Who has seen all 32+ Abbott and Costello Movies? Certainly not me, but this is one of my favorites. An almost bloodless "Western". Marjorie Main is the "wistful" widow no one wants to marry. Costello has to take care of her after he is mistakenly blamed as her outlaw husband's killer. Similar to her famous "Ma Kettle role", she is cantankerous and has seven kids. The first half of the film is all about Bud and Lou's farm life. The widow's German Shepard Dog keeps the boys in line! The old "Oyster in the soup" vaudeville gag is very well-done as "The Frog in the Soup". Lou does all the chores and mending and Bud sits around "on his brains" due to his fake heart condition. (How ironic, as Lou really had one.) The widow wants to marry Lou. So cliché, but it all works great as a comedy Western. Plenty of shootin' up the town and the saloon. Lou plays a "fearless" sheriff and is very good at it! One of the daughters is beautiful, so naturally she falls in love with "the good guy". She becomes a dance-hall girl. (Remember, this is a family film.) The widow saves the day with her own fancy shootin' and riding. (By the stuntman) In the end, the town's women take control and stop all the violence and bloodshed. Lou misses his chance of a lifetime when the railroad actually does make an offer to buy the widow's land and she marries the crooked judge! As they both leave for California in a buckboard, Lou throws away his rifle and that riles up the Indians. As Bud explains: "You never do anything right, do you?" Great fun.
Review of The Wistful Widow of Wagon Gap
