Laurel And Hardy - The Music Box (DVD)

...Subject" 1931 - 1932. Laurel and Hardy were so good at what they did that it was really only a matter of time during their film making days before they were rewarded with such prize. Indeed to many hardend fans it is a mystery why they weren't at least nominated for more Oscars. Well, in fact they were nominated once again a few years later in 1935 for another short, "Tit for Tat", but alas, they were only to ever take home the one ...
...business". The business is Laurel and Hardy Transport Co and their latest job sees them delivering a boxed piano to a house at the top of a large flight of stairs. The fun begins before they even get on the first step with some great slapstick as they offload the piano from their horse drawn cart. Now, piano wedged between Stan and Ollie they set off, step by step, after the postman informs them that the delivery address they have is at the ... more

Yes, you read title correctly. This comedy short by the infamous pair won an Academy Award for "Best Comedy Short Subject" 1931 - 1932. Laurel and Hardy were so good at what they did that it was really only a matter of time during their film making days before they were rewarded with such prize. Indeed to many hardend fans it is a mystery why they weren't at least nominated for more Oscars. Well, in fact they were nominated once again a few years later in 1935 for another short, "Tit for Tat", but alas, they were only to ever take home the one gong.

What is this one about?
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This has to be one of the greatest concepts for a comedy of this kind. To say the storyline documents the efforts of the double act in carrying a piano in a box (hence the music box) up a flight of stairs, sounds like a gross simplification of the plot. However, this literally is the essence of the film. At 30 mins in length a good 90% of this is spent following the trial and tribulations of fat and stupid (as translated from their German nicknames Dick und Dorf) as they attempt to carry the music box up the stairs.

The film opens with the tag line "Stan and Ollie decide to reorganise their finances - so they take their $3.80 and go into business". The business is Laurel and Hardy Transport Co and their latest job sees them delivering a boxed piano to a house at the top of a large flight of stairs. The fun begins before they even get on the first step with some great slapstick as they offload the piano from their horse drawn cart. Now, piano wedged between Stan and Ollie they set off, step by step, after the postman informs them that the delivery address they have is at the top of the stairs.

In all they must go up and down the stairs 10 times, with plenty of mishaps send them crashing back down each time. Well to cut a short story shorter, they eventually do make it to the top only to find nobody is home. Not that that's going to prevent them from delivering the goods, and essentially, they break in to the house so they can leave the piano. Their attempts to clean up the mess they make upon entry are, needless to say, slapstick perfection, and when the owner comes home to find two strangers in his house the confrontation is nothing short of hillarious.

Why is this one so great?
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With most slapstick it is usually pretty obvious what is going to happen. You put to lumbering delivery guys to work carrying a large object up some stairs and you know whats going to happen. But the true greatness of Laurel and Hardy is that even though you are expecting it, its still funny when you see it. Whether it be Ollie's trademark sigh to camera or Stan's complete oblivion to the situation, it works and it works well, every time.

Conclusion
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Laurel and Hardy isn't necessarily everyones cup of tea. But if you are only ever going to watch one of their films, make sure its this one. That's not to say its their best, but probably their most accessible. Some of there longer films may loose your interest if your not into their style of comedy, but The Music Box really is classic Laurel and Hardy and is probably the film they will be best remembered for.
 

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