DVD Review HTF REVIEW: Laurel and Hardy (1 Viewer)

[Keith Paynter]

Keeping the discussion off the bootleg area, it appears that the Hallmark DVD is picking up some momentum - in the last couple of days Amazon has ranked them up to 157 from approx 250. It is possible that there could be enough muscle behind sales of this DVD to warrant future releases.

For Hallmark to simply deny the public access to these films, using them only as financing leverage, is a crime.

 

[Keith Paynter]

Make that 102 and climbing, and #42 on the hot upcoming titles list, ahead of Monty Python's The Meaning Of Life SE!

Take That, Hallmark!

 

[Randy_M]

D'oh!

I make it a practice to never buy bootlegs - Since they've already been sent, I guess I'll just have to re-buy official ones when released.

Ron,

Would you like to avoid having my reviews of these posted here in light of the opinion above?

 

[Paul Penna]

Just today someone posted on alt.comedy.laurel-hardy that along with a promo copy of the Artisan disc he'd received was a press release stating "Look out for a second DVD full of additional classic Laurel & Hardy films, coming soon from Artisan Home Entertainment and Halmark Entertainment!"

 

[AnthonyP]

For someone that is relatively new to L&H, only have seen a few select shorts on AMC years ago, what is a basic concensus on their must see shorts and features?

Looking for a list I can keep track of.

 

[MarkBurton]

So, is everything on this collection legit? Will these titles be duplicated on future Hallmark releases?

Laurel & Hardy Collection
Utopia / Flying Deuces / March of the Wooden Soldiers / Be Big! / The Lucky Dog / This Is Your Life / Laurel & Hardy At the Movies
http://www.dvdempire.com/Exec/v4_ite...850296&redir=1

 

[Derek_McL]

Yes this collection is probably legit because all this material (as far I know) is in the public domain. Most of it has been released in substandard prints quite frequently from the likes of Madacy and other PD specialists. I can't say what the picture quality of this specific collection is like but I can comment on the content.

Frankly unless you are a diehard fan of Stan and Ollie I think I'd avoid this although it isn't too expensive. There isn't a lot of classic material here. Let's start with the oldest title which is Lucky Dog. This is a short comedy in which both men appeared years before they officially became a team. Stan Laurel was the star Hardy just happened to cross his path for one film : they never made another appearance together for six years after this. So this isn't a real Laurel and Hardy film at all : interesting historically nothing more.

Be Big!(1931) is a sound short which is actually quite good : it appeared on Image's Laurel and Hardy and Friends DVD which I think is now out of print. Another couple of sound shorts appeared in their Image's Lost Films series : more on those discs later. These three seem to be in the public domain or at least not controlled by Hallmark. Back to Be Big!(1931)which in some ways is a comedy warm-up for the feature Sons of the Desert (1933): critics say they overdo the gag of pulling off Ollie's boot but I must admit I've always found it quite funny.

I own a DVD of March of the Wooden Soldiers (1934) which appears to be the best of the Laurel and Hardy features outside the Hallmark collection. Its alright but perhaps a bit too squarely aimed at children and there aren't any brilliant comedy sequences.

I'm afraid the other two features are pretty awful : The Flying Deuces (1939) has some funny moments but vintage Stan and Ollie it ain't. It looks cheap and its really just a rehash of Beau Hunks and Bonnie Scotland. A brief classic moment is when Ollie sings "Shine on Harvest Moon".

As for Utopia (1951) : if you love Stan and Ollie don't put yourself through this. I've only seen clips of this the team's last film and that was enough. Its badly dubbed, timed and just plain bad : Hardy was very fat by this time while Stan looks like death warmed up (he was very ill during the filming).

This Is Your Life (1955) is not bad : at least the boys look healthier here but all the versions I've seen have been very poor quality. Still not a bad programme for real fans to add to their collections.

Laurel and Hardy at the Movies I suspect will revisit much of the above material.

So there you have it : a reasonable sound short and feature, a poor one, one to avoid like the plague and a poor quality copy (probably)of a 50s TV programme.

For the price I suppose its not too bad if the picture quality is reasonable but really this is for diehard fans (even they aren't likely to watch Utopia more than once!). I suggest you buy the Hallmark disc first and think of this as a bonus if no more official releases materialise.

AnthonyP : the best Laurel and Hardy films ? : a really difficult one which I'll attempt to answer. First I'll make it clear I really love Laurel and Hardy and I've been very lucky recently rediscovering all their sound shorts, most of the Roach features and a few of the silents from TV broadcasts, British, Region 1 and German DVDs. Where relevant I'll indicate the DVD status of the following which might be of some use to people with multi-region and PAL compatible equipment.

