Rating: 
Summary: The Boys Are Back In Town
Review: This collection of Laurel and Hardy films contains five total selections. Four of these are short films (about thirty minutes in length), while the fifth is a full-length feature (about an hour long). It's a fun set of material; nothing outrageously wonderful, but it's all quite entertaining. Here are some quick comments on each of the movies:Music Box -- Ah, who among us hasn't at one time or another had to carry a heavy and bulky item through a maze of difficult obstacles. Most of us probably have, but I doubt many have caused quite as much destruction (or has had much fun) as Laurel and Hardy in this film. Winner of that year's Academy Award, and it's an honor that is well earned. Another Fine Mess -- The opening to this one is surreal. Instead of a written listing of credits, a pair of identical twin blondes dressed as page boys come out and recite the credits orally. Kitsch city! The short itself is fairly amusing. The boys end up impersonating the occupants of a stately home in entertaining fashion. Hardy becomes the rich owner, while Laurel dresses up as both the butler and the maid. Busy Bodies -- Never mind the Star Trek technology that is slowly entering reality -- Laurel and Hardy listen to records in their car years before the first onboard CD player is invented! There's good potential for gags here; the boys are working at a woodworking factory (it looks like your high school shop class). Country Hospital -- This time Laurel and Hardy are creating havoc at (you guessed it) a country hospital. Fairly run of the mill stuff here, but the sequence of an anesthetized Laurel driving through the city streets (courtesy of a hilariously bad back screen projection technique) is impossible not to laugh at. Sons of the Desert -- The disc's only feature-length selection. This, along with most of the selections on this disc, has some good moments, and some bad moments. There's a gag involving a pair of adjacent doors that just goes on for too long. On the other hand, there are some hilarious sequences of Laurel and Hardy going to extremes to keep the truth about their vacation from their wives. Many of the jokes don't seem to have dated terribly well. This isn't really the fault of Laurel and Hardy though; after all, they weren't to know that generations of comedians would be stealing material from them. Because of that borrowing, a lot of this disc may seem familiar even if you've never seen a second of Laurel and Hardy before. Hardcore fans of Laurel and Hardy may complain that the image and sound quality of this disc is not as good as it could be. They're right, of course, but that shouldn't affect most of us who are just looking for some fun from the bungling but well-meaning pair of comedians. This disc isn't what I would describe as a "must own", although I'm certainly not unhappy that I bought it. It makes for a nice change of pace from today's comedies. It's nice to have something to watch with the younger (and older) members of the family that is actually funny in its own right.
Rating: 
Summary: finally they got off their lazy fanny and released a l&h dvd
Review: for some reason I feel that we americans get screwed out of great L&H releases so when I read that hallmark was releasing a d.v.d. I was happy.. I bought it and thought it was great even with it's flaws at least we get them,if you are reading this (hallmark) GIVE US MORE,MORE,MORE!!!thanks..(p.s. NO MORE "FLYING DEUCES" AND "UTOPIA" RELEASES!!!!!!!!!)
Rating:
Summary: This is the L&H DVD to get first!
Review: There are a number of Laurel & Hardy DVD's out there and many of them are not so good, featuring them in some of their latest, and sadly, weakest works (Utopia, Air Raid Wardens etc.). This DVD is not only excellent quality, it has some of Laurel & Hardy's strongest works. It includes "The Music Box", which deservedly won the Oscar in 1932 for best comedy short. In it L&H spend the day taking a piano to the top of an unbelieveably long flight of stairs. You remember! What a hoot!. It also contains another of their feature length films, "Sons of the Desert." In it Hardy fools his wife into thinking he and Stanley are taking an ocean voyage to Hawaii for his health while they in reality are going off to revel at the Sons of the Desert convention in Chicago. Check out Stan surreptitiously eating his third piece of waxed fruit in the past month at Hardy's house. Mrs. Hardy wondered where her living room fruit display had been going. They are at their best. The three remaining, shorter works "Another Fine Mess", "Busy Bodies" and "County Hospital" are also very well done with L&H both being in their comedic prime particularly in the first two. The DVD also contains some nice extras including a location tour of some of the sites for their early movies as well as biographical information. It's great for L& H fans. I hope someone comes out with another DVD with some of their other best works, like "Block Heads." I also wish that those who sell the DVD's (like AMAZON!!) would not simply list "Laurel and Hardy volume XX" as the title, but would make it easier to discover WHICH of their films are included on that DVD (i.e. the dog "Utopia" or the gem "Music Box"). Look at the listings. It 's almost impossible to easily discern which is contained. Since Laurel and Hardy never made a film titled "Boxed Set volume 6" we meed more information!! With the trash on today's theater screens, we need more Laurel and Hardy!
Rating:
Summary: "The Boys" finally on DVD including Oscar winning short!!!!
