On paper "Bud and Lou" should have been a winner. The casting of Harvey Korman as Bud Abbott and Buddy Hackett as Lou Costello looked like "can't miss" stuff. Unfortunately, "Bud and Lou" does miss and in a pretty big way. Korman never seems comfortable playing Bud and Hackett is forced to play Costello as a joyless bully. And when Hackett has to play some heavy moments, he's in over his head. The supporting cast is very good with nice work from Michele Lee, Arte Johnson and Robert Reed. But the tone of the movie is so melodramatic, so heavy-handed the whatever chance the movie had is smothered. I've seen "Bud and Lou" quite a few times over the years. It always disappoints. The real Bud & Lou deserve better.
