grasshopper-46827

Highly unusual, this film captures the humour of these classic comedians. But it does a lot more. It's a little masterpiece, combining both vintage comedy with daring innovations - from cartoon effects intermixed in a live action film to brilliant stunts with fire, water and ropes, to dance routines.

The action is introduced with a dizzying 10 minute visit to the wild west town of Brushwood Gulch, the sleezy saloon, the greedy owner and his brassy wife established wittily and rapidly. The mood changes as our heroes appear strolling into town at the pace of their donkey and Ollie getting a thorough dunking in the creek - a running joke - and you know these two worlds - Stan and Ollie's slow innocence and the saloon's cynical greed - will collide.

It really is beautifully done. There's such a variety of humour, from wit to slapstick and back. I thought the chase of the deed - though it is quite long - totally captivating. I loved Sharon Lynn, who is great as the wicked Lola, mercilessly tickling him. And the denoument when she has the deed - "Ah-hah!"; "Oh-ho!"; "Ee-hii!" As silly as it is had all the family laughing, oldest to youngest.

The other element that's worth mentioning is the music - it's only three songs, but the soft-shoe shuffle to the Avalon boys' song must be the most charming comic dance routine ever made. I love The Blue Ridged Mountains, partly because it is such a treat to hear Oliver Hardy's beautiful voice - while my kids loved Stan being bonked on the head. And of course, having won the day, they had to go out singing.

It does have two named women having a one line conversation that's not about a man - there are three significant women characters and four significant male characters, so this very old film is far more gender balanced than hundreds of modern efforts.

And throughout it is an absolute treat - a varied, very funny film with a heart of gold.

Watching this with my family was a touch daring - my youngest just turned 11 - and the film depicts the harsh life experience of a family, and especially a young girl, in Kabul under the Taliban. Being animated makes the sense of horror a little less immediate and scenes of violence are mainly just off screen but the sense of danger and oppression is painfully real.

That said I loved this movie. I thought the animation was perfect, subtle and appropriate, from the gritty slumy street scenes to the family arguments between sisters. The only character whose animation jarred was the baby brother who was a bit too cute, but that's a very picky complaint. The voice actors were superb, bringing the characters distinctively to life so convincingly they became instantly easy to relate to and engage with. Saara Chaudry as lead character Parvana was exceptional.

My favourite element was the splicing of the harsh 'real-life' story, depicting people struggling to cope in an impossible situation, with the fantasy folk-tale story that Parvana tells her younger brother, her family, her friend and herself. The animation for this story brings colour, warmth and humour into play; the animation is cut outs with wonderful repeating motifs that swirl across the screen. I loved these brief changes of pace. The story-telling theme starts as with Parvana's father; she takes it up to entertain her little brother, but it develops to be both an escape from horror and a source of courage for the story-teller herself. This is achieved naturally and beautifully, making the viewer ask themselves, how would I survive, in a situation as bad as that? What story would I tell?

This is a war story with women at the centre of the tale; sisters that bicker with each other, friends who bond, quarrel and support one another, a mother who takes terrible risks to try to protect her family. It neither excludes men nor implies that all men are vicious - indeed Parvana benefits from kind acts by strangers, and loves her father and baby brother. But it is so very rare to find a film where most of the main characters are female, and a fully rounded characters, that it seems like a minor miracle.

I found the ending a little abrupt. It's not that I wanted a Hollywood all-loose-ends tied nonsense, but we went from the story to a black screen so suddenly I found it almost confusing. But overall I thought this was an exceptional film, a beautiful animation, depicting the appalling experience of war but with hints of courage, resilience and hope.