mark.waltz It's a truly ticklish situation for Stan Laurel when he encounters the voluptuous Sharon Lynne who attempts to get the deed to a gold mine away from him that Stan and Oliver (Hardy) were attempting to deliver to the innocent Rosalina Lawrence. What is funnier, Laurel laughing hysterically as Lynne reaches into his shirt to get the deed, tickling possibly more than his funny bone, or the fact that Lynne is married to the much older James Finlayson, the perpetrator of this scam? This is along with "Sons of the Desert" possibly Laurel and Hardy's funniest feature, and one which totally stands the test of time. Yes, the entire situation is preposterous, but the laughs come a mile a minute, going much faster than the wagon which bypasses Laurel and Hardy as they try to thumb a ride. The fact that Laurel gets a wagon train to pull to a complete stop by exposing his leg (a la Claudette Colbert) gives a hysterically funny insinuation which managed to go right past the censors of the Hays code.The comedy gets off to a wet start with Laurel and his mule pal carrying a sleeping Oliver through a river and basically dumping him there for possibly the world's first water bed. Then, there's trouble aboard the stagecoach as the two flirt with the wife of the town's sheriff where they are heading to, and continues with the scam perpetuated against them by Finlayson and Lynne. Rosalina Lawrence, best known as one of the school teachers on the Our Gang series, is merely adequate as the heroine, but Finlayson and Lynne are downright hysterical. A funny twist involving the boys trying to get into their house during the middle of the night is guaranteed to give the viewer chest pains from laughing, including such props as the forlorn mule and a strategically placed bucket. This is farce at its best, coming in a year that focused mainly on the sophisticated screwball comedy of the major studios, and it certainly places amongst the best of that year as far as classic comedy is concerned.

lugonian WAY OUT WEST (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1937), directed by James Horne, a Stan Laurel Production for the Hal Roach Studios, is a way out western comedy starring that classic team of Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. If not their funniest, it's definitely one of their finest achievements. Placing Laurel and Hardy in a western setting is a welcome change of pace. For a western, Laurel and Hardy retain their character traits and derby hat trademark. For a western, they don't ride sidesaddle on horses, but travel along in the company of their donkey, Diane. For a western, it's their only attempt in that genre.The plot is basic and simple. It deals with Stan and Ollie traveling west to Brushwood Gulch where they are to locate and hand deliver a gold mining deed to the daughter of the late Cy Roberts. While on the stagecoach to town, Ollie gets overly familiar with a woman passenger (Vivian Oakland) who turns out to be the sheriff's wife. Learning of his wife's annoyance, the Sheriff (Stanley Fields) orders the two dudes to leave town on the next coach. Ollie obliges, but he and Stan must first fulfill their mission, and they do. After locating the whereabouts of Mary Roberts at a local saloon, they encounter Mary's guardian, saloon owner Mickey Finn (James Finlayson), who give it to his wife, entertainer Lola Marcal (Sharon Lynne), as the rightful heir. After passing off the deed to "Mary Roberts," Stan and Ollie later meet with the real Mary Roberts (Rosina Lawrence), a sweet but extremely overworked young lady working in Mickey Finn's Palace. Realizing their blunder, Stan and Ollie attempt on getting the deed back from these two crooks, which comes with much difficulty to hilarious results.With 66 minutes of non-stop comedy, song interludes are inserted, none intrusive to the plot, with those including: "Won't You Be My Lovey Dovey?" (sung by Sharon Lynne); "Commencing to Dancing" (Sung by Chill Wills and the Avalon Boys); "In the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia," and "Way Down South in Dixie" (sung by Rosina Lawrence, Laurel and Hardy). Of these fine tunes, the "Commence to Dancing" sequence is most memorable due for Laurel and Hardy's soft shoe dancing.For many years on broadcast television, the "Lovey Dovey" number was usually edited, with film opening with Stan and Ollie traveling down the dirt road bound for Brushwood Gulch. It wasn't until sometime in the late seventies when WAY OUT WEST would be shown on TV uncut, starting with Public Television, giving repeated viewers a chance to enjoy the movie intact. It's also worth noting how, in the New York City area during the late 1960s, how sometimes TV Guide programmers would confuse the Laurel and Hardy comedy with that of the William Haines own western-comedy of WAY OUT WEST (MGM, 1930) to be shown on the late-late show, or visa versa.While Haines' WAY OUT WEST is seldom revived these days (even on Turner Classic Movies), it's Laurel and Hardy edition of WAY OUT WEST that's stood the test of time. Interestingly, it's a little known fact that WAY OUT WEST did get nominated for an Academy Award. No, not for best original screenplay (by Jack Jevne, Charles Rogers, James Parrott and Felix Adler), or Best Picture, but for best musical direction (by Marvin Hatley). Accordingly, slapstick and dialog are the essence for WAY OUT WEST or any Laurel and Hardy comedy. Once seen, it's hard to forget Hardy's repeated disappearance into a hidden hole while strolling or running through the riverbed; Laurel's surreal moments singing in both baritone and monotone, and ability to turn his thumb into a flaming torch of fire; Laurel paying homage to Claudette Colbert's classic hitchhiking scene from IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT (Columbia, 1934); Laurel going into hysterics while on the bed of bad girl Lola as she goes through his pockets for the deed; and best of all, James Finlayson, a regular in many Laurel and Hardy comedies dating back to the silent era, doing his now familiar yet often funny direct stares to the camera and intake of air during his constant signs of disbelieve. Finlayson is one of a kind. And where else where can anyone find a movie such as this where the donkey appears to be much smarter than Stan and Ollie.Distributed to home video in the 1980s (black and white or colorized versions), WAY OUT WEST can be found as a double feature package, along with Laurel and Hardy's other classic, BLOCKHEADS (1938) on DVD. Presented on various cable television channels in later years, including the Comedy Channel (late 1980s), American Movie Classics (1994-96) and finally Turner Classic Movies (TCM premiere: April 1, 2005). As much as SONS OF THE DESERT (1933) and BABES IN TOYLAND (1934) have become best loved Laurel and Hardy products, WAY OUT WEST will definitely be no disappointment either. Commence to laughing. (***1/2)

