Pack Up Your Troubles (1932) User Reviews

A great mix of slapstick humor and a more serious of tone storyline.

[Boba_Fett1138 · 8/10 · 12 September 2006]

Amazing how they did it. This movie features war sequences, the lost of a friend who leaves a young daughter behind. All some serious heavy dramatic stuff but yet the boys manages to make this movie a perfectly entertaining one with some good slapstick humor and comical situations.

The movie at times is a sappy one that goes definitely over-the-top but yet for most part the story and its drama works effective. Stan and Ollie taking care of the young daughter of Eddie and their quest for her grandparents is quite heartwarming. Especially since the boys in this movie have an amazingly good chemistry Jackie Lyn Dufton, who plays the young girl. Especially Stan Laurel has a good chemistry with her. Dufton refers to Stan and Ollie as her uncle's in this movie and that special feeling is brought amazingly effective and believable to the screen.

Yet the movie is also one of their most fun ones, despite the dramatic undertone. The slapstick humor is especially top-class and the boys manage once more to get themselves into some silly and hilarious situations.

The movie its supporting cast is also good. The movie features lots of different actors in a variety of roles. Of course this movie also has the regular Laurel & Hardy actors in it, such as James Finlayson, Charlie Hall and Paulette Goddard. But it's the supporting cast as a whole that delivers a good and impressive performance.

A delightful and well made comedy that also works effective with its more dramatic moments.

8/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

A huge improvement from their previous feature.

[alexanderdavies-99382 · 8/10 · 2 August 2017]

"Pack Up Your Troubles" is a much funnier and better made film for Laurel and Hardy. The plot is more solid with a tighter narrative and the comedy has been blended in well. The opening of the film is 1917 - the year America entered the First World War. Stan and Ollie are drafted into the army where they befriend a fellow private. Sadly, this other soldier is killed in action and Stan and Ollie take it upon themselves to look after the deceased's little daughter. With the war ended, they need to avoid the dreaded orphanage as the child's mother shows no interest. Stan and Ollie try to locate the child's grandparents and this is what dominates the majority of "Pack Up Your Troubles." The team are on top form and they have great material to work with. Besides the comedy, there are moments of drama. Laurel and Hardy handle the more serious material very well. The scene where they realise their soldier friend has died is greeted with no humour or slapstick of any kind. James Finlayson has a brilliant cameo as the army officer, whose army quarters are accidentally smelling of litter. Watch his expression as he blows his whistle! Another regular supporting comedian, Billy Gilbert, makes an appearance as a rather irate future father-in-law at a wedding. I enjoyed the way the film ended, it was quite moving.

"Smile Boys, That's The Style"

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 4 August 2014]

Despite being doughboys in General Pershing's army in France, the Allies still were able to win World War I with Laurel and Hardy in the ranks. But most of Pack Up Your Troubles is spent with the boys as veterans looking for the family of their late comrade Don Dillaway on behalf of his daughter little Jackie Lyn Dufton.

Best scene in the film is when Stan and Ollie are sent out on what their exasperated sergeant thinks and hopes will be a suicide mission. They're told to get a prisoner. Remember this is 1932 and the story of Sergeant York even without the movie being made was known to one and all. How do Stan and Ollie pull off a Sergeant York? Well it involves a prototype tank, the enemy trenches, and some barbed wire. You have to see it being done.

Laurel's scenes especially with the child have a nice ring of pathos to them. Most of the time he's simply an idiot, here he's a lovable idiot. Next best scene in the movie is the little girl reading Stan a bedtime story, Goldilocks and the 3 Bears and Laurel falling asleep.

Pack Up Your Troubles has an unusually good cast of recognizable character players in roles that we all identify them with. Of course James Finlayson is there as their commanding general. But also there's Charles Middleton as a welfare inspector, Billy Gilbert whose daughter blows up a marriage to Grady Sutton when the boys think he's Dillaway's father and Mary Gordon as a delightful old Irish mother babysitting the little girl for Stan and Ollie. Third best scene is the police closing in on them and them trying to escape in a dumb waiter.

Only their third sound feature length film and a winner for Laurel And Hardy.

"How about getting into one of these uniforms?"

