A classic

Since this movie was included in the ‘1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die’ list, I was quite eager to check it out. On top of that, even though I was rather oblivious about Buster Keaton’s work for a very long time, like with Charles Chaplin, I saw many shorts starring Laurel and Hardy when I was a kid and, back then, I thought these guys were just hilarious. However, I think it was at least 25 years ago the last time I saw one of their movies so I was wondering what I would think of them after all these years. Well, first of all, with this title, you might expect the comedic duo to go to some exotic location but you would be disappointed, as they eventually ended up at some convention in Chicago. At the end of the day, it was just about two ordinary guys who had nothing else more exciting to do then fixating on some fraternity. In fact, most of the movie was basically a play taking place at Hardy’s place involving usually the two men and sometimes their wives. So, it was nothing really complex or ambitious but it was obviously not the point. Indeed, it was more about the interactions and dialogues between these two guys and, even if it was not as hilarious as what I remembered as a kid, it was still certainly entertaining though. To be honest, in my opinion, Stan Laurel verges sometimes too much towards Chaplin but Oliver Hardy is always there, making sure he snaps out of it, and the combination of them together made them so unique and so successful. Anyway, to conclude, it was a very solid vintage comedy and it is definitely worth a look, especially if you like the genre.

7/10