Our Relations (1936)

User Rating:

7.4/10   

Director:

Harry Lachman

Writers:

W.W. Jacobs (story)
Richard Connell (screen story) ...

Release Date:

30 October 1936 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

Fast Furious Funny Full-Length Feature

Plot:

Unbeknownst to Stanley and Oliver, their long-lost twin brothers, sailors Alfie and Bert are in town...

Plot Keywords:

Ring | Mistaken Identity | Sailor | Twins | Ship

Cast

Stan Laurel	...	Stan / Alf Laurel
Oliver Hardy	...	Ollie / Bert Hardy
Alan Hale	...	Joe Grogan
Sidney Toler	...	Captain of SS Periwinkle
Daphne Pollard	...	Mrs. Daphne Hardy
Betty Healy	...	Mrs. Betty Laurel
James Finlayson	...	Finn
Iris Adrian	...	Alice
Lona Andre	...	Lily
Ralf Harolde	...	Gangster
Noel Madison	...	Gangster
Arthur Housman	...	Drunk

Also Known As:

Double Trouble (USA)
Sailors' Downfall (USA) (cut version)

Runtime:

73 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Arabic

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #2128) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Finland:S | Germany:6 | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Hal Roach Studios

Trivia:

King Edward VIII (aka Duke of Windsor) of Great Britain requested a command performance screening of the film in October of 1936, before it was released.

Movie Connections:

Edited into Double Trouble (1953)

Soundtrack:

Sailing, Sailing (Over the Bounding Main)

Consistently amusing rather than hilariously funny but still enjoyable

While Stan and Oliver sit at home eating dinner they get a letter from Oliver's mother with a picture of them with their twin brothers. Deciding it best to keep their brothers a secret from their other halves, they burn the picture. Unbeknownst to them though, these very twins have just arrived in town on a boat. Albert and Bert are not the smartest though and, before hitting the town, they allow Chief Engineer Finn to take their money to "invest" it. This means that they have no real cash when they go ashore to deliver a valuable ring for the captain. However when they meet two young ladies with expensive tastes they find themselves in a bit of a pickle.

The old "twin brothers/mistaken identity" plot is hardly the stuff of narrative gold, so I was a bit concerned that the plot would be terrible with this film. However this is actually very precisely structured for a Laurel and Hardy film and, although the plot is hardly convincing, it is very neat and tidy and moves along well. Even if the plot had been poor though, it is the laughs that matter and this film consistently delivers amusing moments even if it doesn't have much in the way of standout scenes. I was tickled all the way through it rather than roaring with laughter but this gentle humour was still enough for me.

Laurel and Hardy are both good but they weren't totally themselves. Laurel enjoyed his usual character but Hardy was given fewer withering looks which is a shame as he does them so well. Finalyson has a bigger role than normal but really I felt him more effective in short film roles that relied on his physical work rather than his delivery. Hale is enjoyable as the waiter, while Housmann is a good drunk.

Overall a solid and enjoyable Laurel & Hardy film that is a pretty tight production by their standards. Not the funniest vehicle you will find for them but certainly more than enough to please their fans.