Beau Hunks

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy were comedic geniuses, individually and together, and their partnership was deservedly iconic and one of the best there was. They left behind a large body of work, a vast majority of it being entertaining to classic comedy, at their best they were hilarious and their best efforts were great examples of how to do comedy without being juvenile or distasteful.

Although a vast majority of Laurel and Hardy's previous efforts ranged from above average to very good ('45 Minutes from Hollywood' being the only misfire and mainly worth seeing as a curiosity piece and for historical interest, and even that wasn't a complete mess), 'Two Tars' for me was their first truly classic one with close to flawless execution. Didn't find 'Beau Hunks' quite one of their very best, but it to me was one of their best 1931 efforts and among the better half of their output at this point.

Admittedly, the story is pretty thin and is pretty standard.

Despite that, 'Beau Hunks' is great fun, never less than very amusing and the best moments, such as the ending, being classic hilarity. It is never too silly, there is a wackiness that never loses its energy and the sly wit is here, some of the material may not be new but how it's executed actually doesn't feel too familiar and it doesn't get repetitive. A lot happens yet it doesn't ever feel rushed or over-stuffed. It contains one of the funniest beginnings of their filmography and the ending is a sheer delight.

Laurel and Hardy are on top form here, both are well used, both have material worthy of them and they're equal rather than one being funnier than the other (before Laurel tended to be funnier and more interesting than Hardy, who tended to be underused). Their chemistry feels like a partnership here too, before 'Two Tars' you were yearning for more scenes with them together but in 'Beau Hunks' and on the most part from 'Two Tars' onwards we are far from robbed of that. Their comic timing is impeccable.

'Beau Hunks' looks good visually, is full of energy and the direction gets the best out of the stars, is at ease with the material and doesn't let it get too busy or static. The supporting players are solid, but it's Laurel and Hardy's show all the way.

Concluding, a near-classic. 9/10 Bethany Cox

Each short or longer Laurel & Hardy movie is a classic in my view. The Laurel & Hardy tandem is unmatched in movie-history and in my opinion the majority of today's movie makers and writers can learn lots from L & H. They don't have Charly Chaplin's brilliance, but they are good! And funny! Their gags, faces, fights, accidents and disasters are hilarious and bring a smile to my face each time I watch. This time Hardy drags Laurel into a Foreign Legion adventure, because of a heartache and that gives plenty of room for these two legendary comedians to move! My advice: don't underestimate L&H movies!

If as another reviewer says that Beau Hunks was Hal Roach's personal favorite of the many Laurel&Hardy shorts he produced, it certainly is a very good choice. Roach must have liked it because he expanded it later on in the decade to a full length feature film, Flying Deuces.

Poor Ollie is pining over his lost love because his Jeanie Weanie is getting married so to forget his troubles he joins the Foreign Legion, dragging along poor Stanley behind him. Of course as it turns out Jeanie Weanie is Jean Harlow who's sent these loving autographed pictures all over the world as we see when they settle into the barracks of the Foreign Legion.

The film is a satire of Beau Geste and of The Desert Song which only two years earlier had come to the screen. The enemy are the Riffraffs and a deadly bunch they are. Of course they haven't come up against Laurel and Hardy.

Two best bits in the film are the boys getting lost in a sand storm on the desert and then actually arriving at the fort ahead of the rest of the troop. Second is when Laurel the dunce is asked by Hardy why he's not carrying any equipment for the march and he innocently replies that he packed his stuff with Ollie's. This is Stanley's innocence at its finest.

One thing that is eerie about Beau Hunks is that the marriage Jean Harlow was to have the following year was to Paul Bern and we all know what a tragedy that turned out to be. She might have been better off marrying Ollie or one of the other Legionaires.

Beau Hunks is a choice sample of Stan and Ollie's comedy which is absolutely eternal.

This is another one of Laurel and Hardy's films that are crammed with memorable moments, and it's a measure of their worth that, even though the routines are familiar after repeated viewings, they still manage to raise a chuckle (or at least a smile).

Stan and Ollie join the French foreign legion in this one after Ollie's heart is broken by his 'Jeanie-Weanie,' a true vamp if ever there was one who looks suspiciously like Jean Harlow. Naturally, the boys get on the wrong side of the camp commandant the moment they arrive at the fort, which is a cue for the usual chaos and gags. Only Laurel and Hardy can make the simple act of picking up a hat or soothing one's feet so funny and fraught with difficulty.

If you've had a hard day I can guarantee that there is no better solution to your woes than to sit back, relax, open a beer and watch one of Laurel & Hardy's timeless films...

Spurned by his beautiful fiancée, Oliver decides to take Stanley and join the foreign legion. Once there he finds his fiancée has travelled more than him and decides to leave, but it is too late. The pair go off on training but then the siege of a nearby fort in the desert means they will see more action than expected.

One of the best things about Christmas is that the TV channels need to fill the schedules with films etc that feel different from the usual daytime stuff they cram on. One of the ways they do this is mini-seasons of work from various people or themes etc. One such this year has been Laurel and Hardy films and I'm very glad. This film was one I hadn't seen before but it was very funny.

The film has really good set pieces but also a running gag that I didn't see coming so I won't spoil it for anyone else. I'm a big fan so I may be a little biased but I be surprised is anyone sat through this without laughing at least a few times. Both the leads are on top form and both have their little things that get me every time – Oliver's looks to camera and Stan's double takes at innocent objects in the background.

Overall this is pure gold with hardly a slow moment, even the jokes that were signposted as coming (the spring in the chair) made me laugh out loud. Good for fans and non-fans alike.