Watch Beau Hunks For Free

The Worst Film Ever

Simply A Masterpiece

Good concept, poorly executed.

Absolutely the worst movie.

This one finds the boys in the French Foreign Legion, fighting in Algeria. Ollie is trying to forget a woman whom he has not met; he only has a picture of him. Of course, Stanley must go along with him on this doomsday mission. It turns out that this woman is on the minds of many others in the desert who are also trying to forget. Somewhere along the line, a stereotype developed that joining the Foreign Legion helped you forget. Anyway, there is the standard desert stuff, and the military incompetence displayed in other films of L & H. And, as is often the case, the gods seem to protect these guys. This one is not as funny as some, but has a really funny conclusion which is worth waiting for.

Making Abbott and Costello in the foreign legion look like Cary Grant and Gary Cooper in "Gunga Din" and "Beau Geste", Laurel and Hardy get caught up in more sand than what fits in an hour glass in this lively spoof of a popular genre that still makes occasional appearances on big screens today. Oliver's recovering from a break up with none other than Jean Harlow (seen in a picture) so he goes off to the foreign legion where their antics threaten to turn on them, but like any comic who ends up in the military, they end up as heroes in a surprising and clever way. Adding another two reels onto this mini- feature/extended short, they get twice the laughs as they tried out their popularity to see if they could make it into full length films. The results? A definite yes, lasting for more than a decade and surviving a real world war. I couldn't see this any shorter, but possibly extended. Tii much meat minus the Grissel makes this prime rib.

In 1980 I had the good fortune to be invited to the home of legendary motion picture producer HAL E. ROACH. I was there to show him a few films I made, hoping for some good advice. We talked about many things, including Laurel & Hardy.I then asked Mr. Roach what his all-time favorite Laurel & Hardy film was. After a thoughtful pause, he replied: "BEAU HUNKS."In 1939 BEAU HUNKS was remade as FLYING DEUCES (not by Roach) during a temporary lapse in the boys' contracts. The story must have been a favorite of theirs as well. BEAU HUNKS is an odd length (37 minutes), not too long and not too short. A classic which stands alone as one of Laurel & Hardy's most inspired films. No spoilers in this review, but if you are an L&H fan, seek out Hal Roach's personal favorite and you'll be glad you did!

Each short or longer Laurel & Hardy movie is a classic in my view. The Laurel & Hardy tandem is unmatched in movie-history and in my opinion the majority of today's movie makers and writers can learn lots from L & H. They don't have Charly Chaplin's brilliance, but they are good! And funny! Their gags, faces, fights, accidents and disasters are hilarious and bring a smile to my face each time I watch. This time Hardy drags Laurel into a Foreign Legion adventure, because of a heartache and that gives plenty of room for these two legendary comedians to move! My advice: don't underestimate L&H movies!