Stan & Ollie

Two Peas in a Pod
or
"I'm Going To Miss Us When We're Gone"

I wasn't the biggest fan of Laurel and Hardy when I was a kid—they weren't as funny as The Three Stooges, whose short films were more readily available on local television stations...and generally shorter in length. The Stooges were more antic (and more violent), but I appreciated L&H more as an adult for the relationship comedy and their contrasts in style...Hardy for his grace under weighty pressure and his slow-burns, Laurel for his ability to make anything funny in his visual comedy. But, I always preferred the films of Buster Keaton from the golden age of comedy...more inventive and I always preferred his "fine messes" for their scope and inventiveness. I by-passed Laurel and Hardy for the "hard-fall" stuff. But, there was the undeniable—shall I say sweetness?—to the antics of Stan and Ollie that endearing, no matter how cruel the comedy could be at times.

The team is celebrated—in that sweet but somewhat melancholy way—with the new film by Philomena's co-writer Jeff Pope and Pope's collaborator and the film's star, Steve Coogan, Stan & Ollie (directed by Jon S. Baird), which starts out in 1937, when the comedy duo are at the peak of their fame. The two are working for Hal Roach (Danny Huston), who first teamed the two of them up. Laurel's contract is up and is negotiating for more money from Roach or he'll walk. Hardy (played by John C. Reilly and many pounds of prosthetics) has a little further to go on his service contract and urges Stan not to make waves. Roach won't budge, so Laurel walks out to go to Fox Studios, fully expecting Hardy to join him. He doesn't, making another film for Roach, this time with another partner—Harry Langdon—leaving Laurel to sign along, and Fox only to get half of what they were hoping for.

It's 16 years later, and the duo are older and a bit out of fashion and not working much, although Laurel is writing a feature for them based on Robin Hood. To cement the deal and keep working until the Robin Hood deal comes together, the two embark on a stage tour throughout England, Scotland and Ireland. Laurel fully expects to sign the movie deal once they get to their dates in London, where they'll be met by their wives (played by Shirley Henderson and Nina Arianda) and continue the tour.

Well, the shows start inauspiciously, with the promoter (Rufus Jones) making vague promises—when he's able to be reached—and the venues are small and the audiences thin. Laurel maintains his enthusiasm in the face of disappointment, maintaining that things will get better, but Hardy is doubtful, keeping up his demeanor for the sake of the act, despite some tiredness with a grueling schedule.

They play to smallish crowds at the beginning, but once they start promoting themselves at public appearance and photo opportunities, the crowds start to grow and become more enthusiastic. Things are looking up. Then, Stan gets the word (after some persistent badgering) that there won't be a film, the funds are not there. But, he keeps the news from Hardy and keeps working out ideas and bits for the film—you never know, something might come of it.

They're joined by their wives in London, but their presence doesn't do anything to ease tensions—if anything, they increase them as each wife looks out for her man to the detriment of the other. Finally, this leads to a row in London, where old slights re-surface, threatening to cancel the tour and splitting the comedy team forever.

In review, first off, Coogan and Reilly are superb, recreating Laurel and Hardy routines and making you believe that this might have been the way the two acted in their non-professional lives. The film is breezy and moves at such a brisk pace that—before you know it—it's over, leaving you wanting more, and wondering why movies with much more action—and budget—can't be entertaining, minute by minute.

The film does play fast and loose with the facts (one should always be skeptical of the tag "Based on a true story"): the tour wasn't an act of desperation, but only the last of many tours Laurel and Hardy played in the area—Laurel being born in Ulverston; one major medical incident is invented to keep the drama for both men heightened and to reinforce many of the issues throughout the film, pushing the stakes up a couple years from what actually happened. And one wonders how fair the movies happens to be to Laurel and to hardy, but more especially to the supporting characters in the film, who come off looking like god-diggers or gold-bricks.

Still, the film is very entertaining and, again, feels much shorter than its running time would suggest. That's a rarity these days and should acknowledged and applauded.

The real Laurel and Hardy and wives in a pub.