The Silent Shorts :

Don't forget these ! These were all released in Region 1 as part of The Lost Films of Laurel and Hardy series. There were nine volumes but I'm not sure if these are still in print. I heard a rumour a while back that these were going to be repackaged as a boxset with a bonus disc ala Kino's Keaton set but have heard nothing more about this. The problem with The Lost Films set was that the best shorts were scattered throughout it along with solo films and material featuring other Roach stars like Charley Chase. Some of this material is excellent some mediocre. Here are my recommendations for three volumes of The Lost Films which I believe account for the very best Laurel and Hardy silents (I've selected six favourites in CAPITALS):

The Lost Films of Laurel and Hardy, Vol. 1

Six films featuring the greatest comedy duo in movie history. For many years, the films included here were either unavailable, or available only in shoddy, truncated versions. This collection features the best available prints, mastered from the original 35mm material. On this volume: BIG BUSINESS(James W. Horne, 1929); Do Detectives Think? (Fred Guiol, 1927), which was the first time the pair was billed as a team; Call of the Cuckoo (Clyde Bruckman, 1927); THE FINISHING TOUCH(Clyde Bruckman, 1928); and two rare Stan Laurel solo features, On the Front Page (1926) and Hustling for Health (1919). 124 mins.

The Lost Films of Laurel and Hardy, Vol. 8

This collection of vintage Laurel & Hardy comedies features four hilarious shorts with the boys as a team, as well as two rare Stan Laurel solo films. Laugh with L&H in TWO TARS(James Parrott, 1928), The Second 100 Years (Fred Guiol, 1927), Slipping Wives (Fred Guiol, 1926) and FROM SOUP TO NUTS(Edgar Kennedy, 1928), directed by the famed character actor (known as the master of the "slow burn") who made such a memorable adversary for Stan and Ollie. Then, it's Stan on his own in Scorching Sands (Hal Roach, 1923) and the color-tinted Should Tall Men Marry? (Clyde Bruckman, 1927). All films mastered from the original 35mm materials. 129 mins.

The Lost Films of Laurel and Hardy, Vol. 9

More historic film comedy featuring the legendary duo. This collection includes the delightfully daffy pair in YOU'RE DARN TOOTIN'(1928, directed by that great comic heavy, Edgar Kennedy), the English and French versions of Why Girls Love Sailors (Fred Guiol, 1927), and two different cuts of BATTLE OF THE CENTURY(Clyde Bruckman, 1927). Ollie appears on his own, with his partner behind the camera, in Wandering Papas (Stan Laurel, 1927), and makes an appearance in the "Our Gang" short Thundering Fleas (Robert F. McGowan, 1926). Finally, Mum's the Word (Leo McCarey, 1926), a vintage Charley Chase short, rounds out the set. All films mastered from the best 35mm materials available. 132 mins

The Sound Shorts :

HOG WILD (1930) : Ollie's wife wants the radio aerial up and Stan of course has to "help". (available in Germany, Region 2)

LAUGHING GRAVY (1931): Laurel and Hardy conceal their dog from the landlord. (paired with Be Big! on UK Region 2 DVD with extended 3-reel version and foreign language versions!)

HELPMATES (1932): One of their very best shorts in which Stan helps Ollie clean up after a wild party.(available in Germany, Region 2)

THE MUSIC BOX (1932): Delivery of a piano to house on top of a hill ! (available on new Hallmark DVD)

TOWED IN A HOLE (1932) : The Boys refurbish a boat to cut out the middleman. (available in the UK,Region 2)

BUSY BODIES (1933): The Boys work at a sawmill (available on new Hallmark DVD)

There are certainly a few others you could argue for but I believe these are the very best. The next tier are only a little less good,in fact all the sound shorts have something going for them.

The Features :

WAY OUT WEST (1937)(available in UK Region 2) and SONS OF THE DESERT (1933) (on the new Hallmark DVD)stand out as superb features only a little less bright than the best of the sound shorts.

I'd almost add OUR RELATIONS (1936) and BLOCKHEADS(1938)(both available in Germany, Region 2 DVD) to them only that the first has a bit more plot than usual and the latter doesn't hold together as a feature film as well.

 

[Jim Blackie]

I recall one of their films where they are gypsies (I believe) and (is it the same one?) a highwayman by the name of "Diablo." I would Love to see this or these again. Are they out presently?

 

[Derek_McL]

The film with "Diablo" was Fra Diavolo (The Devil's Brother in the US I believe). They were really bandits in that one not gypsies(I've seen it called Bogus bandits). Its probably the best of their operetta vehicles. I'm not sure who owns the rights but it isn't available to Kinowelt to release in Germany and I thought it was owned by Turner/Warner as part of the MGM catalog.

Another one with question marks against it is Bonnie Scotland which continually shows up on TCM here in the UK. These two titles may be outside the Hallmark collection but I'm not sure what the up-to-date situation in the US is. Does anyone know ?

They were gypsies in The Bohemian Girl which is available in Germany.

 

[alan halvorson]

Well, this thing must really exist - I just got a shipping notice. A little early, but I'm not complaining.

Does Swiss Miss exist on any dvd anywhere in the world? It's the one L&H feature film I lack. I just gotta see the boys' attempt to sell mousetraps again.

