When this started I had the strongest feeling that I'd seen it before but I knew I hadn't reviewed a Laurel and Hardy flick going by this title. It turns out this is a reworking of their 1927 silent film "Duck Soup" in which they escaped fire-fighting duty by ducking into an old mansion who's owner is away on safari. Many other details of this talkie film are similar as well, down to the name of Stan's butler character, he was 'Hives' in "Duck Soup" as well (although not listed as such in the film's credits), and his alter-ego 'Agnes' showed up in that one too!
The pluses for this film as I see it, are the inclusion of James Finlayson as Colonel Wilburforce Buckshot, and Thelma Todd as Lady Plumtree. I'd include Charles Gerrard as Lord Plumtree in that mix but that laugh of his managed to annoy me. Even so, this is a funny sketch, with a great comic interlude between 'Agnes' and Lady Plumtree discussing the number of rooms in the mansion and the nursery that was added 'in case of accidents' - that line was a blast!
With the 'real' Colonel Buckshot turning up to close out the story, the picture erupts into general Laurel and Hardy mayhem. It's a fun film coming in at just under a half hour, with the picture gallantly living up to it's name.
The pluses for this film as I see it, are the inclusion of James Finlayson as Colonel Wilburforce Buckshot, and Thelma Todd as Lady Plumtree. I'd include Charles Gerrard as Lord Plumtree in that mix but that laugh of his managed to annoy me. Even so, this is a funny sketch, with a great comic interlude between 'Agnes' and Lady Plumtree discussing the number of rooms in the mansion and the nursery that was added 'in case of accidents' - that line was a blast!
With the 'real' Colonel Buckshot turning up to close out the story, the picture erupts into general Laurel and Hardy mayhem. It's a fun film coming in at just under a half hour, with the picture gallantly living up to it's name.