You wouldn't know by its title, but this Bowery Boys comedy is of interest to old horror film fans like me, with a "mad doctor" plot and a cast featuring various monster movie personalities. Here we have the dimwitted Sach (Huntz Hall) amazingly endowed with special powers each time he aggravates a nagging toothache by chomping on candy. He gains the uncanny ability to accurately predict future happenings a la Nostradamus, and is quickly exploited as a sideshow attraction by his greedy partner Slip Mahoney (Leo Gorcey). Meanwhile, an eccentric scientist (Alan Napier) decides that Sach's mind is the perfect one to transfer to his growling man/ape Atlas (Glenn Strange), and sets out to kidnap Sach.
The main attraction here is getting to watch the usually limited Glenn Strange (who played Frankenstein's stumbling Monster in some of Universal's classics like the previous year's ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN) do some of his most notable work. Strange is a marvel to behold when he switches minds with the prissy and childlike Sach, impersonating Huntz Hall's effeminate mannerisms and miming to his voice-overs. Among the familiar cast are Jane Adams and Skelton Knaggs (both also appeared with Glenn Strange in Universal's "House Of Dracula"), who play assistants to the doctor. Alan Napier is not quite right for this type of "mad doctor" part ... too bad they couldn't have gotten Bela Lugosi or John Carradine. The funniest part of the movie is an early scene where Sach is on stage predicting unpleasant outcomes for a few frazzled audience members, but the second half could have been tighter. The brain-swapping shenanigans are cute enough, but are all over the place. Still, a standout entry in the '40s Bowery Boys series. **1/2 out of ****
The main attraction here is getting to watch the usually limited Glenn Strange (who played Frankenstein's stumbling Monster in some of Universal's classics like the previous year's ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN) do some of his most notable work. Strange is a marvel to behold when he switches minds with the prissy and childlike Sach, impersonating Huntz Hall's effeminate mannerisms and miming to his voice-overs. Among the familiar cast are Jane Adams and Skelton Knaggs (both also appeared with Glenn Strange in Universal's "House Of Dracula"), who play assistants to the doctor. Alan Napier is not quite right for this type of "mad doctor" part ... too bad they couldn't have gotten Bela Lugosi or John Carradine. The funniest part of the movie is an early scene where Sach is on stage predicting unpleasant outcomes for a few frazzled audience members, but the second half could have been tighter. The brain-swapping shenanigans are cute enough, but are all over the place. Still, a standout entry in the '40s Bowery Boys series. **1/2 out of ****