Stan & Ollie
2018
***
Director: Jon S. Baird
Cast: Steve Coogan, John C. Reilly, Shirley Henderson, Nina Arianda, Rufus Jones, Danny Huston, Joseph Balderrama, John Henshaw, Richard Cant
By 1953, Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy are obsolete movie stars who struggle to get new projects off the ground. In financial straits, the duo embark on a music hall tour of the UK and Ireland, which takes a toll on them both. This unusual but likeable biopic is steeped in nostalgia, which feels a bit odd as it does not cover the years when these wonderful comedians were two of the most recognisable faces on the planet. This melancholic film does, however, paint a moving portrait of a long-standing professional friendship. Coogan and Reilly give very fine performances as Laurel and Hardy, and so do Henderson and Arianda as their wives.
