Hit the Ice (1943) Plot Summary Explained

Silky Fellowsby is a gangster posing as a hospital patient to establish an alibi for an upcoming bank robbery. When he sees Tubby and Flash at the hospital, he assumes they are the two Detroit hitmen he had previously hired to guard the bank entrance during the robbery. His mistake stems from the gang's previous arrangements, and he decides to use the confused photographers for his scheme without verifying their true identity.

Foreshadowing: Earlier in the film, Fellowsby's criminal background is established through his covert hospital stay, hinting at his suspicious nature.

• silky fellowsby
• mistaken identity
• hitmen
• bank robbery
• abbott and costello

Tubby and Flash are at the bank during the robbery because Fellowsby has convinced them they are hired to photograph the gangsters as they leave the bank. In reality, Fellowsby intends for them to guard the entrance while his actual gang robs the place. When the police arrive, Fellowsby's setup makes the photographers appear guilty, they were at the wrong place with the wrong job understanding.

Foreshadowing: The misunderstanding begins at the hospital when Fellowsby first approaches them with his plan.

• bank robbery
• suspects
• police
• abbott and costello
• tubby mccoy
• flash fulton

The bank photographs that Tubby and Flash took turn out to be worthless for proving their innocence because the robbers' faces are not visible in any of the shots. The pictures only show the gangsters leaving the bank from a distance or from behind, making it impossible to identify the actual criminals or demonstrate that the photographers were merely witnesses rather than participants.

Foreshadowing: Earlier, Tubby and Flash are shown struggling to get good shots during the fire scene, establishing their tendency to miss critical details.

• photographs
• bank robbery
• evidence
• innocence
• faces not visible

Tubby and Flash travel to the Sun Valley ski resort specifically to clear their names after being wrongly accused of participating in the bank robbery. Once there, they get hired as waiters at the resort as a cover to infiltrate Fellowsby's gang and gather evidence proving their innocence. The waiter jobs provide them with access to the gangsters while maintaining their disguise.

Foreshadowing: Their earlier ambition to work for the newspaper translates naturally into this undercover investigation approach.

• waiters
• sun valley resort
• undercover
• clear names
• infiltrate gang

Tubby and Flash attempt to blackmail the gangsters using the bank photographs they took during the robbery. Their plan involves threatening to go to the police unless the gangsters return the stolen cash. However, this plan fails completely because the photographs don't clearly show any of the robbers' faces, making them useless as leverage.

Foreshadowing: Their journalism ambitions lead them to believe photographs are their best weapon against crime.

• blackmail
• stolen money
• photographs
• plan fail
• recovery attempt

The ski chase begins after the blackmail plan fails and a fight erupts between Tubby, Flash, and the gangsters at the resort. The confrontation spills onto the snowy slopes, and the gangsters attempt to escape down the mountain. Tubby and Flash pursue them in a high-speed ski chase that ultimately leads to the criminals being cornered and arrested.

Foreshadowing: The escalating tension from the failed blackmail attempt makes physical confrontation inevitable.

• ski chase
• sun valley
• fight
• escape
• arrest gangsters

Tubby and Flash clear their names by helping capture the actual bank robbers during the climactic ski chase. By pursuing the gangsters down the mountain and assisting in their capture, they prove they were innocent all along. The police see that they were victims of Fellowsby's scheme rather than participants in the crime.

Foreshadowing: The film establishes early on that the pair are harmless photographers, not criminals.

• clear names
• exonerated
• capture gangsters
• prove innocence
• police

Dr. Burns and his nurse accompany Silky Fellowsby to the Sun Valley ski resort because Fellowsby is still recovering from injuries he sustained during his criminal activities. As Fellowsby's physician, Burns is essentially kept close to ensure the gangster receives medical care while also being under his supervision. This arrangement keeps Burns in Fellowsby's orbit until the photographers can reach the resort to investigate.

Foreshadowing: Burns' role as a doctor makes him a natural caretaker, which Fellowsby exploits.

• dr william burns
• silky fellowsby
• nurse
• ski resort
• recovery

The hospital scene is crucial because it is where the entire case of mistaken identity begins. Fellowsby, posing as a patient, encounters Tubby and Flash and wrongly assumes they are the Detroit hitmen he hired. This misunderstanding sets in motion all subsequent events, the bank robbery, the pair becoming suspects, and their journey to the resort to clear their names.

Foreshadowing: The hospital setting introduces the central mix-up that drives the entire comedy.

• hospital
• mistaken identity
• abbott and costello
• setup
• silky fellowsby

Despite their misadventure, Tubby and Flash's dream of instant newspaper fame remains unfulfilled by the end of the film. They survive a dangerous situation and help capture real criminals, but they don't get the big newspaper break they were hoping for. However, they gain valuable experience and strengthen their friendship with Dr. Burns, leaving them determined to continue pursuing their journalistic ambitions.

Foreshadowing: Their newspaper ambition is established in the opening scenes as their primary motivation.

• newspaper fame
• dream
• ambition
• abbott and costello
• photographers