Review by tavm

I found this short, The Sawmill, on a Platinum DVD collection of Laurel and Hardy shorts. It stars Larry Semon as one of the workers. Oliver Hardy plays the foreman and chief tormentor of Semon who shares with him a rivalry for the owner's daughter's hand. Unlike the Laurel and Hardy classic Busy Bodies, not all gags take place in a sawmill, some also take place in the owner's house involving a dog and some dynamite. There are also gags involving logs, paint, falling off roofs, and water. All are perfectly executed. There's a cartoonish atmosphere that's infectious here and that would eventually serve Hardy's later partnership with Stan Laurel well. For fans of Laurel and Hardy, this is well worth seeking out!