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 3 July 2016]

Amidst the expected humor of a Laurel and Hardy flick, there's a bittersweet aspect to this story of a soldier who doesn't make it, leaving his orphaned young daughter behind. The soldier's ex-wife is given short shrift since she left him for another man; one wonders why she had no room in her heart for her own daughter, a situation not dealt with in the story.

There's some battle action in the early part of the film, allowing our boys to create some havoc with an armored vehicle. It calls to mind the exploits of Sergeant Alvin York during World War I, that story brought to the big screen in 1941 with Gary Cooper in the title role. It would be just like Stan and Ollie to inadvertently capture a German platoon while screwing everything else up.

The search for the grandparents of their war buddy's little daughter takes on a huge dimension once Stan and Ollie are out of the service. With the last name Smith, the search could take forever, and it almost does. Comic gags on the name Smith bring them to a black man, who's identity seems to go over Stan's head, along with Stan's own quest to Poughkeepsie to locate the Smith Brothers of cough drop fame. I also got a kick out of the boys' lunch wagon, 'Caterers to the Elite' as they bill themselves. The elite that is, who could pay ten cents for a ham or egg sandwich. Those top one per-centers of the era could probably afford a lot of those.

The film ends on a successful note with Laurel and Hardy locating the appropriate Smith family before the welfare association of the era could force the boys to give up their young ward. I'd have to say that as the representative of the Eastern Welfare Association, Charles Middleton earned his future role of Ming the Merciless.

Laurel&Hardy and a little girl

[Petey-10 · 10/10 · 23 March 2000]

Stanley's and Oliver's army buddy Eddie Smith gets killed in a war, so the boys have to find the grandparents of Eddie's daughter.So they go from door to door looking for every Smiths there are in the town.It's not an easy job for the boys to do, because there are many Smiths but only two boys.And it doesn't make the job any easier that they get blamed for a bank robbery. Pack Up Your Troubles is a very funny comedy from Laurel and Hardy.It is one of the best Laurel and Hardy movies.The movie has many funny situations.Watch the movie and you just can't stop laughing.

Looking for Mr. Smith

[lugonian · 7/10 · 5 June 2016]

PACK UP YOUR TROUBLES (Hal Roach/Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1932), directed by George Marshall and Raymond McCarey, marks the second starring feature film from comedy team, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, and one of their finest efforts. Though categorized as a war comedy, the film in itself, divided into two parts, starts off with war related themed material while the second half concentrates more on the team's attempt in locating a little girl's grandparents while civilians after the Armitice.

Opening title: "April 1917 – when the scratch of a pen on Capitol Hill caused crowns to rattle." After a brief montage of newspapers going to press with large headlines reading WAR DECLARED, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy are seen seated on a park bench reading the latest news. While Ollie declares that flat feet is all that's keeping him from enlisting, the two are soon approached by a tough recruiting sergeant (Tom Kennedy). Even while their attempts pretending to be unfit for active duty, Stan foils up their disqualification, finding them in the next scene at the U.S. Army Training Camp. "It didn't take Uncle Sam long to whip this raw material into real fighting machine." Causing their short-tempered drill sergeant (Frank Brownlee) to go out of his mind over their bumbling antics, Stan and Ollie create more trouble while on K.P. duty, taking foul odor garbage to the general's (James Finlayson) residence, ending up in the brig with a tough cook named Pierre (George Marshall) after naming him the one who told them to place the trash into the general's home in a sarcastic manner. Eddie Smith (Donald Dillaway), the boys' best pal, receives a letter written by his wife telling him she has left him for another man, resulting on Eddie to leave his little daughter (Jacquie Lyn) in the home of a bickering couple (Rychard Cramer and Adele Watson) for the time being. Eddie is killed in battle, while Stan and Ollie unwittingly becoming war heroes. With the war ending November 11, 1918, civilians Stan and Ollie locate Eddie's daughter, take her away from the unhappy environment. They make every effort finding her grandparents with the only clue that their last name is Smith, thus having them going through every Smith name in the New York City directory. More problems arise as they try getting a $12,000 loan from the bank on their lunch wagon, and face losing Eddie's child to a mean officer of the Welfare Association (Charles Middleton) with efforts on taking her to an orphanage.

