Stan & Ollie (2018)

Stan u0026 Ollie: Directed by Jon S. Baird. With Steve Coogan, John C. Reilly, Shirley Henderson, Nina Arianda. Laurel and Hardy, the world’s most famous comedy duo, attempt to reignite their film careers as they embark on what becomes their swan song – a grueling theatre tour of post-war Britain.

“I am an officer of the international Laurel u0026amp; Hardy society Sons of the Desert, and I just attended a pre-release screening of the upcoming u0026quot;Stan and Ollie.u0026quot;u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBefore the picture started I was thinking about older celebrity biographies that didnu0026#39;t work out (u0026quot;The Buster Keaton Story,u0026quot; u0026quot;The Eddie Cantor Storyu0026quot;) and others that succeeded despite taking massive liberties with historical facts (u0026quot;The Jolson Story,u0026quot; u0026quot;The Buddy Holly Storyu0026quot;). Well, I thought, Iu0026#39;ll keep an open mind and look at u0026quot;Stan and Ollieu0026quot; as a fictional, larger-than-life show.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eTwo words of advice, Laurel u0026amp; Hardy fans: SEE IT.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe producers have taken extreme pains to set the scenes just so, with the decor, the props, the wardrobe, and the general atmosphere ringing true. The re-enactments of actual events are substantially accurate, but the screenwriter has juggled the chronology around for dramatic effect, so things donu0026#39;t happen in their actual order. The early scenes, for example, show the older Laurel u0026amp; Hardy playing to small audiences in tiny theaters, and the final scenes show full houses in massive theaters — in fact, the reverse was true, with the venues getting humbler as the years passed. At least one character is a composite of different people: Stanu0026#39;s self-effacing wife Ida is portrayed like one of his former wives, the strident Countess Illeana. The biggest dramatic liberty, seen in the u0026quot;Stan and Ollieu0026quot; trailers, has Stan and Babe arguing and battling. These scenes are well played and staged, but have no basis in fact. These scenes are more like the Martin u0026amp; Lewis story, where the easygoing partner withstands the driven partneru0026#39;s moodiness and finally sounds off. The 97-minute feature should not be judged by these few inaccurate minutes.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWeu0026#39;ve all seen celebrity impersonations that are good, bad, or indifferent. Iu0026#39;m happy to report that Steve Coogan is outstanding as Stan Laurel, and John C. Reilly is astonishing as Oliver Hardy. The voices, the body language, the small gestures, the exaggerated u0026quot;stageu0026quot; personalities — both actors are right on the money. This is no shallow, variety-show imitation. Itu0026#39;s a surprisingly deep, heartfelt, and sincere portrayal of Laurel u0026amp; Hardy, on stage and off.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eu0026quot;Stan and Ollieu0026quot; opens in late December, and if you like Laurel u0026amp; Hardy at all, have no fear — youu0026#39;ll enjoy it. Will you recognize certain events in the story? Probably. Will you grin at the re-creations of the teamu0026#39;s sketches? Almost certainly. But will you laugh your head off? No. This is an intimate story with only a few principals, and you might find yourself choked up more than once. Critics have called the relationship between the u0026quot;Stanu0026quot; and u0026quot;Ollieu0026quot; screen characters as the greatest love story of the movies. This new movie demonstrates it.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI hope Steve Coogan and John C. Reilly are both nominated for Academy Awards as u0026quot;Best Actoru0026quot; — and I hope they both win.”