Opiniones de usuarios

BLOCK-HEADS is set up with an idea which must have seemed totally ridiculous in 1938 but when you stop to consider that Japanese soldiers were being found on remote Pacific islands 30 years after the second world war ended the idea stops being ridiculous and becomes shockingly prophetic

This is possibly the last of the great L&H movies ( FLYING DUECES being the only other contender ) , after this the comedy duo started appearing in studio features that didn't seem to show much respect to their genius , made them slightly off centre and stretched stories out for almost 90 minutes when a 60 page script would have worked much better

This means that BLOCK-HEADS suffers from the mild irritation of so many other Stan and Ollie star vehicles - It's rather episodic . But seeing as it's so funny what have we got to complain about ? Listen out for Stan's tagline " Is there gonna be a fight ? " which is repeated several times and the surreal sequence of closing the blinds on the stairway . Strange when people discuss the films of these two comedy gods they always think of slapstick but forget they were also masters of surrealist visualism too . The funniest moment is probably the final scene in Ollie's apartment involving the married couple from next door

I still think THE LAUREL AND MURDER HARDY CASE is the best of their vehicles but BLOCK-HEADS deserves its own mention as being one of the very last superb Stan and Ollie comedies

This is the "boys" - Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy - it what many consider their last good comedy feature film, doing what they do best: short slapstick routines. It's almost a compilation of them, a series of routines more than a story with a plot. Stan and Ollie, between 45 and 50 years old when they made this film, were Hollywood veterans by now.

Frankly, the comedy might be considered a little too corny for today's crowd but, hey, the movie is 70 years old. If you're a fan of these two comedians you should enjoy this film. Anyway, when anyone provides a lot of gags in just under one hour, you'll hit and miss a lot....but some things will always be funny. Some are still clever, too, such as the bit with the window shade being a shadow.

You can always count on Ollie being henpecked and Stan being an airhead (he's a WWI soldier who marched in a trench for 20 years not realizing the war is long over). Of course, if you think about it, that premise has more holes in it than the proverbial swiss cheese, but who cares? A good portion of this film involves the simple fact of Ollie and Stan just trying to walk 13 flights up the stairs to Ollie's apartment, and the adventures that happen to them along the way.

After watching just 57 minutes of these guys pratfalls and slapstick routines, you'll be exhausted!

Do you have the feeling that the folks in the army deliberately forgot to tell Stan that World War I was over? Maybe they just didn't want the troop ship to sink on the way back from France.

If that was the case Ollie made the mistake of his life when he decided to invite his long lost buddy Stan over to meet the wife and have a good home cooked meal. Ollie's happily married now to Minna Gombell and when we first meet them he seems to be one happy well adjusted man.

Blockheads really starts when Stan is reunited with Ollie at the old soldier's home. I guess a grateful government is giving Stan free room and board for being the last man discharged from World War I. Still there's nothing like home cooking.

I think Blockheads offers us the proposition that Ollie can be a well adjusted if somewhat fatuous individual by himself. It's only apparently when he interacts with Stan that things just seem to happen.

And in fact that's what Blockheads is, a series of gags from the time that Ollie meets Stan at the home and just assumes he's an amputee because he's decided to sit a wheelchair rigged up for one. Right up to the point where big game hunter Billy Gilbert, the Hardy's next door neighbor chases the both of them out of the house because he catches Mrs. Gilbert in Ollie's pajamas. How she got in them? You have to see Blockheads to find out.

Best gag I thought was Stan dealing with an obnoxious neighbor who has just bullied Ollie into fetching the neighbor kid's football. Very priceless bit of comeuppance.

To see how in the space of an hour Laurel manages to literally become a home wrecker, catch Blockheads.

The last genuine, hilarious Laurel and Hardy comedy has no plot at all!! Just a series of hilarious gags that come thick and fast.. I would rate this feature(their last for Roach / MGM) as possibly their very best, only Way Out West comes near!! It's such a pity that after this film the decline really set in.. I would recommend Block-Heads to any Laurel and Hardy fan.. that said it is not going to change your mind if you don't like L&H as the boys are wonderfully true to type.. the ending is a reworking of Unaccustomed As We Are (their first sound movie) and in my opinion is much better here.. Don't miss the scene with the great James Finlayson!! If you get the chance to see it.. DON'T MISS IT!!

Two War buddies - BLOCK-HEADS both - create complete chaos in & around a fancy apartment building.

Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy are once again up to their usual high jinks, dealing with frightful wives, dangerous neighbors and the homicidal tendencies of nearly every inanimate object with which they come into contact. At this point in their partnership the Boys' were firmly established as screen legends; they worked together like well-oiled machinery, producing one laugh after another.

Billy Gilbert & James Finlayson - the Boys' greatest nemesis - are on hand and in very fine form as Ollie's highly belligerent neighbors. Gilbert's Great White Hunter (`I don't bring ‘em back alive. I bring ‘em back dead. I come back alive.') is especially funny. Patricia Ellis as Mrs. Gilbert & Minna Gombell as Mrs. Hardy add to the merriment.

Movie mavens will recognize OUR GANGer Tommy Bond as the mean kid with the football.

The film's opening sequence, with newsreel footage of World War One battles, is unexpectedly grim for a comedy. Fortunately, the laughs start quickly. Best bit - Ollie, thinking Stan has lost his right leg, insists on carrying him everywhere. Stan lets him.

It's the year 1938 and the war has been over for twenty years. But Stan is still patrolling in the trenches without knowing that the war is over.Stan's good buddy Oliver sees his friend's picture in the paper and goes to the veterans' home to get his buddy. Block-Heads is a hilarious Laurel and Hardy comedy.The movie offers you lots of laughs with the boys.Who could forget the scene where Ollie carries Stannie because he thinks Stan has lost his leg in the war.But Stan has the leg underneath him in the wheelchair.And the scene in the stairs.Block-Heads is one of the best Laurel and Hardy movies.Just watch the movie and it's non-stop laughing from the beginning to the end.

The first half of BLOCK-HEADS contains the most amusing skits in the feature that runs just a little short of one hour and seems like a series of farcical sketches that become a little too hectic toward the last twenty minutes. But fans of LAUREL & HARDY probably won't really mind since it's good slapstick fun.

The most amusing idea has STAN LAUREL still keeping watch in the trenches during World War I and shooting at a German plane until the pilot (who lands safely nearby) explains to him that the war has been over since 1918. When Stan is reunited with his friend OLIVER HARDY at a veteran's home, he's sitting in an unoccupied wheelchair and Oliver thinks he's a vet with a missing leg. It's one of the funniest sections of the film, that has Oliver carrying him, getting dumped on by a dumpster, and taking all sorts of pratfalls as the routine winds on.

Later, at Hardy's home, the slapstick gets even wilder but not necessarily funnier. Too many staged arguments with his wife (MINNA GOMBELL) lead to the sort of shouting matches that can become tiresome after awhile. But through it all, STAN LAUREL has some good comic moments as friend Oliver gets in trouble with the lady next door and her jealous husband (BILLY GILBERT).

The gags are fast and furious in typical slapstick tradition and it's a fast-moving comedy that should satisfy fans of the duo. Gilbert is a joy to watch as the jealous hubby, easily stealing scenes with his caricature of the man across the hall from Hardy.

Summing up: Delightful mixture of gags and slapstick situations in the Hal Roach tradition.

"Block-Heads" begins in WWI, where Stan and Ollie are in a platoon fighting in Europe. While Ollie and the rest of the group go into battle, Stan has to guard the post. You can tell that he's doing his job, because he continues doing it for twenty years after the war ends. After he returns to America, he and Ollie meet up again, and from there, they do their usual stuff. Probably the best scene was the football scene (I won't spoil it). But the wheelchair, temptress, garage door and kitchen all provide some laughs. They may play blockheads in the movie, but believe you me, Laurel and Hardy were comic geniuses. Gilligan and the Skipper were sort of a later version of them, and Chris Farley and David Spade were an even later version.

I just watched Block-Heads as part of the newly-released "Essentials" DVD collection, and thought it was very enjoyable. Although it was one of the boys later efforts for Hal Roach, the energy and slapstick were still to be seen in full force. I have scanned the user reviews for Block-Heads on IMDb, and did not see any reference to something that I believe slipped by the censors, and obviously most viewers.

I was a bit startled to notice that at the 54:50 mark of the film, as Mrs. Hardy slams the non-working phone down, she seems to utter the s-word! Check it out, and see if you hear what I hear. This curse word seems to be quite audible, more so than Edgar Kennedy's s-word slip in "Perfect Day." Minna Gombell, playing Mrs. Hardy, had obviously worked herself up into such a state of agitation, that this word just seemed to slip out, and strangely, no one seemed to notice!