While the final print is somewhat handicapped by some rough cuts resulting to flimsy material, it's a wonder whether the original concept of the movie was initially longer longer than the theatrical 68 minute time frame, probably explaining after repeated viewing why certain characters, especially those part of the Laurel and Hardy stock company of James Finlayson, Billy Gilbert or Charlie Hall, have only brief bits. There is no plot development nor how Laurel and Hardy got to become such good friends with Eddie Smith. One would assume there's an edited account of first their meeting resulting to their friendship during their Army training segment. His dying in battle leads to the purpose of the story with Stan and Ollie doing a good turn by taking the responsibility for his little girl while spending months trying to locate her grandparents. The tight editing, obviously, keeps in the necessary scenes for plot development purposes while leaving more room for comedy material. Memorable scenes include Jacquie reciting a bedtime story to Uncle Stanley, struggling to keep awake; Stan and Ollie's individual attempts locating the many Smiths in the telephone directory; arriving at 311 Chester Drive where Stan and Ollie disturb a wedding ceremony addressing the child to be Eddie's baby, Eddie being the hapless groom (Grady Sutton); Stan going to Poughkeepsie to acquire if the Smith Brothers of cough drop fame to be the relatives, among others. Fine casting goes to Mary Carr as the baby's nanny; Mary Gordon as Mrs. McTavish, the baby sitter during the second half of the story; and Charles Middleton going with honorable re-mention as the one with a face mean and scary enough to "haunt a house." Jacquie Lynn, who sometimes speaks like future child star, Shirley Temple, gets in her finest moments mimicking Stan and Ollie both in mannerisms and famous line quotes, adding much to the fun during their troubles.

While the title, PACK UP YOUR TROUBLES, was used again for a Ritz Brothers comedy for 20th Century-Fox (1939), this is where the similarity ends. Home video prints to the original Laurel and Hardy edition (black and white or colorized) often eliminate material involving unpleasantness between the bickering couple looking after little Jacquie. Restored prints have turned up on numerous cable channel networks over the years, from American Movie Classics (1996-97) to Turner Classic Movies (TCM premiere: April 1, 2003). Adding a touch of World War nostalgia with background music from that era, including the title song, "Where Do We Go From Here?" and so forth, PACK UP YOUR TROUBLES is one of those films that seems to get better and funnier after repeated viewings, especially for devotees of this most famous of comedy teams of all time, Laurel and Hardy. (***)

No Good Deed Goes Unpunished!

[Hitchcoc · 8/10 · 12 January 2017]

Once again, Stan and Ollie find themselves being potentially done in for trying to do the right thing. Through a series of events, the boys find themselves in France in the service. They are totally incompetent as soldiers, of course, but they make the acquaintance of Eddie Smith, who helps them get by. Eddie gets a Dear John letter and gets the boys to promise that if anything happens to him, they will see that his baby gets taken to his father's home. Well, the sad thing happens and they are in his debt...a promising made. They are released from the Army as heroes for inadvertently rounding up a battalion of German soldiers. Once back in the states, they begin the arduous process of finding a man named Smith. This allows them to make some hilarious mistakes, including telling a bridegroom at his wedding that they have his child. A mistake, of course. This is a touching, loving effort. But, of course, these guys seldom catch a break.

An average series entry still has the unmistakable touch of comic genius.

[Wilbur-10 · 7/10 · 28 December 2000]

Early Laurel & Hardy feature isn't among their best, but still provides entertaining viewing.

Story begins with America entering the First World War, and L&H conscripted into the army after being spotted loafing on a park bench. Action moves to training camp, then onto the trenches in France before returning to America. Here Laurel & Hardy find themselves responsible for a dead army buddy's little girl, whom they must return to her rightful guardian.

Film isn't as polished as later entries, and certainly can't compete with the likes of 'Sons of the Desert'. Even so, the continual odd-couple bickering between the two ensures plenty of laughs. The scene where they go to the Bank to get a loan on the strength of their mobile food business is out of the top draw - if there is a better comedy duo in movie history I've yet to see them.

Smile, Smile, Smile

[boblipton · 9/10 · 8 December 2020]

Mr. Laurel and Mr. Hardy wind up in the army in the Great War. In the trenches, they become friends with Don Dilaway. When he buys the farm, they return to the United States, rescue his orphaned daughter Jackie Lyn Dutton, and try to locate her grandfather amid the comedy set pieces.

