The Laurel And Hardy Collection

Don’t be fooled by this supposedly definitive title. A more appropriate moniker would be The 20th Century Fox Laurel and Hardy Collection, as this includes the three films they made for Fox after leaving long-time producer Hal Roach, who ushered them into the talkie era and with whom they made their definitive works: Sons of the Desert, Another Fine Mess, Babes in Toyland and Way Out West. This collection features three of their final films before they retired in 1945: Great Guns, Jitterbugs and The Big Noise. All of which feature fine comedic bits, which is to be expected from these masters of the silent film gag, but the plots are paper-thin and most of the routines drag on to the point of tedium. No wonder they packed it in after this. (Fox)