Relations with producer Hal Roach were strained when the boys made this short feature (or long short) and it wouldn't be long before they made the fateful decision to throw in their lot with 20th Century Fox, a move that would mark a slow, painful and irreversible decline. This is one of the last of the films that shows them almost consistently at the top of their game - although even here the cracks are beginning to show. When comedians start relying on re-working their own material from nearly a decade before - as Stan and Ollie do here in the final reel which is a virtual scene for scene remake of their first talkie Unaccustomed as We Are - you know something isn't right.

This one's probably best remembered for the opening sequence which sees Stan still guarding his company's trench twenty years after the end of the Great War. It's a funny idea, and the boys get a huge amount of mileage out of it. When Ollie reads about his old friend's remarkable return from the dead he naturally wants to see him again. Big mistake. Within hours of meeting up again Stan has managed to bury Ollie's car in builder's sand, drive it into his garage door, blow up his kitchen, get him into a fight with James Finlayson and send his wife packing. Added to all the usual slapstick and pratfalls are some truly surreal moments such as when Stan pulls down the shadow blinds and when he smokes a pipe made out of his thumb. Definitely one of the boy's films that can be watched over and over again.

***1/2 out of ****

One of Laurel and Hardy's funniest comedies. It begins in 1918 during WWI, where Stan and Ollie are in the trenches with their army mates and the whole entourage goes over the wall to do battle, leaving Stanley with orders to remain alone in the trench and guard the fort. The next thing you know, twenty years go by and it's 1938, but nobody has told poor Stan the war's ended, so he's still marching back and forth in the same old trench! Eventually, Stan gets rescued and is taken to an Old Soldier's Home where he is visited by his old pal Ollie. Ollie decides to bring him home to his place to meet the wife and have a nice home cooked meal with a nice juicy steak, topped off with a delicious seven layer chocolate cake, with typical mishaps along the way! BLOCK-HEADS is a fast-moving joy that clocks in at under an hour's running time. The laughs are pretty steadily spread throughout, and there are a lot of them. My favorite scenes occur mostly during the first three quarters of the film, especially at the Soldier's Home where Ollie reunites with Stan, who just happens to be reading a newspaper while sitting in a wheelchair with one leg tucked under -- Ollie thinks Stan lost his leg in the war and proceeds to carry him in his arms around the grounds! Hilarious!! The end of the film loses just a touch of steam, which is the only reason I hesitantly pause in giving this a full four stars. But all fans of Laurel and Hardy must seek this Comedy out, and new first-timers would do well to use this movie (and SONS OF THE DESERT) as their introduction to Stan and Ollie. ***1/2 out of ****

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy are considered comedy geniuses for reasons that are more than justified, their partnership is also considered iconic and that is something that is deserved too. A vast majority of their films were entertaining to classic comedy and their lesser efforts being hardly unwatchable, At their best they were hilarious and they never came over as being too juvenile and never distasteful.

'Block-Heads' has been described numerous times as being one of Laurel and Hardy's best and one of their last great efforts before their general decline. Have to agree completely with both of those distinctions, it is for me one of their best feature films and something of a remedy after being disappointed by 'Swiss Miss'. Despite loving Laurel and Hardy, little of their work saw me unable to find fault. 'Block-Heads' is one of those examples of finding nothing to criticise though people may disagree.

Regardless of whether the story could be considered paper thin and episodic, this was a case where this didn't matter. Why? Because there is non-stop boundless energy from beginning to end, the structure is always cohesive, there is always a sense of fun and the material is nigh on perfect. It is also nowhere near as ridiculous as it could be, reading the premise on paper. To me, 'Block-Heads' did not feel like a short film stretched, some of their feature films had that impression but not 'Block-Heads'.

Laurel and Hardy cannot be faulted. The comic timing from both is impeccable, and they handle both the sly verbal wit and nimble but never cartoonish slapstick/physical comedy beautifully. Their partnership sparkles too. It helps that their material, and the material throughout in fact, is incredibly funny and often hilarious, not falling into the trap of repetition. One of the funniest opening scenes of any of Laurel and Hardy's films, short and feature, the final scene and with the desk clerk are particularly note-worthy.

