(spoiler free)
I have to tell you before I start this review, they had me at ‘Stan & Ollie’. I am probably a whole lot older than you and Laurel And Hardy were quite a big part of my childhood. No, I wasn’t around in 1937, but they would often show re runs of the material on TV, sometimes in the morning, on Saturday, and sometimes at night, when there were only three channels and there was nothing else on. I laughed like an idiot all the way through The Music Box, Laughing Gravy and County Hospital no matter how many times I watched them. So when they started showing trailers of ‘Stan & Ollie’ last year, I was on board.
After seeing ‘Stan & Ollie’ I can safely say that this is a fantastic bit of film making that hits every beat they go for and manages to make the funniest comedy duo of all time, into a tragic sympathetic partnership, that can still make us laugh seventy years after they hit the big time. In the first act of the film, we join Stan and Ollie at the height of their power in Hollywood, under the scowling watchful eye of Hal Roach. Despite their huge success, Stan is unhappy with the working arrangement but Ollie is content with his current position, establishing the first hints that all is not good. We flash forward to less lucrative times for our duo, after the Hollywood spotlight has moved off them, and they are arriving in Newcastle to start a UK tour, in the hopes they will impress a new director into producing their comeback movie, a comedy version of Robin Hood. We follow the pair, played with incredible attention to detail, by Steve Coogan and John C. Reilly, as they try to regain their place in the stars.
Coogan as Stan and Reilly as Ollie are astounding. If you have any working knowledge of Laurel and Hardy, then you will revel in the incredible observations both actors have made to play these roles. Everything from the eye rolling fourth wall breaking looks from Reilly’s Ollie, to the blank faced apathy of Coogan’s Stan, is given such precision that you forget they are actors at all. The recreations of famous scenes help sell the illusion, and the more you know of the original material, the more impressed you will be by this production. The two leads look, sound and act like the real thing, it’s scary how good they are. Now usually such strong casting in a film can show up the supporting roles, but not here. Everyone is on top form, the whole cast look and feel authentic, and the line “Two double acts for the price of one” is deliciously on point.
The look and feel of the period works well, and the locations, props and costumes are just as you would expect them. By the time we get to the third act, things get tonally darker, and the quiet private scenes between the cast are balanced perfectly within the script. If you know the history, then there’s no surprises here, but the performances are so good, that you can’t help but root for this pair. As a viewer, you genuinely feel the extent of the friendship between the two men, and once you establish that, then the early betrayal seems even more dis-heartening. Perhaps as a fan, I was more invested than other audience members, but there are some truly touching moments that caught me right off guard.
This is a gentle and often beautiful film. The screenplay by Jeff Pope feels authentic, and Jon S Baird’s direction keeps you interested and alert. The one problem with the film has nothing to do with the film itself, but the question has to be asked, is there still a large enough audience who remember Laurel And Hardy to fill cinemas round the world? The young woman in Odeon that served me didn’t know what the film was about, and her colleague chimed in that he had never seen a Laurel and Hardy movie. I encouraged them to go watch some clips on You Tube, and I encourage you to go see this film for yourself.
Written by Louie Fecou
Rating – 9/10
Question: Who is your favourite film comedy duo?
(Leave your answers in the comments section below!)
Thanks for reading this review and please let us know what you thought about the movie! Leave a comment below or drop us a tweet over at @HCMovieReviews.
HCMovieReviews 
Leave a comment