|
|
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
A trio of Laurel & Hardy shorts, two of which are good, 16 Sep 2004
By A Customer
"Unaccustomed as We Are" is the first full talkie by Laurel & Hardy, which means no silent version was issued by Hal Roach's studio. Hardy brings Laurel home for a home cooked meal by his wife (Mae Busch), who storms out of the apartment at this imposition. Thelma Todd plays the friendly blonde next door who takes pity on the boys and makes dinner for them. Unfortunately she accidentally burns her dress and as soon as she has taken it off both her husband, cop Edgar Kennedy, and Ollie's wife suddenly return. Thelma hides in the trunk and then the comedy takes an interesting twist. Kennedy figures out what is going on and decides to have some fun of his own, making Laurel & Hardy bring the trunk over to his apartment. In the end both wives go after their husbands with pretty much everything in the kitchen. This 1929 two-reeler was directed by Lewis Foster from a story by Leo McCarey, who was writing most of the boys' comedies at this point. "Unaccustomed as We Are" is representative of early attempts at sound comedies, with sound effects used to convey action off screen. The entire plot eventually ends up as the last reel of Laurel & Hardy's 1938 feature "Blockheads."In "Berth Marks," Laurel & Hardy are a couple of poor musicians trying to get from one gig in one small town to the next. The two main comic routines are the shirt-ripping fight they cause on the train and their attempt to go to sleep in a cramped upper berth. This 1929 two-reeler, directed by Lewis Foster, was released by Hal Roach-MGM in both silent and sound versions, each of which has significant problems. "Berth Marks" is just not a good comedy and you can only wonder what happened given the story was by Leo McCarey. The sleeping birth sequence is redone, in slightly better form, in their 1944 feature "The Big Noise," which was also a lamentably bad comedy from the boys. Finally, Laurel & Hardy are a couple of sailors on leave who pick up a couple of girls in the park and head off for a good time even though they only have 15 cents between them. The best gag is when Hardy finds a pair of white panties and assumes that is what the young flapper, who is looking for her gloves, has lost. Poor Ollie end up in one of the funniest routines involving dialogue from an early Laurel & Hardy talkie. "Men O'War" ends with the boys taking the girls boating, at which point wackiness ensues. This 1929 two-reeler directed by Lewis Foster from a Leo McCarey story, is one of the few Laurel & Hardy comedies shot entirely on location.
|
(2 customer reviews)
See all 2 customer reviews...
(
