In The Flying Deuces (1939) the heartbreak causes the antics in French Foreign Legion and is a typical Laurel and Hardy comedy. Free online viewing is available of this masterpiece in the public domain.
The Flying Deuces (1939) – Laurel and Hardy in Comedy in the Skies.
In The Flying Deuces (1939), Laurel and Hardy presented the world with an incredible adventurous comedy mixed with love, suffering, and the French Foreign Legion that raised the standard of humor. It was not only the Hal Roach Studios that released it but also RKO Radio Pictures, the first major feature of the duo, and it was partly a remake of their short Beau Hunks from 1931.
Directed by A. Edward Sutherland and produced by Boris Morros, the movie takes the duo in Paris into a desert outpost (and even the sky) in a tornado of slapstick and laughs. In fact it was created at a transition in their careers, but is one of their most readily available and long-lived comedies, having passed into the public domain.
✈️ Story Snapshot
Ollie falls in love with Georgette hopelessly during his vacation in Paris, only to discover that she is already married to a Foreign Legion officer known as Francois. Already broken, he chooses to kill himself, of course with Stan following him, ever faithful. They are persuaded by Francois not to commit suicide and he instead tries to persuade them to join the Legion in order to forget their woes.
Military life is entirely incompatible with their normal havoc, and they attempt to run away after failing in almost everything they are assigned (and are informed that they are making only three cents a day). Arrested and condemned to death, the two escape through a tunnel that inexplicably gets to the house of Georgette. They are again chased, and escape in an airplane, which crashes, leaving Stan alive and Ollie reincarnated as a talking horse. Ollie, of course, brings it to a close with his usual saying: “That is another fine thing you have got me into, another nice mess, you know, Ollie, that is all I have to say about it.
🎭 Cast of Characters
- Stan Laurel – Stan
- Oliver Hardy – Ollie
- Jean Parker – Georgette
- Reginald Gardiner – François
- Charles B. Middleton – The Legion Commandant
- Jean Del Val – Sergeant
- Crane Whitley – Corporal
- James Finlayson – The Jailor
- Michael Visaroff -The Innkeeper
Fun fact: Charles B. Middleton again plays his part as the Commandant of the Legion in Beau Hunks, and regular Laurel and Hardy co-star James Finlayson fills out as the grumpy jailer.
🎬 Why It Still Delivers Laughs
- First Independent Feature: It was the first Starring Feature of the duo not produced by Hal Roach and this was a huge step towards their career.
- Slapstick Gold: Bed-spring music, failed desert training, it is Laurel and Hardy at their best.
- Breezy Runtime: It is the ideal introduction of new viewers and a trip to nostalgia to old fans and lasts a little more than an hour.
- Reincarnation Twist: There is not much group of comedies that ends with one of the protagonists becoming a horse. This one does—and it works.
- Public Domain Favorite: The movie is a favorite of the classic films that have become a favorite of free streaming and downloading systems.
Flying Deuces (1939) Watch or Download.
📽️ Movie Source: Internet Archive (archive.org)
🖼️ Image Source: Wikimedia Commons (wikimedia.org)
▶️ Watch on Archive.org
🏷️ Tags
Flying Deuces 1939, Laurel and Hardy films, public domain comedies, classic slapstick films, foreign legion comedies, 1930s Hollywood movies, Oliver Hardy and Stan Laurel, public domain full movies, aviation comedies, vintage film download.
