THE GHOST AND MR. CHICKEN

It's officially Halloween, that's not just the time of fright, partying, and candy, but is also the time of nostalgia. Remembering the costumes we wore, the people we trick-or-treated or partied with, the old decorations that we never see again, the amount of scares that we remember having, and the Halloween and horror movies that we grew up watching around this time. So considering the nostalgia factor of the holiday, I'm going to revisit a haunted house film that I saw when I was very young.

I've shared a few stories of me roaming around "Blockbuster" during my time of innocence. I would spend most of my time as a kid at the kids section or video game section because of my age and interests, but my favorite section that I loved in the entire store was the horror section. I remember that the first time that I have ever walked down aisle, I was completely mesmerized by it. I admired seeing the amount of horror movies that the store had as I gazed at all the box covers surrounding me that ranged from having classic monsters to monsters looking so grotesque and frightening that I was scared but amazed by it at the same time. I wanted to see and rent every movie in the aisle, and when I told my Mom about my discovery, that was when I learned that there were movies that are forbidden for my age. She didn't tell me why, she just simply told me that they were too scary for young kids by containing lots of blood, which disappointed me big time, but I was still able to rent the classic horror movie "Dracula".

One day I went browsing through the store figuring out what film I should rent as I was with my babysitter (who was easily the worst one I had), and then I saw a horror movie that caught my eye titled...

Seeing that this was a haunted house movie that looked cool, I asked my babysitter to rent it for me. Obviously not knowing that this was a comedy or who Don Knotts is, she forbid me from renting it by telling me that it was rated R. Now being a kid who couldn't fully read yet, and never ever hearing or knowing what an R rating was, I assumed that was the name of the movie, and when I wasn't allowed to see this movie without knowing what lurks inside the spooky old house, I started to angrily cry and yell as I was stomping my feet hard to the ground "I WANT TO WATCH RATED R"! I was forced to leave the store, but I wasn't going to give up. I tried to tell my Mom that I wanted to see rated R, who unknowing to the fact that I thought it was the title, told me that I'm not allowed to watch those kinds of movies, hence leading to me learning about the rating system. Later on that year, I went back with my Grandmother, showed her the film and she allowed me to see it (probably because she knew it was harmless). Being beyond excited to see it, I quickly popped the film in my VCR, sat down, watched the film from beginning to end and I loved it despite being slightly disappointed that the entire film didn't take place inside the haunted house. I loved its atmosphere, I loved the music, I loved the surprises inside the house, and above all I loved watching Don Knotts in it which led to me to become a big fan of his works after watching this film countless times (thanks to my Father for purchasing a copy for me). This was a movie that I'd always love to tell people about as a kid, where I'd write little comics based on it, fast-forward and rewind it back just to listen to the music, and mimic Don Knotts for people (Half of the time my Mom would ask me to do it in front of her friends, which I'd timidly do so). Like a lot of movies that I watched growing up, this became one of the many films that I haven't sat down and watched from start to finish for years, and being the spirit Halloween and remembering what a huge mark that it left on me during childhood, I'm going to review it to see how well it holds up.

Don Knotts plays Luther Heggs, a nervous typesetter for the local newspaper in the small town of “Rachel” who hopes to one day be a reporter for the paper. As an attempt to increase paper sales, Luther is given the chance to do a report by spending the night alone at an old mansion on the night of the 20th anniversary of the murder/suicide that took place there. A shaky Luther takes the job, and goes from scaring himself silly to witnessing paranormal activity happening inside. His report becomes a major success, where he's suddenly praised by his town as a hero for his bravery. The celebration is cut short, when a descendant of the deceased owner of the house threatens to sue the paper for slandering his family name through a tall-tale that has prevented him from bulldozing down the house because of its popularity.

Everybody knew Don Knotts as the nervous cop Barney Fife on "The Andy Griffith Show" before this film, but aside from a few cameos that he's made in a couple of films, he never had the chance to play-up his famous shtick as a leading character. The only leading role he was given was "The Incredible Mr. Limpet" which he was good at playing up the innocent nerdy qualities of the character but he wasn't acting as animated as he usually is, even when he actually is animated. On the positive side though, the film did prove that Don Knotts can carry a full length movie in the lead role, which led to him being casted in "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken" only this time he'd be allowed to do what he'd normally do, that in some respects seemed like a risk, because whenever he plays out for comedy he's always casted as a supporting character. Having him use his comedic talent that he's already recognized for in an hour and a half film could get old and annoying very fast. But he succeeded and would go on to star in a handful of comedies distributed by Universal and Disney, and yet when people bring up his film career most people would speak fondly of him in this film.