It's a surprisingly serious movie amidst all the shenanigans and gags. Among the issues are marital breakdowns, abusive foster parents (played by the thoroughly malign Richard Cramer) and the unfeeling child welfare system (personified by Charles Middleton). Yet it never falters, thanks in no small part to direction by Ray McCarey and George Marshall -- the latter has three scenes as a miserable army cook. Through it all, the friendship of Stan and Ollie sustains them. They are stupid and ineffective, but they know they can rely on each other's poor best in the face of a hostile world. Plus they are so very funny.

Aimiable Laurel and Hardy Feature

[Prichards12345 · 7/10 · 29 November 2015]

This was the boys' second feature length movie after Pardon Us, and this time there is a more cohesive plot to hang the comedy scenes on. Stan and Ollie find themselves fighting in WWI after displaying their usual (and very funny) ineptness undergoing army training. On returning home they rescue the child of a friend who didn't make it back, and with little to go on, set about finding her grandfather.

Of course his surname is Smith!

This is a well balanced and well paced movie, with much to enjoy. L and H's rounding up of what looks like half the German front line (entirely unintentionally, I might add), Ollie's one-two pummelling by "Steamboat" Smith, Stan falling asleep when the little girl tells him a story, etc. Think I loved the wedding scene the best though, with the boys managing to get their wires crossed yet again. Billy Gilbert has a nice cameo scene here, as does Jimmy Fin as an army general whose home gets a bit whiffy thanks to Stan and Ollie!

Good fun: shows the team were beginning to work out how to make a feature length movie work for them after all those classic shorts.

WELL, IF IT AIN'T THE SNITCHERS!

[tcchelsey · 10/10 · 11 June 2022]

10 Plus Stars.

This CLASSIC comedy is actually two stories rolled in one, and with a stellar cast of supporting actors, generally found in Laurel and Hardy films. Here, the boys get drafted and turn the war upside down, but also manage to become heroes? The sergeant sends them out on a "suicide mission" (for obvious reasons!) Stan and Ollie get into a tank that manages to hook a barb wire fence --and they round up the enemies!

The casualty of the war is their best friend Eddie, who has a cute baby girl (well played by Jacquie Lyn Dufton). Stan and Ollie spend the rest of the film trying to track down Eddie's father so Jacquie will have a home. At the same time, they're running a hot dog stand on wheels to support themselves!

One of the craziest scenes has the boys trying to hide Jacquie from a welfare officer (Charles Middleton) who wants to put her in an orphanage. A lot of it was made up as they went along with a very thin script or outline. Stand outs are director George Marshall who plays the boiling army cook. Marshall would occasionally get into bit roles and have some fun. Charlie Middleton is spot on as the heartless welfare man, a role he was so good at.

Also Richard Tucker, long time actor in silent films, is funny as Mr. Smith, the bank manager --and Eddie's real deal father! He says to Stan and Ollie he'd have to be "unconscious" to loan them money and then gets knocked out! Watch for this goofy scene. Somehow(?) they get the money, leave the bank and drop the cash in the street, only to have a cop chase them and hand it back! Priceless stuff.

Production notes indicate Anita Louise was to be cast in the film as the leading lady, but her role was written out of the final script. The only female part of significance is Mrs. MacTavish, the baby sitter, played by veteran Mary Gordon (best known as Sherlock Holmes landlady).

There was some controversary for many years as to what ever happened to child actress Jacquie Lyn Dufton, who also appeared in a few Our Gang films.

The story goes her stepfather asked for more money and she was cut from the studio, later getting married as an adult, but still living in California. In the early 90s, Stan Laurel's daugher put out a notice (via the Sons of the Desert fan club), asking to be contacted, and Jacquie actually responded. Now an official member of movie history.

Laurel and Hardy's next film would be THE DEVILS BROTHER, co-starring their old pal Thelma Todd. Always on dvd and remastered blu ray, and thanks to much to MOVIES Net for rerunning this gem of gems on Saturday mornings.

pretty good but a little "schmaltzy"

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 21 February 2006]

Stan and Ollie are called to fight in WWI and this portion of the film is among the funniest and most memorable. Oddly, the studio gave the plot some pathos, as their army buddy, Eddie, is killed--leaving his daughter an orphan. So it's up to the boys to take care of the child as they try to locate her grandparents--whose name, unfortunately, is Smith!

