Pardon Us (1931)
6/10
Pardon Us
12 January 2010
Warning: Spoilers
Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy are the most famous comedy duo in history, and deservedly so, so I am happy to see any of their films. Stan and Ollie have been put in prison for trying to sell beer to a policeman, and their situation is made worse when Stan can't stop blowing raspberries with his loose tooth. After some trouble removing their belongings, they finish bathing and dress in their new uniforms, and when the Prison Guard (Stanley 'Tiny' J. Sandford) tells Ollie to "fall in", that's just what he does, slipping on soap and falling in the bath water. They are put in the same cell as The Tiger (Walter Long), possibly the meanest criminal in the prison, who seems to like Stan's buzzing (tooth), but doesn't want to hear it too often or from anyone else. After a restless sleep with an uncomfortable and collapsing bed bunk, the next morning all prisoners attend a class with the Schoolteacher (James Finlayson) to learn some things. The class sees some confusing with the knocking to sit down and stand up, some unintentionally joking, and the teacher getting an ink covered screwed up bit of paper in the face, which gets the boys put in the hole. Next day, The Tiger, his gang and the boys manage to escape, and the boys wind up working at the side of the road with many black people harvesting crops, and they have blacked up too (politically incorrect today). After seeing some singing and dancing, the boys are eventually caught by the Warden (Wilfred Lucas) when his car stalls, they fix it, and Stan forgets his buzzing tooth problem. Back in prison, Stan does eventually get to go to the dentist and have the loose tooth pulled out, and he does, after the dentist mistakenly does Ollie. Just after announcing a hunger strike, the boys are lied to by a guard of the delicious food to expect at dinner, and they get the usual not so tasty stuff. The Tiger plans another escape, after he deals with the boys for squealing, so many guns are passed under the tables, and Stan manages to start a raid of many guns going off when he accidentally fires. During this raid with guns all over the place, the boys try to rescue the Warden's Daughter (June Marlowe) from a burning building, and they do eventually do it. Then The Tiger tries to catch them again, they avoid him and other inmates twice with accidentally firing a machine gun, and when the guards eventually get in, the end sees the boys allowed free, only to be chased away by the Warden for Stan buzzing again. Filled with wonderful slapstick and all classic comedy you could want from a black and white film, it is an enjoyable film. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy were number 7 on The Comedians' Comedian, and "Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into!" was number 60 on 100 Years, 100 Quotes. Good!
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