And yet, troupers that they are, they perform some of their most renowned routines with the same aplomb as if they were playing to a packed house. It’s clear that Stan, despite his on-screen air of befuddled innocence, is the hardheaded businessman while Ollie, despite his alimonies and racetrack losses, is content to not rock the boat and ask for more money.Ī brief, bitter split between the two is presaged before the film cuts to 1953 when, reunited, their movie careers very much on the wane, they undertake a tour of outlying British music halls hoping that the renewed attention will secure financing for a new movie project: a comedic version of “Robin Hood” that Stan is writing.įor all their fame, the turnout for these shows, mostly in second-rate venues, is sparse. A long, sinuous tracking shot, reminiscent of how Robert Altman opened “The Player,” introduces us to Stan and Ollie as they walk across a studio backlot and into the office of their producer, Hal Roach (Danny Huston). It begins in 1937, on the set of “Way Out West,” when the team is at its commercial and artistic zenith. Baird and written by Jeff Pope, it’s a rueful and respectful tribute that stands on its own because of the extraordinary performances of Steve Coogan as Stan and John C. But the film is much more than a mere memory jog. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy made up the greatest comedy duo in film history, and one of the nice things about “Stan & Ollie” is that it will prompt audiences who have never seen their movies to discover them.
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