yes, waaaay too expensive

when you think that the same film is included in a multiple set that only costs $13

Last night was spent in watching an almost-delicious movie. I say almost because it has one feature which makes it less than highly recommended, but I shall expound upon that in a little bit. It was “The Ghost and Mr. Chicken.” It stars the inimitable Don Knotts as Luther Heggs, the frightened type-setter of a small-town newspaper who is determined to work his way up to the glories of reporter-hood. Y’all, this movie is hysterical. You’ll be so scared that you’ll laugh yourself to death. (Thus says the movie trailer.) It’s chock-full of humor and just enough spookiness to give you goosebumps. You see, Luther has the chance of a lifetime to hit it big, thanks to tips from the mysterious Scotch janitor in the basement of the news office. The Simmons house once had a murder in it, and the 20th anniversary of the murder has come. Luther sneaks a filler story about it into the newspaper, and the town goes wild with delight. (And here I’ll warn about the weird thing. There is some kind of weird spiritist society in the town, made up of old women who go around chanting weird things and talking about “communicating with the divine,” and “cosmic importance.” We fast-forward through this, and in the movie the ladies are very definitely made out to be ridiculous – not portrayed as legitimate or real, but wacky. We still prefer not to watch it, as they are spookily occult at a few points, but only a few points.) But, to do a really good story on the murder house, the newspaper decided it would be great to have someone spend the night in it on the 20th anniversary, and write a report on it. Guess who is elected? Luther. The abashedly awkward and terrified bumbling hero who discovers he’s the bravest man in town. What follows is a night full of laughs, goosebumps, and intrigue. The Simmons house has more mystery to it than a 20-year-old murder, and Luther Heggs is the man to crack the mystery, despite his bumbling terror. Knotts is a hoot as he runs from his own reflection and attacks a dress form, and every moment is full of his inimitable facial expressions. But when the organ in the top floor of the old mansion starts playing at midnight, keys moving, but no one sitting at the keyboard, it’s enough to give goosebumps to the toughest of us. The music is deliciously spooky. Of course, there’s no ghost. But the question remains. How is the organ playing, why is the mystery house going to be bulldozed, and how did the murder really happen? Luther stumbles upon a more tangled web than just the old cobwebs hanging from the mansion’s deserted walls. I definitely recommend this as a good clean movie, with few disclaimers: the spiritist society is the biggest one, there is one point where a lady refers to a dress having yellow flowers across the “bosom,” and the fair, sweet Elma wears dresses that are quite low in the neck. So you’ve been warned of the bad, and that’s all there is to it. It’s “The Ghost and Mr. Chicken,” and if you don’t watch this movie, you’re chicken.

i can see adam sandler or jim carey remaking this one. let’s hope eddie murphy dosen’t. knotts best film.