Life Is a Circus

Sometimes comedians can make one film too many.A prime example is Laurel & Hardy.This is the last film of The Crazy Gang.Unfortunately by the time this was made many of the gang were in or approaching their 70s and i am afraid it shows.This is essentially a remake of their 30s film "Alfs Button Afloat".The only change is that Ches Allen has retired and is replaced by the Monsewer Eddie Gray.The Monsewer was always a bit of an outsider,rather added on to make up numbers.To be honest all he could ever do is to add his routines but was never fully integrated.This was a source of some antagonism at the time.On the one hand one can say,why did they do it.On the other it is a last look at a comic institution which would come to an end in 1962.On stage The Gang could be a riot.Unfortunately in this film they are a shadow of their selves.Even Bud Flanagan is struggling with his material.

'Life is a Circus' provides further evidence that despite Val Guest serving his apprenticeship as a writer for Will Hay his thrillers were usually far superior to his comedies.

Although effectively a remake of the Crazy Gang's earlier 'Alf's Button Afloat', it more resembles 'Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs', with Shirley Eaton as a country lass in sweater & jeans - who claims that her friends rather improbably call her 'Butch' - as their Snow White.

As the genie Lionel Jeffries provides a satisfactory substitute to Alistair Sim in the earlier film; while the most cherishable moment comes when Flanagan & Allen briefly re team to perform 'Underneath the Arches'.