TheRetroCritic

Released in 1932,  Pack Up Your Troubles was Laurel & Hardy's second feature film and it threw the clueless duo in the middle of WWI as they are sent to fight in the trenches despite them initially trying to dodge the draft. They are quickly found to be incompetent and are sent to work in the kitchens but they eventually redeem themselves by (accidentally, of course) capturing a whole bunch of enemies when they take over a tank and ride it out-of-control over the trenches. When one of their soldier buddies is killed in action, Stan and Ollie have a new mission: take care of his little girl until they can find her grandfather. Most Laurel & Hardy features tend to be just farce but this one has a bit more heart and is therefore more reminiscent of Charlie Chaplin's films like The Kid or City Lights . There's something refreshing about seeing Stan and Ollie actually care about someone else and do everything they can, however clumsily, to see their good deed thro

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy star in Sons Of The Desert , a 1933 feature that's often quoted as being one of the legendary duo's best comedies. The plot sees the two friends, who are also next door neighbours, having to announce to their wives that they are planning to go to some convention related to the Freemasons-style organisation they're somehow a part of, whether they are given permission or not. Of course, the ladies aren't impressed and Hardy is promptly forbidden to go. This leads him to fake an illness and get Laurel to hire a doctor (or veterinarian, rather) to prescribe a stress-free holiday to Honolulu so both pals can sneak off to Chicago for the convention and make it back without their wives knowing. Unfortunately, the plan backfires when the boat that was meant to bring them home from Honolulu sinks, much to their spouses' chagrin. Laurel and Hardy are then forced to improvise by hiding out in the attic overnight. While this may not be one of