Fra Diavolo

"The Devil's brother" is not an accurate translation of "Fra Diavolo." "Fra" in this sense was for "frater" not "fratello". Frater, of course, being a title for a religious who was not a priest. It was a common practice to address such a person as "Fra Giovanni" (brother John). Because of the bloodthirstiness of the actual person, Azzolino da Romano,(who was mentioned in Dante's "Inferno"- XII), he was nicknamed "Brother Devil"; in particular for his massacre of the citizens of Padua.

Laurel & Hardy could very easily have slid into musical comedies, as could the Marx Brothers. Hardy had a tenor voice, put to good use in WAY OUT WEST, and Stan (while he was not as good a singer) could talk sing quite nicely (and was prepared to do comic singing - his change of voice in singing "In the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia" in WAY OUT WEST is an example). As a result a musical number will frequently pop up in their movies. In SONS OF THE DESERT it's the HONALULU, BABY! number. In SWISS MISS there were several (even a ditty, supposedly composed by Walter Woolf King, entitled "Crick, crick, crick goes the cricket"). Even in their earliest features numbers appear (in PARDON US we hear "MICHIGAN"). So it was not unexpected that Hal Roach and Stan Laurel would do full scale musicals. They turned to operettas (or spoofs of operas like FRA DIAVOLO) because the costumes and settings gave opportunities for Stan to come up with new pieces of business for himself and Babe Hardy.

The actual opera by Auber is more dramatic than this comedy. Fra Diavola dies at the end (he is, after all, a villain). But here there is a light hearted element that overcomes the original. Stan and Ollie (or Stanlio and Ollio) are robbed by brigands on the road and decide to turn brigand themselves. Naturally, Ollie decides that he will protect them from discovery by claiming to be the infamous Fra Diavalo. Their initial attempt at theft is hardly successful. They confront a man with a hard luck story, and end up giving him money. Then they seem to be more successful confronting a younger man, until Ollie brags that he is Fra Diavolo. The younger man demands proof. Diavolo always sings a theme song, and everyone knows his voice. Ollie starts singing the tune, and the man (you've guessed it - it's Dennis King) continues singing it. They almost get hanged for that, but King decides to use them as minions in a plot to rob an English mi-lord and his wife (James Finlayson and Thelma Todd*).

(*Finlayson's name, as a joke, is Lord Rocburg. In reality, the character in the opera was Lord Cockburn.)

The bulk of the film deals with King and the boys in the inn run by Henry Armetta, where Finlayson and Todd are residing on their trip. King is romancing the frivolous and bored Todd, and hoping to get her jewelry. Finlayson is suspicious of her activities, but is not swift enough to catch King in action (at one point, he is mistaken for King by Ollie and Stan, who lock him up after beating him, and start telling him off - they think of course he's King, who listens to them annoyed but amused).

The music is actually not overdone, and King (who had a fine trained voice) gets several opportunities to sing. He was not the first major Broadway star to work with the boys (Lawrence Tibbett had in ROGUE SONG) nor the last headliner to do so (Dante the Magician would in A-HAUNTING WE WILL GO). But he seems to work quite nicely with them, sharing screen time, and even showing elements of comic timing and reactions. In one song number, he even shudders and turns away from an ugly woman while addressing a romantic passage in the tune.

For an early example of their use of operetta, THE DEVIL'S BROTHER is (as Stan Laurel said) one of their best films. Of course, to most people, it will always be recalled as the film where Stan drives both Ollie and Henry Armetta to distraction with his "finger wiggle" and his "earsie - eyesie - nosie" games that he can handle with ease but the other two can't quite coordinate. It is fun to watch here, and would later be subject to a rare repeat comment: in BABES IN TOYLAND, when Ollie insists that anything Stan can do Ollie can, Stan smiles and shakes his head. He then does "earsie - eyesie - nosie", much to Ollie's annoyance.

Two hapless misfits find themselves working for Fra Diavolo (THE DEVIL'S BROTHER), the notorious singing bandit of the early 18th century.

Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy are at the top of their form - high praise indeed - in this lavish, but rather obscure, rendition of Daniel-François Auber's popular operetta. Laurel's frightened squeak & Ollie's pout of wounded dignity are on display, as is the easy camaraderie and genuine affection of these two gentle souls. Here they are simply allowed to do what they did best: amuse. One hilarious sequence follows another: Stan attempting to hang Ollie (really!); their slapstick endeavor to capture the bandit; the Boys helpless in an uncontrollable fit of laughter. Director Hal Roach understood their comedic style better than anyone, and he lets them make the most of their time before the cameras. Their every moment captured on film is precious; each minute they are missing so that subplots may develop is decried as an intolerable waste.

In the title role, British opera star Dennis King monopolizes much of the screen time. A good deal of his vocalizing is unintelligible, but he plays the charming rogue well. However, it is important to notice that despite his charm, he is one of the most dangerous villains the Boys encounter in any of their films. Beneath the thin veneer of civility, he is little more than a murderous, thieving rapscallion. He has nothing but his handsome face & dulcet tones to separate him from a Karloff or a Lugosi.

Peppery James Finlayson & lovely, tragic Thelma Todd play silly, vain aristocrats who have more jewels than common sense. Both of these wonderful performers were always welcome in roles large or small - his bristling mustache and popping eyes & her classic beauty so often the focal point of great humor. But here they have very little contact with the Boys and so much of their comedic talent is rather dissipated in mildly adulterous scenes with the Bandit Chief. Pity...

There is a subplot involving the Innkeeper's daughter and her forbidden love of a young military officer, but fortunately it is not allowed to intrude too much. Henry Armetta as the Innkeeper, however, is given some very funny moments as he tries without success to duplicate Stan's intricate hand games.

As someone else mentioned, when Laurel & Hardy ventured into feature length films, they often adapted operettas. This is the best of the lot, although "The Bohemian Girl" runs a close second. This is L&H at the top of their form. I've seen every L&H film still extant, and this definitely ranks in the top five.

The plot stays fairly close to the operetta in most major details, but adds genius bits of comic business for Stan & Ollie. The catchiest tune in the original, the "Romanze" (or Diablo's theme) is retained and used as a center piece for some of the funniest bits in the show.

For those who can appreciate Stan Laurel's sublime comedic genius (he was the brains and creative force of the duo), I can't recommend this highly enough.

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy is one of the greatest comedic couple ever.In this movie they get to be the retainers of a singing bandit called Fra Diavolo(Dennis King).Of course, everything goes wrong, when Stanlio and Ollio are trying to do their job.The Devil's Brother is a great musical comedy.The movie contains some very funny moments, that just make you laugh.From the couple Laurel is the more childish one, who cries in these movies many times. Hardy is trying to be more adult, who is barely standing his friend.There isn't one problem, these two fellas can't manage with their own stupidness.