This film is a very uneven film, as it tries to give quite a bit of plot to the comedy duo and it tries to inject a little bit of pathos--something I absolutely HATE in comedies. No, I would have preferred less plot and more stupid highjinks, but alas, some execs thought it would be nice for the boys to take care of a cute little girl following the segment on the war, and so a lot of the film is devoted to this. Ho, hum. This doesn't excite me, but considering the overall quality of the film, it still is worth watching. For me, movies without cute little ragamuffins in need are preferable. No, I wanted a little more violence and banter between Stan and Ollie and no kids, thank you.

Putting two hyena's into the Fox Hole.

[mark.waltz · 5/10 · 20 January 2015]

Two years after Buster Keaton and Jimmy Durante were "The Doughboys" and a year after Wheeler and Woolsey became "Half Shot at Sunrise" and a foil for Edna May Oliver, Laurel and Hardy took on their own battle in the trenches of "the Great War", creating all sorts of havoc among their own allies. The first quarter of the movie has them doing all they can to avoid the draft (a very funny scene where they pretend that they both only have one arm), the next quarter is them proving their ineptitude, and finally the last half has them back in the states taking care of the young daughter of an army buddy and avoiding the police and child protection services who want to take her away from them and place her in an orphanage.

A bit funnier than their previous film ("Pardon Us"), this actually seems to be several of their two reelers rolled into one to make a feature length comedy. It's still pretty creaky and not always funny. The last half has a few moderately funny moments when the boys are trying to hide themselves and the little girl from the police and growing crowd, but its pretty maudlin material to be totally enjoyable. But Laurel and Hardy, about to make the jump out of shorts into features permanently, had better things coming, so their earlier films can be referred to as missed opportunities that don't hold up as well as their later Hal Roach films but still offer some slight amusement.

The cutes little girl on film

[whitecat1217 · 18 July 2002]

This is the cutes little girl's role ever made since Shirley Temple. When she was sitting in the lap of a very sleepy Stanley, she decided to read "The 3 Bears" to him. Her adorable accent alone was precious.

The boys in double trouble, with child kidnaping and bank robbery.

[weezeralfalfa · 7/10 · 19 November 2018]

In this L&H feature film, Eddie Smith is a combat buddy of thee boys, living in a trench. He has a little girl. Eddie gets a letter from his wife, saying she is leaving him, and leaving their daughter with some neighbors, until he comes home. Soon after, Eddie is captured, and never heard from again. When they get out of the service, the boys take it upon themselves to find Eddie's parents, and leave the girl with them. They find(how??) the girl , living with a couple who are always grumpy with the girl, and fighting with each other. The boys barge in and demand that they give them the girl to take to her grandparents. The wife mentions something about they get monthly payment for taking care of the girl, so I assume they are her legal guardians or foster parents. In contrast, the boys have no legal right to be harboring her. Thus, when they forcefully take her, they are legally kidnappers, even though she prefers them over her legal guardians. A little later, when they tell her they hope to unite her with her grandparents, she says she hopes they don't find them, because she likes them, especially, Stan, calling them uncles. Meanwhile, her legal guardians contact the welfare association(why not the police?). A welfare official comes to the guardian's apartment to ask where to find the boys. He says at their lunch wagon, down the street. He contacts them and demands that that they give her to him so that he can put her in an orphanage(Why not return her to her grouchy guardians, instead?). They say not over their dead bodies.(The city health department should also be after them for allowing a mob of cats to occupy their hunch wagon when they are not there!). While they are trying to avoid the welfare officer and enforcer, they have the monumental task of locating the girl's grandparents without a clue where they might be, nor what their first names are. They get a monumental phone book and start looking under Smith. This search only lasts about 10min. of film time, but seems to take up much more. Among others, they check out a professional boxer, who accuses them of being blackmailers. But, the most time is spent outside the home of a women who is being married that day at home. They ring the bell, and tell the doorman that they have Eddie's baby. The shocked doorman tells the father of the bride(played by Billy Gilbert). It so happens that the groom's name is Eddie, but not Smith. Nor is the bride's family name Smith. Nonetheless, the wedding party takes the news as gospel, without further inquiry, at that time. Gilbert goes into a rage, and calls off the wedding, while the bride faints. The groom's father chases him around the house. Turns out the Smiths used to live here, but the phone book is out of date...........With the Welfare Association looking for them, the boys figure they need to get out of town quickly, with the girl(So, how are they going to find her grandparents that way?). The girl pipes up that she hopes they don't find her parents, so she can stay with them. They need money to leave town, so they go to a bank for a loan. After talking to the president(and mistakenly offering him a hotdog, instead of a cigar, to smoke!), he looks at their lunch wagon, and says he would have to be unconscious to loan them $2000. for that as security. He rocks back in his chair, laughing so hard that he knocks a bust sculpture down from it's perch, which knocks him out. Next , we see the boys running out the front door, with the alarm bell ringing. Just how they obtained the $2000., to cause the alarm to ring, is not gone into? In any case, they are now bank robbers, as well as kidnappers. They run home, ahead of the police, and barricade the door. Nonetheless, the welfare officer returns with a policeman, and they get through the door, after the boys hide the girl in the dumbwaiter.(She goes down to the basement). Soon, the police relating to the bank robbery arrive. First, Stan, then Ollie, get in the dumbwaiter and land in the basement. However, they are soon captured. For some reason, they and the girl are taken to the bank president's house for identification. It just so happens that the president pulls out a photo of his son with the 2, in uniform. They ask if he is Eddie Smith's father, and he nods. They tell him this is Eddie's baby(Mighty strange that they didn't know he has a child!?) Soon, the president is treating them as VIPs. However, the cook runs through the dining room, chasing someone. The cook recognizes them as the 2 who took his jest to take the garbage to the genera(Jim Finlayson) seriously, thus landing all 3 in the guard house. Now, he has a long knife in his hand, and runs after them, out the door, to end the film......... I've pointed out quite a few holes in the screen play, which downgrades my rating. True, it has a fair number of slap stick and sight gag moments, in addition to vocal humor, and situation comedies, and a cute little girl to occasionally focus on. Thus, it is still worthwhile for laughs and sentiment........Available at YouTube. I watched the colorized version.

