Them Thar Hills
Them Thar Hills
NR | 21 July 1934 (USA)
Them Thar Hills Trailers

Stan and Ollie travel to the mountains for Ollie's health, and park their caravan near a well into which a gang of moonshiners have earlier dumped their moonshine; and the boys proceed to quench their thirst thinking that it is iron-rich mountain water. The real trouble doesn't begin, though, until a married motoring couple stop by to borrow some gasoline, and the already-cranky husband leaves his thirsty wife with the boys while he goes off to refill his car's empty gas-tank. A sequel was made to this film: TIT FOR TAT, q.v.

Reviews
mark.waltz

Needing a country vacation to recover from a case of the gout, Oliver convinces Stanley to take him to the mountains where they end up with moonshine instead of water and get an innocent passersby (Mae Busch) drunk, infuriating her husband and resulting in a funny sequence of gags where his attempts of revenge turn on him. But of course, this has to take a turn to give a final shot of either one of the two in an awkward situation, only moderately funny and not the gasping laugh I hoped for. Busch is cast against type here, for once not a predatory female. There's enough slapstick to keep this flowing, but I found it only mildly memorable.

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Robert J. Maxwell

One of the better Laurel and Hardy short. Hardy, with gout, is advised to take a vacation in the mountains. He and Laurel rent a small trailer and park next to a well in which some moonshiners have just dumped a lot of booze. They unwittingly get drunk and begin singing.There is a misunderstanding with a passing couple -- Bush and Hall -- and insults and injuries are traded back and forth in the usual fashion. One person stands there stoically while another slowly and deliberately dumps a can of molasses over his head. That sort of thing.In the end, Hall sets Hardy's pants on fire, Hardy jumps into the well to extinguish it, but, the well being full of booze, explodes and shoots Hardy out like a cannonball.The gags don't come lightning fast but they build on one another a bit. Amusing and undemanding sketch.

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wishkah7

Them Thar Hills is another favorite Laurel and Hardy episode of mine. In this one, Stan and Ollie go out into the country for Ollie's health. Along the way they encounter a fun loving wife (Mae Busch) and her exasperated husband (Charlie Hall), and they get drunk on some wishing well water that had been contaminated with alcohol by moonshiners. The funniest part in this episode was when Stan and Ollie retaliate against Charlie Hall! Laurel and Hardy were both ingenious when it came to making episodes and movies, Stan Laurel had taken any gag he used and made it be extremely funny! Also, the way they played off each other in this episode and others were absolutely impressive. That's what made L&H so exquistite, comedy-wise. In fact, Laurel and Hardy are my second favorite comedy team of yesteryear! Also, Charlie Hall was a great L&H regular, too! And the fun doesn't stop there! After you see Them Thar Hills, watch the bonus sequel Tit for Tat! Both episodes are a can't-miss for Laurel and Hardy fans!

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mandzirm

This is one of Laurel and Hardy's funniest two-reelers, thanks in particular to two memorable scenes. First is the delightful drunken party scene with Mae Busch, as the three are unaware that their well water has been spiked with moonshine. Finally, there is the outrageous "tit-for-tat" slapstick finale with Charlie Hall, as each character stands there allowing another character to commit some indignity upon them, calmly awaiting their chance to retaliate. The sequel, titled Tit For Tat, featured the same cast and formula, and is nearly as good.

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