A Ilha da Bagunça

For new L&H fans, Stan and Ollie's appearance may be a shock. Stan looks VERY thin and has noticeably aged. Ollie, in contrast, has gained a LOT of weight.

If you can overlook their appearance, and the slow moving subplot, Atoll K does have some good comedy routines. However, their more elderly appearance does hamper what would otherwise be good gags. You just can't laugh at Stan while he is dealing with an inflating raft in the ship's cabin. He looks like he's truly in agony, and you want to help him instead of laugh at him. Also, the film is poorly edited. The original movie was 90 minutes long, but when re-released, it was shortened to a more tolerable 60 minutes. Most of the footage taken out was from the subplot, so taking out the extra half hour improved the movie.

While "The Boys" had more freedom to write gags and dialogue, nobody else on the crew had any idea what to expect in a L&H picture. Confusion and the illness of Stan and Ollie caused the picture to take an entire year to make! Not long after Atoll K was released, Ollie went on a diet and lost a LOT of weight, but it was too late.

I have read so many negative reviews of this film that I expected a really horrible film. Surprise, surprise. The film is actually not bad at all. Sure, Stan does look ill in some shots but the boys are still funny and the story is engaging enough. I love the fact that the film was shot in Europe. It gives it a fresh look that is absent from their older studio-bound films. Some gags are better than others(the loading of the boat is quite funny), and the whole premise of the boys creating a country without taxes and laws works quite well. In a very funny moment, Ollie declares himself president and names the other 3 original inhabitants to key posts, relegating poor Stan to the status of "the people". The supporting cast are all dubbed, but this does not hinder the film. What doesn't quite work is the whole sub-plot about the sexy French singer and her fiancé. They could have cut that down a bit. Overall, not bad at all. If you're a L&H fan do yourself a favour and give this film a chance.

This was Laurel and Hardy's last film and, of all their features, the one with probably the worst reputation. I can give it the left-handed compliment of saying, "It is not as bad as you have heard it is." The boys are caught in a storm at sea but are saved when a submerged island rises up under their boat. Along with a few other misfits, they establish a cooperative society. Then, the outside world shows up, discovers uranium on the island and the rush is on. What is unique is the level of satire that is present in the movie's last third, even though it is genial rather than sharp. Laurel looks thin and old (he was, in fact, quite ill during filming), but gamely takes his pratfalls. There is plenty of the usual shtick between Stan and Ollie. I find it funny no matter how many times I've seen it so I laughed several times. For L&H fans.

This was part of a 3-DVD box-set, and it came with the Laurel and Hardy shorts Mud & Sand, Just Ramblin' Along, Oranges and Lemons, and the Three Stooges ones Brideless Groom and Sing a Song of Six Pants; it also came with another feature, Flying Deuces. The disc this was on came with The Tree in a Test Tube & Malice in the Palace. I haven't watched an awful lot of the duo, and other than the aforementioned ones, it has been years since I did. Not sure why this has such a low rating; it is genuinely funny and clever at its best(honestly, few of the light, goofy and, at times, cartoon-style slapstick gags fall flat), and it seldom, if ever, drags, for the 82 minute running time. It makes fun of politeness, taxes, and other everyday subjects, in spite of the unusual plot of a deceased eccentric uncle(always popular) leaving them an island. Inbetween clumsiness, knocking stuff over, falling, and other natural occurrences that are not presented as if they hurt, weepy Laurel(who looks so old and worn here) and dominating Hardy also explore social issues and government. Is that a good thing? Well, a lot of the way, the treatment of it is great. I don't think they quite keep up the quality all the way, though. Near the end(when this gets "big", with "action", as expected), this gets somewhat unrealistic, employs a sort of deus ex machina, and the conclusion has darkness to it. The FX are decent. Editing and cinematography are fine. A nice amount of laughs, and not boring. I recommend this to big fans of the two. 6/10

This film has the unfortunate distinction of being Laurel & Hardy's last film together. Though, it is true, you can see how ill Stan was and how age was ravishing both, it is NOT true that they had lost their charm. There are bits in this film that I found every bit as funny as those in the L&H heyday. Give it an honest try. I think you'll find this movie is unjustly maligned.