Rating: 
Summary: Not their best
Review: Laurel and Hardy at their best are great. At their worst they're terrible. These movies are as bad as it gets. Judging their comedy by these flicks is unfair to them, so don't be fooled. Don't buy these. Hold out their best stuff, the 2-reelers from the early 30's, not their full-length movies. The only feature-length films worthy of their best are "Sons of the Desert," (arguably the funniest movie ever made) and, possibly, "Way out West." Unfortunately, the best 2-reelers are still not available on DVD, and difficult to find even on VHS. All of their avilable silent movies have been released, and are worth the money. Does anyone know why it's taking so long for those great talkie 2-reelers (1929-1933) to be released on DVD?
Rating:
Summary: Not their best
Review: Laurel and Hardy at their best are great. At their worst they're terrible. These movies are as bad as it gets. Judging their comedy by these flicks is unfair to them, so don't be fooled. Don't buy these. Hold out their best stuff, the 2-reelers from the early 30's, not their full-length movies. The only feature-length films worthy of their best are "Sons of the Desert," (arguably the funniest movie ever made) and, possibly, "Way out West." Unfortunately, the best 2-reelers are still not available on DVD, and difficult to find even on VHS. All of their avilable silent movies have been released, and are worth the money. Does anyone know why it's taking so long for those great talkie 2-reelers (1929-1933) to be released on DVD?
Rating: 
Summary: Great,but could've been better!!
Review: Listen,I'm a BIG Laurel and Hardy fan and when I first saw that there was going to be box set of the best comedy team ever,I was excited,but I just found out that there are no shorts!! There's no Berth Marks,Hoose-gow,Chickens Come Home,Music Box,County Hospital,Scram!;none of those classic shorts...I mean,the first 3 discs are already out on DVD..Utopia isn't the best of the 3,but there are funny moments in it..The other 2 are alot better."Lucky Dog" is already available on the slient shorts collection that Hal Roach Studios came out a few years ago...Why couldn't this collection be like the Buster Keaton box set that Kino on Video put out not too long ago?? Laurel and Hardy fans deserve better than this!!!
Rating: 
Summary: CHEESY COLLECTION
Review: No offence,but I couldn't agree more with most everyone else who's rated this collection.It just isn't right without Sons Of The Desert,Way Out West,The Music Box and Another Fine Mess.For me the best films in this DVD set would be March Of The Wooden Soldiers,Be Big and The Lucky Dog.The latter being a collector's item going by how it was Stan and Ollie's very first film together,even before they became the famous comedy duo.Utopia would be another collector's item,being their very last film from 1950.I hadn't realised they were around that long.However,their appearance in this film is an eyesore,with Stan so thin and sick looking and Ollie three hundred pounds overweight.One thing you may notice,is the film's remarkable simularity to Gilligan's Island.
Rating:
Summary: Public Domain films only...
Review: Other folks writing reviews are wondering where all the classic shorts are and there's a very good reason this set contains what it does: the films contained within it are in the public domain.Having said that, "March of the Wooden Soldiers" and "Flying Deuces" are two top L&H films, and "Lucky Dog" is notable as the first (silent) film they appeared together in, though not really as a team. The "This is Your Life" show is a bit shoddy and corny-- Stan Laurel wasn't happy about being "surprised" because he liked to material prepared in advance when he performed. "Be Big" is a sound-era short the team did, and actually longer than most. At 3-reels, it is 30 minutes, a good portion of which involves a boot-removal gag which most fans are split on: some find it funny while others think the gag is over-milked. I'm not sure what "Laurel & Hardy in Hollywood" is, but it may be home movie footage and trailers. Last but not least, the story behind the making of "the boys'" last ever feature, "Utopia," is a nightmare: crew and cast spoke 3 different languages, the shoot went on forever, and in the middle of it, Stan Laurel got sick and a lot of the footage was shot while he had deep lines etched in his face. Nevertheless, there are some funny moments and interesting ideas put forth in the film. The 3 stars I give this set are mainly for "March of the Wooden Soldiers" and "Flying Deuces." The marketing copy claiming it "spans" so many years is due no doubt to the fact that they're presenting the first AND last Laurel & Hardy films. Pity the first and last they did weren't better films. For better films (and that's an understatement, I'm talking TRULY CLASSIC here!), you can also pre-order what I believe is a 2-disc set coming out in August that includes the classic feature, "Sons of the Desert" as well as Oscar-winning (30-minute) short, "The Music Box," (30-minute short) "Another Fine Mess," (20-minute short) "Busy Bodies" (L&H work in a sawmill!) and (20-minute short) "County Hospital" (Hardy is in the hospital, Stan visits, hilarity ensues)! The link to pre-order that collection is http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B00009YXEW/qid=1055584086/sr=1-26/ref=sr_1_26/002-1317971-9117604?v=glance&s=dvd