It looks good, is expertly directed and wittily scripted. The supporting cast are on the money too, James Finlayson is always reliable but Billy Gilbert is especially good here.

Concluding, wonderful. 10/10 Bethany Cox

Block-Heads (2023) : Brief Review -

Only blackheads like Laurel and Hardy could have done justice to a mad comedy like this. Block-Heads may not look like a typical Laurel and Hardy comedy in the beginning as we get into the World War Zone, but after a while, when it turns to the city and that building, things go crazy with L & H as expected. Stan Laurel is seen as a soldier in the front, and for a moment I thought, "Is it going to be a war-zone comedy?" Thank goodness, I was wrong. Yet, that part was insanely funny. The war was over for more than 20 years, and still Laurel is there on his front, shooting any plane he sees. He didn't even know that the war was over and was leaving all alone. Wasn't that funny? Hell yes, it was. Hardy, on the other hand, is living with his wife and forgets his wedding anniversary. The couple plans a date, and Hardy leaves the house for one hour, only to learn about Laurel and get into a new jam. He brings Lauren home, and the house is scattered like cards. The two create chaos inside the house, among neighbours, and in family relations too. That kitchen blast scene was hilarious, as was the entire episode of wives after that. You need some crazy thinking to visualise scenes like them, and then you need blockheads and comedy legends like Laurel and Hardy to make those scenes work. What chaotic entertainers they have been. Hardy was naive and stupid, and Hardy was physically hilarious. Their appearances made them better, and here you can see why. Minna Gombell speaks so rudely to them, and yet you enjoy it. Patricia Ellis is cute throughout the film and then turns aggressive in that last scene. John G. Blystone gets all the old formulas of Laurel and Hardy together and makes a fresh comedy out of it. This one isn't great, but certainly more than good enough.

RATING - 7/10*

By - #samthebestest.

This really is one of my favorite Laurel & Hardy movies. Laurel & Hardy were at their best and prime in the '20's and the early '30's. Most movies made after that were slightly disappointing. This movie however is a wonderful exception to that.

What makes this movie so incredibly good and fun, is the well constructed story. Everything in the movie feels wonderfully connected and consistent. Something that not always was the case in many other Laurel & Hardy movies. They really put some effort in the story this time and the end result pays off. The movie has multiple subplots with many different characters involved but the movie truly feels as a whole.

Also the comedy present in the movie is deliciously funny. Of course the boys get into some serious troubles again, this time with several different persons, of who James Finlayson is one of those persons. The situations the boys get into are highly amusing and always a pleasure and fun to watch in this movie.

A comedy in which everything works out great and it's better than other Laurel & Hardy movies, thanks to the wonderful constructed story.

10/10

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All previous comments seem to be divided on whether this is one of the best or one of the least of Stan and Olly's output. Certainly there are sequences, climbing the stairs, "there's gonna be a fight", the wheelchair bit and so on that are up to their usual high standard, but overall the effect is a stretched short, 60 minutes needs a stronger plot line. What was increasingly noticeable was the use of stunt doubles for most of the pratfalls and dives. Hardy's was all too obviously a normal sized guy in padding and Laurel's much heavier set than Stan himself. Never the less, they WERE brilliant screen clown and will have my respect.

BLOCK-HEADS

Aspect ratio: 1.37:1

Sound format: Mono

(Black and white)

Old soldiers Stan and Ollie are reunited after twenty years and head off to Ollie's apartment for a slap-up meal, leading to a series of hilarious misadventures.

Lively farce, an expanded version of L&H's first talkie (the short film UNACCUSTOMED AS WE ARE -), in which the boys are reunited following their exploits on the battlefields of WWI (Stan ended up guarding a trench for twenty years, not realizing the war was over!) and become embroiled in a series of escalating calamities as they make their way home to Ollie's apartment for a celebration feast. L&H stalwarts Billy Gilbert and James Finlayson appear in cameo roles, while Minna Gombell plays Ollie's rebellious wife, unwilling to indulge his every passing whim (her transition from loving spouse to belligerent battleaxe is a little too abrupt, but no matter). Ollie foregoes the sidelong glances to camera this time around, but there are plenty of pratfalls, sight gags and double-takes, along with some gloriously silly dialogue exchanges (Stan: "If you want me to leave, I'll stay as long as you want!"). Directed by silent movie veteran John G. Blystone (also responsible for the L&H vehicle SWISS MISS, produced the same year), who died shortly after production.