FRA DIAVOLO/THE DEVILS BROTHER
US, 1933, 90 minutes, Black and white.
Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Dennis King, Thelma Todd, James Finlayson.
Directed by Hal Roach and Charles Rogers.
Fra Diavolo is a mixture of Laurel and Hardy slapstick comedy with an operetta of the same name by Auber. To that extent, it is something of a hodgepodge, although they did play in the musical Jack and the Beanstalk by Sigmund Romberg.
It was directed by veteran, Hal Roach, who had been making short films since 1916, a very extensive list of comedy films.
The plot is something reminiscent of the Zorro, a bandit in northern Italy masquerading as a lord in order to rob the rich. He is played by stage operetta singer, Dennis King, who had a great reputation in his time. In the supporting cast is Thelma Todd as a wealthy lady and James Finlayson as her older husband, something of a fop, something of a fool.
Into this operetta atmosphere, with songs from King as well as chorus songs, come Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy. They are talking about the money they have saved for many long years when Ollie takes it from Stan and they are immediately robbed. They decide to become bandits although they don’t know how, hearing about Il Diavolo, they decide to emulate him with their first opportunity spoilt by a man pleading desperately to keep his money. Then they try to rob Il Diavolo himself. They are mocked by his group and it is decided that they should be hanged. But Il Diavolo leaves it to Stand to put the noose around around Ollie’s but fails to fulfil the execution. They then become servants to Il Diavolo.
Meanwhile there are flashbacks to Il Diavolo serenading the rich young woman who shows him her jewels which he intends to rob. She has a foppish husband and it is easy for Il Diavolo to steal both jewels and heart. There is a small subplot about the leader of the police in the viIlage and the daughter of a storekeeper who is in love with him.
Being in the town provides for some opportunity for Laurel and Hardy to do some of their slapstick, physical humour, verbal humour.
But, in the end, both Stan and Ollie stand in the line of the firing squad with Il Diavolo.
Laurel and Hardy had made a number of short films but made a number of features from this time to the mid 1940s.
