After the masterpiece that is ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN, the next film is MEXICAN HAYRIDE, which gets my vote so far as the weakest Abbott and Costello feature we’ve discussed so far and possibly ever. The plot in this thing is all over the place. Lou is running away from the law in Mexico because he somehow got framed selling fake oil bonds by Bud in a way that is not satisfactorily explained. Lou and his friends also got ripped off in the process. It is in Bud’s interest that Lou does not get arrested because Lou will rat on Bud, so Bud keeps Lou close. Bud also hires Lou’s ex girlfriend as a bullfighter in a swindle that’s not really explained and Bud overall is a pretty unlikable character. If any of the talking points I mentioned were ever explained, I have to admit I never noticed as I eventually lost interest in the plot. The combination of things getting confusing and the characters being pretty unlikable made this hard for me to be emotionally invested or to even care.
So how does one survive a movie when the plot and characters get away about a quarter of the way through? Well, in the case of a Bud and Lou comedy, just take in the routines on a superficial level and look for some entertainment there. There is nothing all time classic as far as routines go, but there is is some pretty decent stuff. We do get Sid Fields for the second time in an Abbott and Costello feature doing a great job with Lou as the interviewer who would never shut up. It’s very easy to see how he would eventually be an asset on the television show. As far as verbal routines go, the “iron ore” bit is pretty good and Bud and Lou do get a funny routine together where Bud makes sure all of Lou’s articles of clothing with “JB” on it get torn off so Lou can keep his alias. Really just an excuse to watch Bud get mad and Lou get frustrated in a well timed build up, always a good thing. My favorite bit would be Lou pretending to be an old Mexican woman selling Mexican food at a stand to the police officers and trying to make them sick by adding extra spice to their food. Bud and Lou at least get some good interactions together, Lou is funny when burning his hand on the stove and honestly, I really like Mexican food. The bullring stuff at the end is OK and better than the aimless chases of the other films. As far as running gags go, anytime Lou hears salsa music he is compelled to dance against his will, so there’s another fun little bit.
From a trivia perspective, Lou’s brother Pat plays one of the police officers and there is a resemblance. They even make a joke of it when they describe suspect Lou and determine the police officer looks the same. Makes sense for real life brothers. So yeah, the key to this one is to find the fleeting moments, because if you invest in the characters or plot and are anything like me, your brain will be mush. Filming of MEXICAN HAYRIDE started a few days before ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN was released, so it wasn’t known yet what a cash cow they had with the monsters. Thankfully the cash cow happened and gave the team and Universal a little inspiration going forward because judging by MEXICAN HAYRIDE, they needed it.