Laughing Gravy (Laurel & Hardy 1931)

Well now just the oddest Stan and Ollie film I've seen so far, no doubt about that. There seem to be different versions about, but the one I've just enjoyed every second of was the three-reel colorised version, and the color / colour is just lovely- it looks so fresh and warm. No idea how these colorisations are regarded in the Laurel and Hardy community, though I think generally they are not thought of as a Good Thing, but here at least it adds to the charm immeasurably.
Laughing Gravy is a dog, Stan's dog- the boys are living in a rented room and keeping him secret from landlord Charlie Hall. And for thirty minutes that's pretty much your cast- Stan, Ollie, Laughing Gracy and Charlie Hall. The first two reels are the boys' attempts to keep their secret from Charlie, the final reel is what happens after they've been thrown out and are packing their belongings. And it's this final ten minutes that is so beautiful and extraordinary. Stan receives a letter explaining that a relative had died, leaving him a fortune- on the condition that he breaks off all ties with Ollie. It's rare to find such a prolonged, gentle examination of their relationship as this: I really can't think of anything else like it. Funny, tender and dark, this final reel dips a toe into the river of poetry, and I think it's lovely, I really do.
And then: just as we are recovering from this unexpected detour, the landlord kills himself. There is some odd territory being explored here, and though I can't honestly argue for this as one of the funniest Laurel and Hardy films, I would suggest that it's one of their films that anyone with a passing interest in their art needs to see.

Two Tars (Laurel & Hardy 1928)

I think there's much still to be said on the subject of anger in Laurel and Hardy films. Just an observation... Very funny this of course, and one of ther finest silent shorts, but my goodness the anger, the uncontained tempers!
It's probably no coincidence that the pick of the Laurel and Hardy films can be given one line summaries in the style of- and bear with me while I try and summon up the nerve to lower the tone for a second- 'Friends'.  There's the christmas trees one, the music box one, and this one- this is the traffic jam one. Twenty minutes long, and surely a good fifteen of those minutes are spent in the confines of the angriest, most violence-filled traffic jam you're ever going to see. And, perverse as ever, I'm going to say that I actually prefer the stuff that comes before it- Stan and Ollie, two sailors home on leave, pick up a swell pair of girls and try and get some sweets out of a doodad for them. Charlie Hall is the diminutive dark-haired sweet vendor who provides the opposition for their first fight in the film, though it's the girls who really get stuck into him. The interplay between the boys and the girls in these first couple of scenes is lovely, lots of cute flirtation and shy smiles, but it does highlight how for the remainder of the film the girls becomes eye candy and not really anything more.
I love the jaunty nautical bounding strides both the Boys have here- these little touches work so well (similarly the exchange of hats- no big deal is made of it, and you could almost miss it completely, but it's so lovely) and help take 'Two Tars' to a higher level. The traffic jam scene is great of course- a ton of fabulous moments in there. But you already know that.