Army Chaos With Mr. Laurel & Mr. Hardy

[Ron Oliver · 10/10 · 19 March 2000]

Former doughboys Stan & Ollie take responsibility for the tiny daughter of a dead Army buddy. First they must rescue her from the dreadful fellow claiming guardianship. Then the Boys must try to track down the little tyke's grandparents. Not an easy task, considering the chaos they're about to encounter.

This feature plays like two or three short subjects strung together. There's a great deal of slapstick, as is usual in a Laurel & Hardy film, and the results are enjoyable. Stan & Ollie almost pull off the impossible: to make World War One trench warfare seem funny.

James Finlayson plays the Boys' exasperated General. Billy Gilbert & Grady Sutton are two zanies at a fancy wedding the Boys disrupt. Richard Cramer makes a nasty villain. Film mavens will spot sweet old Mary Gordon as one of the child's baby-sitters.

Times Change

[Theo Robertson · 7/10 · 18 August 2004]

A comedy that features The Great War as it`s back drop might be in very poor taste but since it features Stan and Ollie this can be forgiven . The trench scenes are probably the funniest parts of the film with Ollie getting blamed for Stan " Cleaning out a coffee pot " and Stan wishing Ollie luck as he`s forced over the top

After the war scenes we`re transported a few years into the future where the boys are trying to track down their old comrade Eddie Smith who has a daughter and I failed to get a joke because social mores have changed so much in the meantime . The action takes place at a wedding of a man called Eddie Smith ( An entirely different Eddie Smith ) where Stan , Ollie and a young girl appear . The doorbell is pressed and answered by a butler

" Does Eddie Smith live here ? "

" Yes "

" That`s swell because we brought his daughter "

The butler`s eyes roll and the bride`s father picks up a shotgun to attack the bridegroom when he hears this news . I was puzzled for a moment as to why this reaction came about but then I realised that in the 1930s no one but no one had children before they were married . How times change

Stan and Ollie go to war

[lee_eisenberg · 9/10 · 5 September 2017]

Every once in a while we see a movie about the military enlistment of someone who has trouble taking orders; examples include "Stripes" and "Your Mother Wears Combat Boots". One of the earliest examples was the Laurel & Hardy flick "Pack Up Your Troubles", wherein the boys get drafted into WWI. Following the typical fine messes into which they get themselves, one of their compatriots asks them to do him a favor should he die. This leads into what must have been one of the more serious plots that their movies ever had.