Review: "The Boys" as Stan Laurel & Oliver Hardy were affectionately called are finally on DVD thanks to Artisan Home Entertainment. Artisan does a grand job bringing us 5 of The Boys 100 movies to this Digitally Remastered DVD. Including their only Oscar film performance in "The Music Box (1932)". Hal Roach introduced these two comedic genius' in 1926 from then on for the next 25 years they charmed us with 100 films. These timeless comedy feature films (greater than 60 minutes)and shorts have been enjoyed by millions and generation after generation have laughed endlessly. Even today after 50 years since their last film scores of die hard fans gather monthly to share the joy of this teams genius. The "Sons of the Desert" Tent Society/club named after one of Laurel & Hardy (L&H)finest movies (included in this marvelous DVD) is a world wide organization. Each "TENT" (there are hundreds) is named after one of their films or significant film event. Some of these "Tents" are listed in the Special Features. Summary: These films are presented beautifully on this DVD with digitalized picture & sound. "The Sons of the Desert" is their most famous feature film. L&H belong to this exclusive boys club (spin off of the Shriners)of the movie title name. They need to go to the annual convention but must go on a planned vacation with their wives. L&H now come up with the perfect scam to get to the convention. But as all Laurel & Hardy comedies all things go haywire and we laugh endlessly to their predictable fate. "The Music Box" is their only Oscar winning film short. L&R go into business as movers. Stairs & piano provide us with the hilarity. "Another Fine Mess" This phrase was used by Ollie frequently in L&H movies. Escaping from the police our hereos seek refuge in a mansion & as only the boys can do end up as butler, maid & owner (briefly). "Busy Bodies" L&H work as construction factory assembly workers. In a very short time they destroy the place innocently only as the boys can. Finally "County Hospital" Ollie is in the hospital bed with a full leg cast recouperating. Along comes Stan for an innocent visit. You can only imagine what happens? This is a funny short. Special Features: Artisan does a great job giving us background information of "The Boys". Key to Laughter Tribute - several stars comment on L&H genius & timeless comedy. Then And Now Tour - Culver City pictorial of Hal Roach Studios, famous L&H film locations then and now. Hal Roach Articles, Photo Montage, Tent Sites and Biographies of Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy & Hal Roach. This is a great DVD for everyone who loves timeless comedy and to watch one of the greatest comedy teams ever. Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: Recomended With Reservatons
Review: The newest video offering of Laurel & Hardy by Artisan Home Entertainment is reason to celebrate despite some disappointment. The digitally remastered DVD disc provides beautiful transfers of The Music Box, Another Fine Mess, Busy Bodies, & County Hospital. It appears that the same restored source material that was used by RHI, broadcast on American Movie Classics during the mid 1990's, was used. The picture is sharp with stunning contrast. Two audio options are offered - Original 1.0 Dolby Monoral or Restored 2.0 Dolby Monoral Audio. I was not able to notice any difference in comparing the 2 audio options on my home theatre system but assume that the latter option is supposed to have less pops and hiss when played through a traditional television set. The "Restored" feature lists a warning - "Due To The Age of the original audio there are areas of poor quality and/or missing sound". Enough said. I'll stick to the original sound that I'm accustomed to. Unfortunately, neither audio option can help the sound or image of Sons of the Desert as presented on this disc. Artisan has chosen (or given by Hallmark) completely inappropriate material to transfer from. They have used a television master from the 1980's complete with commercial fade out/fade in's intact and "new" recordings of Leroy Shield music inserted to underscore scenes where ther has been no musical score before. The music used is obviously from album's recorded by Ronnie Hazelhurst entitled Laurel & Hardy Music Box Vol. I & II. Scott MacGillivray has pointed out to me that this version of Sons of the Desert is several minutes shorter than the original release length with the "Wax Fruit" footage and "Chicago Convention Opening Montage" being expertly edited so that they are not missed to the casual fan. Other trims are not obvious and the film is still extremely entertaining for anyone who has not seen this film before. The quality of the picture is very disappointing, espescially for those of us fortunate enough to see how beautiful the European release DVD of Sons of the Desert is. Special Features on this disc include King of Laughter Tribute - a 10 minute excerpt from a longer Hal Roach Documentary broadcast in the early 1990's on The Disney Channel. The excerpt praises Hal Roach, rightfully so. Unfortunately, some of what is said by the narrator is misleading or incorrect. "Hal Roach taught Laurel & Hardy how to improvise" & "how to milk a gag" are 2 such inaccuracies. The documentary also states that Roach made a conscious effort "trying to clean up Hollywood's image". They demonstrate this with a scene from Block Heads - 4 years after the Production Code went into effect. Ridiculous! There are some very nice clips from 10 Laurel & Hardy films and very nice words from Dom Deluise, Steve Allen, Mel Brooks, and John Hughes. Hal Roach Articles is a reprinted article by Cliff Barr from 1987 entitled Movie Mogul Still Drinks and Loves The Ladies - At 95! The article is factual and celebrates Hal Roach and his career. It was very nice to read. Then & Now Location Tour provides pictures of the Studio and what is currently sitting on that property. Also included are then and now looks at The Music Box Steps & The County Hospital.
