From Soup to Nuts

Definitely not the best silent Laurel & Hardy comedy short but like all Laurel & Hardy movies; it's all very enjoyable to watch.

The premise of the movie is simple (like it should be in a Laurel & Hardy movie) and relies on the mishaps of the two boys as inexperienced and of course very clumsy waiters, at a fancy dinner party and of course things go from nuts to nuttier, as the movie progresses.

The movie does has its tiresome, usual stretched out comical moments but some original well placed and timed humor as well, that was later also 'reused' in multiple other Laurel & Hardy movies. It doesn't make this movie one of the most hilarious ones but definitely one of the most defining and typical Laurel & Hardy comedy shorts. The movie is directed by Edgar Kennedy, who as an actor also starred along side with Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy together in multiple of their comedy films, before and after this movie.

In this case the movie definitely would had been a better one had it been a 'talkie' but alas, it doesn't mean that the overall end result is disappointing. This movie has plenty of entertaining slapstick humor to offer, that will surely shall please the fans.

7/10

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As others have commented, this isn't one of the boys best, but it is probably on a par (if not better) than anything they had done individually up to that point in their careers. The set-up is simple: Stan and Ollie are a pair of hapless (what else?) waiters employed to serve food at a swank dinner party. Of course chaos ensues as Ollie repeatedly falls head first into a gigantic cake after slipping on a banana skin, and Stan takes the instruction to serve the salad without dressing literally. Some of the gags are a little repetitive, but there's enough quality here to see why Hal Roach decided to keep the boys together. The film was pretty much remade (together with elements from Another Fine Mess) to provide an extended prologue to the European version of 1939's A Chump at Oxford.

FROM SOUP TO NUTS is one of the classic silent shorts featuring the boys playing waiters at a swanky dinner party with high class guests. Of course, everything that could go wrong does end up going wrong, from obvious slapstick (the classic cream pie to the face sketch is repeated constantly) to classic misunderstandings and bizarro situations. While the boys are on top form as ever here, what I really liked was the characterisation of the other players. The scene with the lady trying to get the cherry on her spoon is utterly delightful and on par with the established players. Altogether a fine show.

This is a pretty good Laurel and Hardy short comedy - it's not as creative as their very best features, but it's definitely enjoyable, and it contains some good gags. The main thing that keeps it from being better is that in "From Soup To Nuts" you not only see most of the gags coming, but there are few surprises in how they play out. In their best comedies, you often don't know what's going to happen next.

The setup has Stanley and Oliver as waiters hired for a lavish dinner party in the home of a rich couple. There is plenty of good material in the setting, and most of the comedy ideas are funny enough in themselves. Anita Garvin also helps out quite a bit as the hostess, and she has a couple of running gags of her own. As with most Laurel and Hardy features, you can watch this more than once and still be amused at their antics.

From Soup to Nuts (1928)

*** (out of 4)

Laurel and Hardy are waiters to a rich party but havoc begins as they start to serve the food. This is a delightful short that doesn't have too much going for it other than the boys falling into the food but this here is quite funny especially Hardy and the cake.

Another Fine Mess (1930)

*** (out of 4)

Laurel and Hardy, being chased by the police, enter a mansion and assume the identity of the owner and maid. This is a very funny short with highlights including Laurel going from the butler to the maid in a matter of minute to the best moment at the end of the film in a horse outfit.