dougdoepke As with any classic Laurel & Hardy, the plot is unimportant and just a frame on which to showcase their sweetly innocent brand of humor. Here they're trying to keep ownership of a goldmine out of the greedy clutches of a saloon owner and his blonde canary. The boys don't show up until 10 minutes into the proceedings, but from then on they are center stage with one routine after another. Most are pretty funny, though the keep-away parlor chase goes on a shade too long as does the break-in escapade. However, when Hardy smugly revels in his superiority only to lose his outer garments and dignity to Laurel's witless bungling, we get a good look at the core of their appeal.The comedy bits may be entertaining, but the several song and dance numbers are sublime. Notice how effortlessly the duo picks up on the hiccuping beat of the musical Avalon Boys. The resulting dance duet is among the most charming in film annals. Hardy in particular transforms from ungainly fat man into nimble blithe spirit, a beguiling triumph of grace over bulk, and more meaningful in its implications than the miles of over-produced, over- choreographed numbers from Hollywood's army of Big Musicals.Sadly, theirs is the fey, gentle humor of an era gone by. Quite simply, there's been no one like them before or since. But at least a permanent record of their achievement remains for the rest of us who enjoy this lighthearted look at classic comedy.

JoeytheBrit In childhood this was one of my favourite Laurel & Hardy films, and seen with the eyes of an adult it is still packed with an incredible amount of funny moments. L&H arrive in a wild western town to deliver the deeds of a gold mine to Mary Roberts (Rosina Lawrence) a young girl working as a scullery maid for wily saloon owner Mickey Finn (James Finlayson) and showgirl Lola (Sharon Lynn). Finn and Lola trick the boys into handing the deeds over to them and, once they discover the duplicity, the duo are determined to retrieve it.For a full-length feature, it is surprising how well-paced the film is - especially in the first forty minutes (things go downhill a little in the last 20 minutes, although there are still laughs to be had). There are any number of not only funny but classic scenes, such as the pair's impromptu dance to The Avalon Boys song and their duet on Trail of the Lonesome Pine (which would reach the top of the charts long after the boys had both died), Stan's hysterics as Lola tries to wrestle the deeds from him, Ollie's frustrated attempts to emulate Stan's thumb trick, and Stan finding he quite enjoys the taste of Ollie's hat, etc.This is arguably one of Laurel & Hardy's greatest films and is essential viewing for anyone interested in vintage Hollywood comedy.