 

I suppose the reason why is because that's either how they were introduced to him, or that this was the movie that launched his film career. But I think the real reason why people remember him in this movie so much more is for the set-up. What's the best way of giving Don Knotts an excuse to act so wild and shaky, have him go inside a haunted house where we know just as much of what's behind every corner as he does, as we find ourselves laughing at him from his interaction inside the house, and frightened with him for the anticipation of what lurks inside and what we do see that's not his mind playing tricks on him. I swear that this film was specifically written for him for how perfectly he fits the coward personality of Luther Heggs, nor can I picture any other actor at the time that can top his energy and wide eyed facial expressions when encountering the spooky stuff. Everything he does in this film is just comedic gold for how he flawlessly fits the crazy scenarios, as he's still able to pull off being charming for how helplessly sweet he is who just wants to prove to everyone that he's not as weak as they give him credit for. You feel attached to his character for how likable and relatable he is as you're rooting for him all the way, but you're not hesitant to laugh at him either for when he gets into trouble. His most hilarious scenes are when he reports a murder at a police station, tries to make a speech, and whenever he visits the haunted house.

The stuff involving the haunted house also plays a major role of why the film is so fondly remembered. The comedy involving Don Knotts is great, but it's the atmosphere that makes these scenes stand-tall. The film is distributed by Universal Studios, and if you know their history of horror movies, they're usually pros when creating a haunting atmosphere, and this film is no exception! The exterior shots of the house look very foreboding for how old and creepy looks as it’s surrounded by darkness and trees blowing in the eerie wind, where the only light we see of it at night is the bright flash of lightning reflecting on it. The interior shots of the house don't disappoint either because it looks just as chilling by being consumed with shadows, cobwebs, and dusty antiques, as we hear the thunder crashing outside. It's as classic of a haunted house as it can get with a couple of surprises that are either funny, scary, or mysterious. And though that the film is a comedy, the scenes involving Luther roaming around the house move at a slow pace to let the atmosphere sync-in and build tension, that's on many occasions quiet.

When these scenes aren't quiet, they'd be accompanied by Vic Mizzy's score, which is another important ingredient of what makes the film stand-out in Knotts' film career. Mizzy is no stranger to composing music for a horror comedy because he's already composed the immortal finger snapping theme music for "The Addams Family" that had a fun spooky vibe to it. The music that he composed for this inspite of it not being nearly as remembered as "The Addams Family" theme song, is still one of his best works. The theme music that plays throughout the film carries the same amount of jazz and rhythm while establishing its playfully creepy vibe as his most well-known piece of music, that's just as catchy. Mizzy however doesn't always jazz-up the music to fit the film's comedic nature, because he does go for complete chills for whenever we hear the sound of the organ playing in the film, that still to this day manages to give me goosebumps every time I hear it. These two pieces are the kind of music that you'd hear on the classic Disney ride "The Haunted Mansion" with the film's main theme being the "Grim Grinning Ghost" of the movie, as the creepy organ music is the music you immediately hear when entering the mansion. The rest of the score isn't bad either. It has a lighthearted and sentimental feel when we see Luther walking around in this sunny small town and try to talk the girl he likes, that's drenched in the 60s, but is still welcoming for how nostalgic it is. Some of the underrated bits of music that I don't hear many fans of the film talk about is the clarinet that's played for when Luther feels down and out that's sad but as tuneful as the film's theme; and the background music for when Luther rushes to the rescue sounding comically triumphant.