While the movie is comedy through and through, it was a surprise to see Stan and Ollie display a more human side in this movie. I liked seeing them show that, wacky though they were, their characters had the courage to do the right thing when all hope seemed lost.

Of course, one could ignore that and simply revel in the antics. And boy are there some funny ones! I hope that people keep watching Laurel and Hardy forever.

Despite being plot heavy, manages to stir up a few good chuckles...

[Doylenf · 6/10 · 12 January 2011]

PACK UP YOUR TROUBLES only begins to pick up at the point the boys decide to track down the father of a little girl in their care. The best scenes involve their relationship with the cute tyke, who has a wonderful scene with STAN LAUREL where she puts him to sleep with her own version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

Another highlight has the boys needing $2,000 and going to see a bank manager who has a good laugh when he sees that their restaurant business is nothing more than a traveling cart on wheels.

"I'd have to be unconscious to give you any money for that," he cries, and presto he knocks over a heavy vase that falls on his head. The boys escape with the money and even wackier developments follow.

Finally, the situation is straightened out when they accidentally run into the girl's grandparents who intend to see that L&H get the proper award for finding their lost grandchild, just in time for the happy ending.

A bit too plot heavy, but there are many scenes that are good for the kind of laughs you expect from any Laurel and Hardy film.

Worth seeing, but not one of their best.

My summary appears to be missing.

[JoeytheBrit · 8/10 · 27 November 2009]

I'm surprised this film came along so relatively early in Laurel & Hardy's career because, although it has a couple of stand-out moments, for the most part it falls below the usual high standard of their output with Hal Roach. In this one they find themselves enlisted in the army during WWI where by some fluke they manage to capture an entire German unit. Unfortunately, the friend they make in the army isn't so lucky and leaves an orphaned little girl at home that the boys decide to return to her grandparents.

Laurel & Hardy were still predominantly making shorts when this feature-length movie was made in 1932, and you get the impression that an awful lot of padding was involved to reach the hour mark. Now, the boys can make trying to walk through a doorway funny, but even they struggle to maintain a decent level of consistency throughout. The best scenes are those involving the little girl, even though she goes a little overboard on the cute factor. At one point, there's a neat role reversal as Stan struggles to keep his eyes open while she recites her own version of Goldilocks and the Three Bears – in fact, thinking about it, the entire film could be seen as a remodelling of typical fairy-tale plots.

As a meaningless aside, have you ever wondered who does the really dull jobs in the glamorous world of movies? In their quest for the grandparents of their young charge, Stan & Ollie phone every Smith in the phone book. To prove it, director Ray McCarey shows us a shot of four or five pages of the telephone directory with every entry crossed through, and I couldn't help wondering whether the poor dogsbody who did all that hand-numbing work even got a mention in the credits...

LAUREL & HARDY 2ND FEATURE...HARD-BOILED...QUITE VIOLENT...MUCH PATHOS IN THE HEAVY PLOT

[LeonLouisRicci · 7/10 · 17 July 2022]

Hal Roach/MGM Feature Film.

Early Sound, actually Includes a Few Explanatory and Funny "Cards" Left-Over from the Silents.

A Good Production with a Heavy-Hand (for a comedy) Touching on War-Deaths, Orphans, and Child Abuse (sometimes cut in early TV prints),

Although "The Depression", a couple of Years in, is Never Explicitly Eluded.

The Slapstick is Very-Violent at Times (boiling coffee), Word-Play isn't Used as Much as it Could Have Emphasizing the Beginning of the "Sound" in the Movies.

But the Silents were Inherently Sight-Gags and the Genius Comedians of the Era Perfected the "Art" into a Science.

Think Chaplin, Keaton, and Others Including L&H.

Hal Roach Studios was a Strong Participant and Audiences were Used to and Loved the Visual Mayhem.

There are Many Touches that Round-Out the Film with Familiar Character Actors Amidst Contrived Situations Where L&H Flourished.

The Drill Instructor, the Cook, the Wedding, the Smiths, the Banker, the Welfare Sheriff, the Garbage Cans, and More.

Fans of the Team will have a Field-Day with the Non-Stop "Idiocracy", although some Rumblings About the "Child", and an Overloaded Plot can be Heard if You Listen Hard Enough.

