STAN & OLLIE

“Stan & Ollie” examines the twilight career of Laurel and Hardy, one of the most famous comedy duos to ever grace the silver screen.  The film’s tone is pleasant and the movie is paced well (at 97 minutes), but it is the movie’s stars who make this film eminently watchable for film buffs and newbies alike. 

“Stan & Ollie” largely focuses on the final tour the duo took of small music halls in Great Britain in 1953. Although the tour seems rather hastily put together by a smarmy promoter at second-class venues, it is a last-ditch attempt for the aged boys to resurrect their film career and potentially pique the interest of a movie mogul for a proposed Robin Hood-based feature film.  But, time has taken its toll.  Oliver Hardy (John C. Reilly), now in his 60s and somewhat larger than he once was, suffers numerous health ailments, complicating the less-than-luxurious tour and any potential physical comedy.  Stan Laurel (Steve Coogan), without the backing of the Hal Roach studio behind him, has to fully shoulder the creative aspects of their performances as well as the duo’s management.  Meanwhile, although still in sync with goldie-oldie live bits while performing to scattered audiences in Britain, the classic film performers, offstage, are slightly at emotional odds with each other. In fact, Stan still feels the sting of Oliver’s abandonment years earlier (as Hardy had stayed with Hal Roach studios due to his many gambling debts after Laurel had been let go).

Reilly truly inhabits the character of Oliver “Babe” Hardy, replete with mannerisms (tie-twiddling, flourishing his derby hat) and near-seamless makeup (reportedly taking up to four hours to apply).  Likewise, Coogan has a remarkable physical resemblance to Stan Laurel and is able to nearly match Stan’s classic vocal intonations and all his vintage quirks (bewildered head scratch, prolonged eye blink, the raising of his hat by blowing on his fingers). The actors are also well matched with one another, gracefully switching between drama and slapstick comedy. Ultimately, their performances catapult a limited-conflict plot into the realm of fascinating film work. The movie has almost a you-are-there quality, as if you are pulling back the curtain, looking in on “the boys,” themselves, because the characters seem in every sense real to the viewer.

Fans of the duo, fans of film, and fans of acting will want to take a peek at this movie.  Reilly and Coogan give a masterclass in subtlety and nuance of character to the off-stage final days of the iconic pair.  Be sure to stay tuned during the credits, as well, to see real scenes of Laurel and Hardy and realize how genuine the performances truly are.

 Rated PG, “Stan & Ollie” is recommended for teens and adults.