 

[Derek_McL]

Never been one of my favourites but it is available in Germany : the DVD also includes "The Chimp" and "You're Darn Tootin'".

 

[Hal D]

Hi everyone. I must admit I am irritated. I brought up positives for Nostalgia Family Video a while ago and was almost kicked off this forum because they were supposedly bootlegs. Why is it alright then to talk freely about the company now? Can you explain this to me? Well anyway-I have many of their dvdr's and they're all excellent quality. I'm not going to sit around for years waiting for Hallmark to move their butts. Question-if Nostalgia Family Video is producing illegal dvd's, then why hasn't Hallmark stopped them? Hmmmmmmmmmmm?

 

[BarryM]

Hallmark doesn't even have any place on their &*#$% website for "Topper" or any of the few Roach titles they've issued.

I hope this new L&H sells well, but I suspect Hallmark are clueless when it comes to setting up a program of DVD Roach titles. What's the point of sitting on this stuff?

A hopeful sign is that TCM has a regular "new this month" feature that they insert between some of their films during the day and they've selected this L&H issue as a spotlight of cool coming attractions....maybe they'll help get the word out.

Which brings me to a point that I fail to comprehend: companies like Columbia put out a bunch of "Columbia Classics" with lots of extras, and a fairly steep price. They didn't sell well and now Columbia's classic reissues on DVD are strip-downs at a lower price with no extras whatsoever.

I'd rather get the film AND the extras, and I'm willing to pay for them, but Columbia doesn't have the brains to include a black and white one-sheet insert listing other titles available. Heck, if someone stumbles upon "His Girl Friday", how in blue-blazes is he suppose to automatically know that "It Happened One Night" is also available?

Even well known titles are often not known to be available by the very people who would buy them....if they knew about it!

Not everyone is clever enough to do the digging around to find titles like these.

So, if a company/studio puts out a great title, there's a bloody good chance they'll only sell a fraction of the pieces that they would sell if everybody who likes this sort of thing KNOWS ABOUT IT!

It's SO much easier with DVDs of recently produced movie titles.....they're visually around at the Best Buy's and other DVD stores....even at Target.

But, any of those companies, such as Paramount, Warners, Columbia, or even indies like Artisan or Kino, who pull back on their future DVD releases due to poor sales have mainly themselves to blame.

At least Criterion includes info on other Criterion titles in each and every DVD....and their website is easy to view and figure out.

I really think these companies haven't a clue as to how to promote their titles, and poorer than hoped for sales often bring these reissue programs to a screeching halt.

 

[Derek_McL]

I never thought of that but you are quite right. Stores hardly ever display new DVDs of classic films prominently you usually have to dig through all the old titles to find them. Even then I sometimes can't find some until a week or two after they were meant to be released !

 

[John Morgan]

Well, my Laurel and Hardy disc just came. All the films certainly look better than ever as I skimmed over the titles.

Although it looks like little real restoration was done, the films are clean and from the latest transfers.

Sons of the Desert is miles better than my old laser disc. I did an A and B comparison.

Being a silly completest, I wish they could have or would have included the MGM lion at the heads!

One negative that will endlessly bother me is the added music to SONS OF THE DESERT. They took some of the rerecordings made several years ago of Shields music and dropped it into parts of SOTD. This was, of course, never in the original. I know when the shorts played on AMC from these upgraded transfers years ago, a few shorts had added music from this source. Just the brightness of the recording takes me out of the time period. (For me it is sort of like audio colorization!)

But that aside, I hope these sell like hotcakes and many more volumes will be issued.

John

 

[rob kilbride]

At the very beginning of Chapter 2 of The Music Box, about two or three seconds in, there is a line all the way across that goes up the picture. It looks like a video tape artifact and not at all like a film artifact. Does everyone have this defect or is my copy defective? I'm still not an expert at being able to identify whether certain defects are film, video, or digital artifacts. Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[Randy_M]

Yep, I noticed it too. Sure looks 'video-tapish' to me, too. I can live with it, though.

 

[SteveP]

Couldn't find this disc anywhere in Manhattan yesterday--the official street date--but will keep looking.

The recreated Sheilds music by the Beau Hunks is one of my favorite CD's--but I don't beleive in dropping these recordings into the original films.

 

[Mark Zimmer]

Music Box has a tape roll in it about a quarter of the way in IIRC, so these are definitely from a tape source. Despite some shortcomings with the video the quality of the content is so high that it got a recommended rating in my review at digitallyOBSESSED!

http://www.digitallyobsessed.com/sho...w.php3?ID=5042

 

[Jeff Adkins]

Therefore--we have a lot riding on the success of the forthcoming L&H DVD. What I fear is that it will only be available for a short time, and only regionally. This happened with an earlier Artisan DVD release of Hal Roach Little Rascals material, which disappeared almost as soon as it was released.

This is totally untrue. The first Little Rascals DVD is still in print and Artisan just released a 2nd volume on August 19th. Artisan/Hallmark are using the Cabin Fever masters with the Leonard Maltin intros and stunning transfers.

Jeff