We also see Stan & Babe's gravesite and Babe's more prominent monument erected by the Sons. Photo Montage provides a slideshow of movie stills - 12 from Sons of the Desert. 6 from The Music Box, 8 from County Hospital, 6 from Busy Bodies, 5 from Another Fine Mess, 12 Hal Roach stills, and a final 2 stills of starlets that I cannot identify. The slideshow is underscored by an audio track of Marvin Hatley's Honolulu Baby as heard on the S.O.D. soundtrack - the opening title music from The Music Box - and a blues piece that suggests late '50's New Orleans to my ears.
Some of the stills were new to me. To check how unique some stills were, I showed the montage to two knowledgeable Sons, Gregg Hammond and Jack Roth. Both agreed that they were seeing some of these stills for the first time. Tent Societies is a supposed to be a partial listing of Sons of the Desert Tents. 11 Tents are listed but only 6 Tents listed are currently active. They do instruct the viewer to use his or her internet server's search engine to find a tent in their area. The Main Menu and lead-ins into the individual films are artistically accomplished except for the Menu background music being 10 times louder than the films soundtrack. The viewer quickly learns to lower the volume quickly during the end title or be blasted by music as the player returns you to the Main Menu. Despite all the disappintments that I've pointed out, let me once again state how beautiful the four short subjects looked. The DVD lists for only $19.98 and comes highly recomended and seems to be a perfect gift for friends and family. I also encourage everyone who buys this DVD and agrees with my opinion - please mail your comments to Hallmark and Artisan so that we might enjoy future volumes without the problems of this current offering.
Rating: 
Summary: Recall This DVD!
Review: As a long-time Laurel and Hardy fan, I was really looking forward to this DVD -- as were many other fans. Hallmark thinks we're fools who will buy any L&H item they put out. This is a sloppy, lazy effort that would have been avoided by the Sons of the Desert. Instead of pristine digital remasters, we get video-transfer glitches, old re-release prints and commercial fade-outs. Hallmark apparently holds L&H fans in contempt; otherwise, they wouldn't have released this travesty. Avoid this DVD like the plague!
Rating: 
Summary: When you care to send the very best.....
Review: This 2-disc set should've been a slam dunk. Some of the best-loved comedies of all time, the greatest comedy duo in the history of movies, and new digital technology to make it all seem like new. In Germany, two dozen DVDs of Laurel & Hardy sound and silent masterpieces have been restored, remastered, and released to great success. Hallmark (current owners of the Hal Roach films) had no interest in releasing them stateside, but apparently the entreaties of classic comedy lovers made them cough up this release. So what did we get? Barely adequate transfers from 20-year-old video (not digital) masters. Inserted "fade outs" where the extra commercials went for TV showings. Re-release credits instead of the often brilliant original opening credits. In short, Hallmark/Artisan used the least amount of effort, time and expense possible to release these films to the home market. This release should rival the much-talked-about Charlie Chaplin reissue of a couple of months ago, instead it was tossed onto the market with no care or thought. Shame on them. So, L&H fans are faced with a dilemma: purchase the disc and hope Hallmark does better next time, or ignore it and get an all-region player to buy the German discs. My advice? Shop at amazon.de.
Rating:
Summary: Classic L&H Films Deserved Better Treatment
Review: What went wrong? The long-overdue, eagerly awaited "Laurel & Hardy" DVD should have been a lot better than the disappointing final product. "Sons of the Desert" looks a bit washed out compared to the Nostalgia Merchant video from the 1980s. Surely, Hallmark could have located a superior 35mm print -- perhaps they didn't give a damn. Even worse, "The Music Box" has an unforgivable transfer glitch at the beginning that should have been fixed. By comparison, "Busy Bodies," "Another Fine Mess" and "County Hospital" look pretty good, yet the latter short doesn't include the original Hal Roach opening credits! When considering the digital technology and archival material now available, one would expect these Stan and Ollie gems to match the excellent quality of the "Our Gang" restorations, but they don't come close. Hallmark should immediately recall this DVD and start again from scratch.
Rating:
Summary: Should be better
Review: While it is great to see "The Boys" on DVD, the quality is nowhere near as good as it should be. These are not the highly-praised German restorations, but are apparently recycled from tapes of "The Laurel & Hardy Show" of the late 1980s. "Sons of the Desert" has a curious fadeout/fadein after the "Honolulu Baby" musical number and a prominent digital tape glitch toward the end. "Another Fine Mess" has lite scratches throughout and an "RHI" logo on the beginning -- a sure giveaway to the TV origins of this material. With so much better material available on these films from Germany, why, oh why are we getting the inferior old versions here, in the country where the films were made?
Rating:
Summary: Laurel & Hardy DVD
Review: All the time I was collecting the prestine sharp clear (restored from the original 35mm film) of the "Lost Laurel & Hardy" DVD's. I couldn't wait for the sound films to be restored and released as well. And now Hallmark releases a second rate DVD? What a shame! When you compare this DVD with the quality of the "Lost Films" DVD's. It's to bad the same people did not restore the sound films as well.
Sons of the desert and the rest are dull. All the work was in the DVD Authoring which is the best part of the disc.
I know the sound Laurel and Hardy films are or were being restored. It seems to be a mystery what's happening with them
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