I’m going to watch a spooky tale on the big screen it’s either got to be a comedy or at least 50 years old. That’s about all I can handle. Lucky for me the New Beverly Cinema recently held a double feature that filled both the criteria – Bob Hope’s The Ghost Breakers and Abbott and Costello’s Hold that Ghost.

The New Beverly has been on my radar for some time. The well known revival house constantly screens my beloved classics. When I saw they were showing a couple of seasonally themed films featuring two of my favorite comedy acts I knew I finally had to come for a show.

For some reason I expected the theater to be old and run down. I expected torn seats and sticky floors. Boy was I wrong. Now, it’s no movie palace but it’s well taken care of. The seats even had cup holders! I suppose being owned by Quentin Tarantino doesn’t hurt.

Despite it’s renovation tickets are a mere $8 for two shows. Two! Where else can you get entertainment that cheap? And such quality entertainment, too!

The Ghost Breakers features Bob Hope and Paulette Goddard in a spooky tale of an old Cuban castle. There are ghosts, zombies and creepy characters throughout. It’s suspenseful and super funny. You can’t beat a Hope wisecrack and the supporting cast is game to join the fun.

Hold That Ghost is one of my favorite Abbott & Costello films. In this one Bud & Lou are hapless gas station attendants who inherit a run down inn that just happens to have once belonged to a mob boss. Stuck there on a a stormy night they’re threatened by gangsters and ghosts who try to make sure they don’t make it to morning. This is the duo at the top of their game and supporting player, Joan Davis, matches their comedic talent toe to toe. It’s a fun time from start to finish.

The double feature was the perfect way to get in the Halloween spirit. The screening was well attended and everyone was fully engrossed in the films. There’s nothing like laughing at your favorite scenes and having a crowd laugh right along with you. These movies may get older by the day but their comedy is timeless.