Don Knotts is clearly the funniest actor in the entire movie, but the rest of the cast manages to be entertaining and stand-out for how perfectly casted each and every one of them are. Characters like the sweet and charming Alma (Joan Stanley in a wig); Luther's bully of a rival in the newspaper business who's everything that he wants to be Ollie (Skip Homeier, who I swear that if the film were made in the 90s he'd be played by Christopher McDonald); the head of the newspaper that Luther works for George Beckett (Dick Sargent); the creepy yet humble janitor who used to work at the old house Mr. Kelsey (Liam Redmond); and the nasty and cold heir to the house Nicholas Simmons (Philip Ober), are all memorable for how the actors pull-off their distinctive personalities without resorting to being as exaggerated as Knotts is, that way when we see Knotts work-off his shtick with the actors opposite of him, the relationship that he has with them feels believable for how naturally they fit their roles and interact with each other, while still leaving plenty of room for comedy to fit the scenario and Luther's status among the people he talks too. There are indeed some comical characters as well, but most them are only present for a short amount of time and don't appear as much as the supporting characters that I just mentioned. Some of the funniest ones include Hal Smith as the drunk seen at the beginning; Hope Summers as the hysterical neighbor who witnesses a murder; Jim Begg as the screaming cop Herkie; Eddie Quillan as the elevator operator; James Millhollin as the bumbling nervous banker Mr. Maxwell, and Reta Shaw as his stubborn wife who embraces the supernatural; and an-off-screen citizen who is always heard yelling "Attaboy!" voiced by the film's scriptwriter Everett Greenbaum. There are even some funny ones who are in one scene or two small scenes that say little and do little and yet they too are unforgettable and have their funny moments that are subtle, like Herbie Faye as the patron in the restaurant, and Burt Mustin as one of the borders living with Luther. The list goes on when describing the supporting characters. There are so many other characters and performances that I feel deserve a mention (like the rest of the boarders, and the people we meet inside the courtroom), but I feel that meeting and watching these characters is part of the same unpredictable fun that the film offers for the haunted house scenes. It's indeed one of those films where I don't find any of the characters no matter how small to be forgettable or boring.

 

I can't pretend that this film is a comedy masterpiece because with the exception of Don Knotts, it's not all that funny. Sure all the characters are memorable as some of them provide a few funny lines or a subtle joke that fits the person they're playing, it's just that it's not aiming for as many big laughs as you expect it would. Plenty of that has to do with the atmosphere. The only time when the film feels like a movie is when we're at the haunted house, while the rest of the film plays out more like a sitcom from its low-budget quality when capturing the small town of "Rachel" to having the majority of actors (including the lead) being TV actors with most of the jokes being character based jokes that are dialogue heavy. It's not bad but for a film with Don Knotts inside a haunted house, there's less haunted house action and more of the characters interacting with each other in their community in a fashion similar to "The Andy Griffith Show". Half of the time I keep expecting to hear a laugh track play to make these mildly funny scenes of the characters talking to be funnier since that's how most of it feels directed. The reason why a huge chunk of the film feels this way is because the film is directed by Alan Rafkin who's best known for directing episodes for many popular sitcoms at the time (including "The Andy Griffith Show"), who doesn't exactly fail as a filmmaker movie, but clearly he's more at home with directing TV shows. Apart from its sitcom style that takes up at least 80% of the film, and containing a great amount of dialogue jokes that range from okay to annoyingly repetitive (the reason why fans remember the quotes from this movie is most likely because that most of them are repeated more than twice); the love story that Luther has with Alma is cute and all, but it only exists so that Luther can have some kind of trophy from being a zero to a hero. There are also a few plot holes that I still find myself questioning about all these years that take place in the first scene of the movie, and the climax (both mainly having to do with the presence and absences for most of the characters).

OVERALL THOUGHTS

The best way to describe this film as a whole is to picture an episode of "Scooby Doo" with an atmosphere that's part "Andy Griffith" and part Disney's "Haunted Mansion" (THE RIDE, mind you). It's not going to have you laughing all the way through, or offer as many spooky surprises as you'd hope to see, but it's still a highly enjoyable innocent film that has plenty of entertainment and atmosphere. Don Knotts is a riot; everything involving the haunted house is awesome (easily being the best parts of the movie); Vic Mizzy's score is one of his greats that helps give the films its identity; it has a striking large cast of charming and colorful characters; and despite being a family friendly comedy, I like that it has a bit of an edge to make it feel scary and adult at times. Sure it has a sitcom vibe that's drenched in its time period, but that's part of its wholesome charm that makes the film feel quite inviting. Its hands-down Don Knotts' best film, for not just how funny he is, but that there's more substance to the film itself than just Don Knotts alone. If you do decide to see the film, I strongly urge you to avoid the trailer at all costs because literally all the surprises inside the house are given away!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!!!!