Rating:
Summary: Supplemental Laurel & Hardy
Review: Other reviewers are wondering where all the classic Laurel & Hardy features and shorts are in this collection, and there is a good reason they are not represented: the films in this collection are films that have fallen into "the public domain," which means they are free for any manufacturer to release. For those who want what are considered the cream of the crop, there is also a set from Artisan (either one or two discs) called simply, "Laurel & Hardy" that includes one of their all-time best features, "Sons of the Desert" along with four timeless shorts: the Oscar-winning "The Music Box," "Another Fine Mess," "County Hospital" and "Busy Bodies." This collection is also available from Amazon. As to the contents of the "Laurel & Hardy Collection" 5-disc set: "March of the Wooden Soldiers" is the beloved comic operetta that was originally titled "Babes in Toyland." Bumbling Ollie Dee and Stannie Dumm must somehow save the citizens of Toyland from the evil Silas Barnaby and his horrible Bogeymen. Delightful Christmas fantasy, classic Laurel & Hardy humor and the darker edges of the fairy tale world collide to make this a time-treasured favorite. "The Flying Deuces": the only independent film "the boys" made. It has received mixed reviews over the years, but this reviewer feels it has a lot of charm and many of the hallmarks of their classic films. The boys join the foreign legion so heartbroken Ollie can forget the love of his life. A series of of comical complications end with the boys in the air in a runaway plane they don't know how to fly! "Utopia": their final film, originally titled "Atoll K." The shoot took much longer than expected due to all sorts of problems, none the least of which was Stan getting sick on location (which is evident in many scenes as deep lines are etched in his face). The French-Italian co-production was not well-coordinated-- the actors and crew spoke three different languages-- and that shows as well. Still, there are a few nice ideas and bits in the film and the historical fact that it is their feature film swan song. "Be Big" is a 30-minute sound short that has some funny bits, but one bit (Stan trying to pull Ollie's boot off) that goes on for much too long. Still, it's a short produced at their best studio, the Hal Roach studio, so it has some merit. "Lucky Dog": the first film Laurel & Hardy appeared in together, and NOT as a team-- in fact, Ollie plays a bandit who robs Stan! "This is Your Life": Ralph Edwards famous TV show highlighting celebrities by surprising them when they least expect it and parading out many people from their past. Stan Laurel was reportedly angered by the "surprise" as he liked the team to always have their best foot forward in public-- he always liked to have material prepared ahead of time. The awkwardness shows. "Laurel & Hardy in the Movies": I'm not sure what this is, but it may contain various movie trailers and rarities, or simply be a documentary on "the boys." "March of the Wooden Soldiers" and "Flying Deuces" are quite enjoyable on their own, and others in this set at least have historical value, so the price-to-quality ratio is certainly there, and it makes a decent supplement to the superior Artisan release.
Rating: 
Summary: hardly laurel and hardy
Review: Strongly-written review, obviously by a man who knows his stuff. I wouldn't buy this set with Iraqi paper money.
Rating:
Summary: Box set spans 40 years,but......
Review: The editoral review says that this box set spans 40 years,but where on earth are the classic shorts??? Where is Sons of the Desert,Chump at Oxford,Way Out West and Pardon Us?? This box set could have and should have included everything,but seemed they only chose certain bits of their career.....shame,shame....
Rating:
Summary: No Commentary
Review: When I add a DVD to my humble collection, I expect to learn something historical about the making of the film. If you want to see a great commentary which all DVD makers should emulate, it is ''Love is a Many- Splendered Thing' with William Holden & Jennifer Jones.
When I turned on my player expecting to learn a bit more about my two heros and discovered no running commentary and the voices out of sync, I was very disappointed.
Much aloha,
Bill
|
