The Magnificent Two

Let me say right from the start that I am a big, big Morecambe and Wise fan and have been ever since I was a kid. I'd heard that their features were but pale shadows of their TV work but even thus forewarned I was shocked by the total lack of humor in this film. THE MAGNIFICENT TWO is clearly meant to be something like the Hope and Crosby ROAD movies and I can't think of two comics who could have carried it off better than Eric and Ernie --- like Bob and Bing, they relied much on spirited ad-libs and spontaneity to earn their laughs, but this movie saddles them with a dreadfully humorless script which they seemed to follow like leaden zombies. Let me give you an example of what this movie's creators thought was funny: Eric and Ernie have an argument with their mouths so stuffed with food you can't hear what they're saying. Laugh? You'll never start. The only reason I gave THE MAGNIFICENT TWO two stars instead of only one is out of respect for the boys. Check out their stuff on YouTube. They were funny, funny men.

This was the last of the three films that television comedians Morecambe & Wise made for the Rank Organisation. I saw all three when they came out and thought at the time that this was the best of the three.. Looked at today, more than fifty years on, although I still find it enjoyable, it seems rather more problematic. It seems to be unsure which direction it is going in. On the one hand, with this basic story-line, you could make a much darker film, but that would require different leads, but if judged purely as a vehicle for Morecambe & Wise, then it seems unnecessarily violent. On a positive note, I did rather like the performance of Margit Saad as General Carla, the leader of the women's revolutionary army. In a film like this, it would be easy to make her a ridiculous figure, but in fact, she plays the part for the most part fairly straight in an under-stated manner which I found quite effective, although at times she seems to be in a different film to the two leads. In conclusion, I have seen much worse films starring TV comedians, eg Mr. Ten Per Cent starring Charlie Drake which came out at about the same time.. If you can cut this film some slack, then you may find things about this film that you can enjoy.

Despite their best efforts Morecambe and Wise never quite made the transition from small to big screen, and this third and final film they made for Rank in the 60's isn't that great.

For one thing it has an alarmingly high body count, which seems jarring when you consider that Morecambe and Wise had a big family orientated act.

The mistaken identity plot is as old as the hills and the sight of lots of bikini clad girls running about seems more akin to the 'Carry On' films than Morecambe and Wise.

This film, as with the other two, is regarded now as a cult classic, but I think for many Morecambe and Wise are still best loved for their TV work.

I remember seeing this movie as a child with my brothers and sisters sometime in the 80's and we loved it. We were all already very familiar with their comedy series and were elated when we heard that they were in this movie. What made it so memorable was the plot itself. Really simple and straight forward, quirky and funny. Then there is the contrast between the two main characters and their Latin American co characters. It simply flowed and it worked very very well. It had some slapstick, subtle puns, and a few delightful stunts. Ahaaaaaaaaaaa! lest I forget to mention that there is something for the kids as well. It reminds me of 'The three amigos' and is just as funny. It was meant to be light comedy and the producers pulled it off excellently.

There are not many reviews about this film and 2 thirds of them are poor, one who calls it drivel !!

It is actually very funny, particularly the physical side of it, and the dialogue is good, its a bit of a cross between 'The Magnificent Seven' (where it gets its mocking title) and 'Carry On Cowboy', it does mock the former film, but not in a direct way, apart from the title, Eric & Ernie bounce off each other well and the other actors pick up the slack, its not the best film, and just as good as their previous 2, but certainly not rubbish like some are making bit out to be, its a daft comedy from 2 comedians, what do they want 'Schindler's List'?

So ignore the negative reviewers, take a look, if you like physical comedy, with a bit of good dialogue, this might be right up your street, and even if it doesn't get you in stitches, your time will not be wasted.