Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy are the most famous comedy duo in history, and deservedly so, so I am happy to see any of their films. Mrs. Arabella Hardy (Mae Busch) is sick and tired of Ollie seeing Stan all the time, its getting on her nerves. The phone rings, it is Stan, telling Ollie he has tickets for the cement workers bizarre, Ollie pretends to be speaking to his new boss Mr. Jones, which obviously confuses Stan, making him come over to say it was him. After running out when Ollie's wife grabbed the broom to whack him with, Stan gives Ollie the idea that they need a baby to keep her occupied and make the couple more happy. So the boys come back home with an adopted baby, and when she isn't there, Ollie is given a letter saying his wife is suing him for divorce, and Stan gets a letter saying she's suing him for being the seed for alienation of Ollie's affections. Stan says he is leaving, and Ollie tries to make him see how he won't cope, and madly getting him before he leaves, he manages to make Stan whine, and make the baby cry. It has got dark, and the boys in their pyjamas still can't stop the baby crying, they think it is hungry, Stan looks ready to breast feed, but he is in fact pulling out a milk bottle, being kept warm. The baby is quiet, and after getting stuck a little swapping to hold it they place it gently on the bed, switching the light off, and Stan lighting a match to check it's off. Stan goes for a lamp so he doesn't have to get up, and Ollie trips on the cord, crashing into the kitchen cupboard with a mousetrap on his nose. Stan comes in to tell him the baby is awake (which is obvious because of the crying), he madly gets up tripping on the lamp cord again, crashing through the door. Ollie wants the lamp pulled, so he pulls the socket out, ripping it out of the wall, hitting him in the face, and making Stan spit out milk he is drinking. After a quiet phone call from a complaining neighbour, the baby is settled again, and Ollie tells Stan to plug in the lamp while he goes to fix more milk bottles, and to make noises quietly. Stan (with cotton wool in his ears to stop hearing noises he may make) plugs the lamp into the outside flashing hotel sign, and after a little trouble with a bottle top Ollie comes in with more bottles, only to drop them with the flashing lamp light, and get a bottle top on his nose, and waking the baby again. In bed at last, the baby is still crying, and Ollie cradles Stan thinking he is the baby, and giving him the milk bottle to drink, eat the rubber top, and finish it, while the baby is quiet at the same time. When the baby starts crying again, Ollie gets another bottle, and opens his eyes to see Stan drinking it, and the film ends with Stan banging his head and Ollie spilling the milk on the bed. An odd ending, and to be honest, I was laughing so much I wanted more. Filled with wonderful slapstick and all classic comedy you could want from a black and white film, it is an enjoyable film. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy were number 7 on The Comedians' Comedian, and "Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into!" was number 60 on 100 Years, 100 Quotes. Very good!
Review of Their First Mistake
