Fantastic!

A Disappointing Continuation

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

An ordinary Bowery Boys comedy without much notoriety to make it stand out from other films in this series. When Slip Mahoney (Leo Gorcey) gets a draft letter into the Marines, Sach (Huntz Hall) and the other "boys" join up too. It turns out that the dimwitted Sach is related to the old buddy of one of the higher-ups, and so he's immediately promoted to sergeant. This prestige goes to his head, and Sach becomes a hard task master to the rest of his pals. Relying on the simple notion of Sach being a tough boss does not leave room for much of a plot here, so tossed in is a subplot where the boys find a murdered marine on the side of the road and trace it to a crooked gambling joint (typical). ** out of ****

Here Come the Marines (1952)** 1/2 (out of 4) Number twenty-six has Slip (Leo Gorcey) drafted into the Marines and soon after Sach (Huntz Hall) and the other three join him. It goes without saying but Sach causes one major problem after another but he accidentally stumbles onto a special chemical, which gets him in good with the Colonel who just happen to serve with his father. As Sach goes higher up the ladder, the boys begin to investigate the murder of a marine and it might lead back to a gambling house. Gorcey still has his name above the title here but as with the previous entries, there's no doubt that this one has him taking a backseat to Hall who ends up playing the lead and doing a very good job with it. Usually I can only take so much of him but he actually gets in a pretty good groove here and manages to make the film his very own. I think Hall does a very good job here and I think this is without question one of his best performances as Sach. The dumbness is all here but I think what really works is him slowing rising up the ladder and getting to boss around Slip and the other guys. Seeing Hall get to play the tough guy was extremely fun and I think it added a touch of freshness to the film. Gorcey is also pretty good in his role but the less of him really didn't turn out to be that much of a negative. Paul Maxey turns in a nice performance in his small role as the ring leader of the gambling house and Myrna Dell gets a few nice laughs as the blonde bimbo. We even get Bernard Gorcey in a couple funny bits. No matter what name they were under, the service type comedies were always rather familiar and this one here certainly doesn't offer anything new but I think there are enough laughs to make it worth viewing for fans of the series. I think the weakest aspects involve the gamblers since this has been seen way too many times before.

Between Abbott & Costello and The Bowery Boys, it would be a toss up as to who created more havoc on the country's service branches. I don't think A&C ever made it to the Marines though, so Slip, Sach and the gang have a leg up on their comic rivals.Along with the military hi-jinks, the Bowery Boys once again encounter a shady gambling operation, just like they did in "Jinx Money" and "Lucky Losers". This time, an unlucky 'two of hearts' introduces the gang to Jolly Joe Johnson (Paul Maxey) and his moll Lulu Mae (Myrna Dell). They specialize in conning the local military boys out of their pay by virtue of a rigged roulette wheel and a dicey dice table. Once Slip (Leo Gorcey) gets all the facts 'crucified' in his mind, he'll be ready to expose the whole operation and turn it over to the Feds.Say, did you notice something unusual in the opening scene at Louie's Sweet Shop? Every other Bowery Boys flick I've seen had the entrance to the store on the left. This time characters made their way into Louie's from the right. Maybe even more amazing, once the boys got relegated to KP duty in the mess, that ladle Sach (Huntz Hall) took out of the soup pot, you know, the one that vaporized in all the hot sauce - it was bigger than the one he put in! Except for the hole in the bottom of course.Well except for Slip's malapropisms, I wouldn't have known that a sergeant is ranker than a corporal, delightfully proved by Sach as he manages to keep on getting promoted following every goofy mix-up that turns out in his favor. Gorcey also lets out with one of his cleverest phrases ever when near the end of the story, he wishes to avoid a case of the 'delirium Trumans'.

After 175 years, the United States Marine Corps decides it's time to bring "The Bowery Boys" into the fold. First contacted is loquacious leader Leo Gorcey (as Terrence Aloysius "Slip" Mahoney), but pals Huntz Hall (as Horace Debussy "Sach" Jones Jr.), Gil Stratton (as "Junior"), David "Condon" Gorcey (as Chuck), and Benny "David" Bartlett (as "Butch") are quickly called up for duty. We see no basic training or hazing, unfortunately; but, comedy takes charge as Mr. Hall is given a whistle and made "Sergeant" of his Bowery-populated barracks. Meanwhile, Mr. Gorcey suspects a beaten Marine is connected to a crooked gambling ring.One of many military-themed Bowery adventures, "Here Come the Marines" proves the law of diminishing returns is alive and well in this feature film series. Most obvious is probably that Hall works hard with the material; he demonstrates fine comic abilities and entertainingly carries the movie. At one point, Hall is asked, "Don't you know a dud when you see one?" At least, Hall gives this rather dull story his best, with few re-takes (Leo needs to watch his head when getting out of the lower bunks). Also notable is that this is the last appearance of Mr. Stratton, a two-time "Bowery Boy" member who would soon fine better character roles.**** Here Come the Marines (6/29/52) William Beaudine ~ Huntz Hall, Leo Gorcey, Gil Stratton, Hanley Stafford