But One Gets the Feeling that Every-Soul in America, by 1932, was Feeling the Pain of the Depression.

Both Individually and Collectively. The Emphasis on Pathos was a Natural Expressive Vent, Created to Relieve some of the Suffering that was Just Beginning.

Actually Little to Gripe About in this Hour-Long Homage to the Soldiers of WW1 and a Child Born into the Down and Out Era.

This is at the Start of Laurel and Hardy's almost 2 Decade Run of Feature-Length Sound Movies.

Definitely Worth a Watch.

Troubles worth packing up

[TheLittleSongbird · 8/10 · 7 October 2018]

Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy were comedic geniuses, individually and together, and their partnership was deservedly iconic and one of the best there was. They left behind a large body of work, a vast majority of it being entertaining to classic comedy, at their best they were hilarious and their best efforts were great examples of how to do comedy without being juvenile or distasteful.

Although a vast majority of Laurel and Hardy's previous efforts ranged from above average to very good ('45 Minutes from Hollywood' being the only misfire and mainly worth seeing as a curiosity piece and for historical interest, and even that wasn't a complete mess), 'Two Tars' for me was their first truly classic one with close to flawless execution. Didn't find 'Pack Up Your Troubles' quite one of their very best, but it to me still very good and some of the best material is among their funniest.

Admittedly, the story is pretty thin and is pretty standard and the beginning is a touch slow.

Despite that, 'Pack Up Your Troubles' is great fun while also having a definite degree of substance, never less than very amusing and the best moments, such as the ending, being classic hilarity. It is never too silly, there is a wackiness that never loses its energy and the sly wit is here, some of the material may not be new but how it's executed actually doesn't feel too familiar and it doesn't get repetitive. Yet there is also a surprising amount of pathos, that is actually genuinely moving and not over-sentimental. A lot happens yet it doesn't ever feel rushed or over-stuffed. The ending is a delight.

Laurel and Hardy are on top form here, both are well used, both have material worthy of them and they're equal rather than one being funnier than the other (before Laurel tended to be funnier and more interesting than Hardy, who tended to be underused). Their chemistry feels like a partnership here too, before 'Two Tars' you were yearning for more scenes with them together but in 'Pack Up Your Troubles' and on the most part from 'Two Tars' onwards we are far from robbed of that. Their comic timing is impeccable.

'Pack Up Your Troubles' looks good visually, is full of energy and the direction gets the best out of the stars, is at ease with the material and doesn't let it get too busy or static. The supporting players are solid, but Laurel and Hardy steal the show as they ought to.

Concluding, very good. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Laurel and Hardy on a mission to safely return a child.

[chand-suhas · 6/10 · 7 April 2024]

Laurel and Hardy trying to avoid enlisting into the army are caught by a sergeant and they hilariously struggle to interpret the simple direct orders given to them while they are on kitchen duty. Anyways it's world war 1 and out there in the battle, they form a bond with fellow soldier Eddie Smith who has a daughter back home. To honour Eddie, the duo vow to safely return back his daughter to Eddie's father. Sadly the girl is living with an abusive foster parents and the duo break the law by running away with the child. How do they find the real Mr. Smith forms rest of the story.

This feature length film of Laurel and Hardy has a solid emotional core plot and those scenes work well. Rest of the film is filled with the duo's signature gags with Ollie being at the receiving end of it all. With the runtime of barely over an hour, it is commendable how humor and the emotional drama is balanced. While the initial scenes are their usual routine, once they embark on the journey with the child, the emotional core gives more weightage and further make those comedy scenes work. The ending however is rushed asusual. Overall it's a decent watch and commendable for handling the drama as well.

Classic L & H

[CHARLIE-89 · 31 March 1999]

PACK UP YOUR TROUBLES is the second L&H feature. They do a great job, providing straight laughs for over an hour! The supporting cast reads like a "who's-who" of 1930's comedy:Charles Middleton, Jacquie Lyn, Muriel Evans, Billy Gilbert, C. Montague Shaw, George Marshall, Rychard Cramer, James C. Morton, Richard Tucker, Lew Kelly, and other greats such as the immortal James Finlayson as a General. Directed by George Marshall and Raymond McCarey (brother of L&H creator Leo McCarey), Photographed by Art Lloyd. Screenplay and Dialogue by H. M. Walker. A comedy classic.