Thicker Than Water

Appearantly this was the last comical short which starred the two boys in the leading roles. Too bad they didn't ended it with a blast. But still, this movie is just as good as most of their other works of course and it has some good and entertaining moments in it.

The story is just above average. It's your typical Laurel & Hardy stuff in which the boys get into some serious and unlikely trouble again. It's nothing special but the story and the movie in general serves its purpose to entertain and amuse its viewers.

The movie begins good with some typical slapstick moments. This is Laurel & Hardy at their best. After that the boys get into some more trouble, which also involves of course once more one of their wives and luckily it also involves James Finlayson again. His role is quite small and not really that impressive but his presence alone is more than enough reason to consider this movie an entertaining and above average one. All of the comical moments are rather predictable but executed very well, due to some good timing and acting by especially Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. The ending of the movie might feel out of place but nevertheless it's pretty entertaining to watch Stan Laurel imitate Oliver Hardy and vice versa. They both did a good job at imitating each other there and it surely made me laugh.

All in all it's a well made, consistent comedy by James W. Horne, who probably was the best and most consistent director of Laurel & Hardy pictures. Not their best or most memorable work but nevertheless a worthy last comedy short by the famous comical duo.

7/10

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In their partnership, Stan and Ollie made quite a few domestic comedies--particularly those where Ollie has an angry and domineering wife. So, this territory is certainly not unusual. However, the comedy short is still very well handled and is quite creative as well--providing more than enough reason to recommend this little film.

Ollie is married to a tough little woman. In fact, the contrast between them is funny in itself. Ollie is of course big and fat, but his wife is so tiny, seeing her scolding him and bullying him is pretty funny. In fact, late in the film, she needs to stand on a chair when she ultimately smacks him over the head with a frying pan! So how did their domestic bliss degenerate to such depths? Well, much of it seems to arise from allowing Stanley to live with them as a border and Ollie's stupid decision to actually listen to one of Stan's "good ideas". Given she has to deal with BOTH these men, I guess I can forgive Mrs. Hardy for being so angry!! Perhaps the one thing I like about the film best were its scene transitions. In a truly unusual and cute touch, Stan and Ollie often stop the scene they were doing and then walked to the corner of the scene and then "pulling" the next scene into the camera! This sliding transition was very well done and it was cute when they would say something like "wait" and then do this.

As the end of the film goes, I am a tad uncertain what I thought of it. Sure, seeing Ollie pay the price for his stupidity by getting slugged over the head with the frying pan and ending up in the hospital is kind of funny, but it's also a tad cruel and how all this is wrapped up it totally bizarre (albeit, funny). I think you just have to see it--I'd hate to spoil the ending by going any further.

Thicker Than Water is another Laurel and Hardy short directed by James W. Horne, and while the actors and producers of these silent/early-talkie shorts get much more credit than the directors behind them, something must be said about Horne's involvement with the Laurel and Hardy shorts, predominately the ones in the late twenties and early-to-mid-thirties. For starters, Horne's shorts, speaking of this particular one and Big Business from 1929, have the narrative consistency of being manic and developing a one-thing-leads-to-another scenario, stockpiled with hilarious mixups and misunderstandings. Then there's the fact that both of these shorts have the ability to keep accelerating in their zaniness, in such a way that is hilarious to watch and never burdensome or overbearing.

Thicker Than Water concerns Stan and Ollie, who are just about to head to the local baseball game when Ollie's wife (Daphne Pollard) scolds Ollie for ditching her with all the dishes and forces both men to wash them before leaving. After a hilarious scene, exercising Horne's directorial formula of filming various things accelerate into complete chaos, a man shows up to collect payment for some furniture Ollie and his wife bought. Following a miscommunication in funds, Stan and Ollie must withdraw the couple's savings from the bank to buy the furniture.

The scene doesn't stop there, with a whole new set of craziness awaiting at a local auction house, followed by the inevitable scolding of Stan and Ollie by Mrs. Hardy when they arrive home. Thicker Than Water shows an exuberant amount of comedic energy on part of its performers, as almost every Laurel and Hardy short does in some way, and, thanks to the incredible situational and slapstick writing by Stan Laurel and Frank Tashlin, Thicker Than Water never becomes tired or redundant in its pursuit of laughs and potboiler comedy. As the final short that featured both men in starring roles, it may not be what everyone was expecting, but it certainly is a hilarious offering. If only maybe Laurel and Hardy knew their career together was over would they have tried to conclude their work with a bang.

Starring: Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, and Daphne Pollard. Directed by: James W. Horne.

I won't wade into the same territory that others have. I think the dish washing scene was perhaps the most "Laurel and Hardy-esque" scene in the film, but the one in Helpmates was better.

Personally I felt that the banter about who gave the money to whom went on a bit longer than it needed to. I hope audiences in 1935 found it more engaging than I did.

The main reason I wanted to write a review is that I was impressed by the creative and clever way they handled scene changes from the Hardy house to other locations. Stanley grabs what might be some sort of pocket door or panel (if it were a real house) and pulls on its thick black border to walk it across the screen. The scene changes with it. In one of these clever "wipes" he accidentally lets go and it returns to the right side of the screen. So he grabs it again and walks it across the room. The scene change follows the movement of this panel. I haven't seen this trick done before. And being that this was decades before green screen, it must have been rather labor intensive to handle it in the cutting room. Bravo for this quirky little technique!

Thicker Than Water (1935) ** 1/2 (out of 4) Laurel and Hardy waste $300 on a grandfather clock so Hardy's wife hits him with a frying pan and sends him to the hospital. Again, not too funny and the worst part is the ending where the two change personalities. This here should have been a lot funnier than it turned out.

One Good Turn (1931) ** 1/2 (out of 4) L&H set out to raise $100 when they overhear an elderly woman say she's going to be evicted. Not too many laughs in this one outside the opening sequence in the woods.

Leave 'Em Laughing (1928) ** 1/2 (out of 4) Laurel is suffering from a toothache so Hardy takes him to the dentist who accidentally fills them with laughing gas. The early gags of Hardy trying to pull the tooth are funny but the ending with the cars goes on a bit too long and gets rather tiresome.

They Go Boom! (1929) *** (out of 4) Hardy has a cold so it's up to Laurel to try and find a cure so that they can get a good night's sleep. Highlights include the mustard bath and the exploding mattress.