A Brilliant Conflict

This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

The laughs are as solid as classical music in this comedy short that is not just directed. It's choreographed. Stan and Ollie are vaudevillians heading to Pottsville with one fiddle and no music. "Why do you want to go to Pottsville?", they are asked aboard the train, and explain their profession. "I bet you're good", the conductor tells them in a deadpan manner, obviously dubious about their act. For 20 minutes, the train ride they take is the track to comic disaster, and no passenger will have any peace as long as they are aboard. There won't be any room left for marks in their berth, but hopefully there'll be oxygen near by for viewers laughing non- stop. I rank this among their top two reelers, and one of the great early talkie comedies period. Imagine the sight of chubby Stanley and skinny Laurel trying to undress, literally cheek to cheek.This deserves solid attention, because the funniest bits are so subtle that distracted viewers could easily miss them. I didn't spot the young Paulette Goddard, but it'll be fun to go through the train sequences and pause the DVD (excellently transferred on a beautiful collection of Laurel & Hardy shorts and features from their Hal Roach days) to find her.

I'm surprised at all the negative reviews here on this short. I was expecting to be impatient with it since I could tell by the title it would be the two of them in a train berth together, but for me it totally cracked me up! A lot of L&H humor goes on a long time repetitively and most of the time I love it but a few times I get a little bored (Tit for Tat comes to mind), but this was just so silly it was hard for me not to go along with the gag till the end. The gag with the rest of train was great also as was the shoe gag, but I really really thought the berth scene was a riot. BTW, I think the gag starts when they are both assigned a single berth because I don't think it works that way in real life, you pay for one bed per person. I could be wrong on that but I have a feeling thats the way it was. One reason why I may like this more then most is because after all of these years this was the first time I watched it and after watching all their later work from the 30's and on this was new material for me so I would give just about anything I watch them in thats new for me at least a 7. But I did really crack up at the two of them in the same berth and seem to like all the different comedies that get set in that type of scene like the 3 Stooges in A Pain In The Pullman and ZaSu Pitts and Thelma Todd in Show Business, I also think Abbott and Costello did some scenes in them and there is train humor in The Thin Man films. I always seem to enjoyed them all. I'm giving this short a 9 out of 10. Trivia: I'm surprised no one else mentioned it yet (that I noticed). That "fiddle" gets totally smashed in the beginning of the film, you can see it fall out in pieces from the bag, but then it's whole again when they get on the train!

Laurel and Hardy are back again in this talkie train adventure. The duo have a gig and they take the train, unknowingly create mayhem, try to get some sleep but encounter some trouble with wardrobe and when they're finally ready, they reach their destination only to forget the cello in the train. It's got the usual slapstick element and again Hardy does more of the talking while Laurel remains quiet. It's a simple little film of the typical Laurel and Hardy humour (for which they are loved). It's finely executed and provides several laugh out loud moments such as the bed scene or the sequence where the passengers start ripping each others clothes off and this starts multiplying (till the point where the conductor's clothes are tattered). Paulette Goddard and Baldwin Cooke provide great support. I love most of the things this wonderful comedy duo have done and 'Berth Marks' ranks among my favourites.

A LAUREL & HARDY Comedy Short.Vaudeville musicians Stan & Ollie board a train heading for Pottsville. Finding their reserved `upper', their attempts to get into it & maneuver around it are a study in total frustration. They'll have more bruises than just BERTH MARKS when they finally reach their destination.This little film is pure slapstick and very funny. The Boys make travelling in an upper berth look absolutely hideous.