Towed in a Hole (1932)
Directed by George Marshall

Film Review

Arguably the funniest of Laurel and Hardy's two reelers, Towed in a Hole is nothing less than a sublime masterpiece of slapstick.  It is a film that is so packed with brilliantly conceived and faultlessly orchestrated gags that only a block of stone with a severe case of migraine could watch it without collapsing in a heap of laughter at least once every ten seconds.  You know the routine.  Stan and Ollie get what appears to be an infallible idea to make money.  They set about it with gusto.  But within no time the boys are wrecking everything in sight and subjecting each other to the kind of physical abuse that makes Tom and Jerry's relationship look like a model of restraint and tolerance.

Just how often can Stan cause Ollie to fall into a pot of paint?  Why is it that whenever Stan catches sight of a hosepipe you just know that his friend is about to get totally drenched?   When Ollie climbs to the top of a mast, it would be inconceivable for Stan not to pick up a saw and start cutting the mast in two.  History's greatest comedy duo have their characters and their love-hate relationship tuned to perfection in this film, and this makes the insane slapstick hi-jinks even more vivid and hilarious.  Towed in a Hole is about as rip-roaringly funny as visual comedy can get.  If this doesn't make you laugh, I'm a Dutchman with three heads.

Film Synopsis

For once, Stan and Ollie appear to be on the up, earning a steady income as fish peddlers.  Then Stan has a bright idea that could make them even more money.  Instead of buying fish, they should catch it themselves, cutting out the middleman and stopping the fish from taking all the profits.  Ollie instantly sees the sense in this and suggests they buy their own boat.  Unfortunately, the boat they acquire is about as seaworthy as a cracked sieve.  Ollie's attempts to repaint and repair the battered old craft are endlessly thwarted by his old friend...