The other day I went to see Stan and Ollie, the film about the iconic comedy duo featuring Steve Coogan and John C. Riley. The film is really great: it moves between the light-hearted, almost cartoony set-pieces and its more earnest moments seamlessly— it is nice, if not slightly safe, and a real laugh-and-cry movie. I find John C. Riley incredibly endearing and, for me, he stole the show supported by a slightly more subdued performance from Coogan.
But the scene that I found the most moving was the final scene. *moderate spoilers ahead*. Due to his declining health, Ollie has been unable to perform the duo’s signature dance at the end of their stage show, instead opting to sing a song. But, realising that the end of ‘Laurel and Hardy’ is fast approaching, in their closing show Ollie announces to the surprise of everyone present that they are going to do a little dance. It’s a simple dance that to me isn’t particularly funny or intrinsically special but it is definitely shot beautifully and was very affecting. The camera ignores their audience almost entirely and focuses in on the two performers and their connection on-stage. After the film, I wanted to figure out exactly what is was about that scene that makes it so poignant.
I think the key to this scene is that it embodies one of the main themes of the film: sacrifice. Throughout the film characters are shown to struggle with the sacrifices they make for the sake of art, friendship and marriage and these ideas are all brought to the fore in the film’s climax. For example, the driving force of the plot is the professional sacrifice the two men are making for the sake of their artistic vision. They have agreed to a UK tour in small venues, staying at less than luxurious hotels, to generate interest for a new Robin Hood movie they have conceived. This also coincides with a kind of sacrifice of their egos. They quickly find out that there will be no bell-boys to take their luggage, the theatres will not be full, people will be surprised to hear the two of them are still around. But, rather than preserving their egos, they continue for the sake of their art. All of this while away from their wives, yet another sacrifice willingly made.
Similarly, Stan is shown to kick some of his more indulgent habits– mostly encouraged by his wife Ida– in an attempt to preserve his health. However, it is Ollie who is shown to sacrifice his physical health the most throughout the film. The severely overweight Ollie struggles to keep up with the rigours of the tour, constantly dealing with aches and pains and, of course, being forced to swap dances for songs. But, when it becomes clear that the only way to improve the lacklustre attendance of their shows is to fill their days with publicity events, Ollie agrees and sacrifices his body further. It is during one of these publicity stunts– judging a swimwear competition– that Ollie collapses after suffering a heart attack. The doctors advice is simple, retire immediately to prolong your life– and thus his sacrifice is laid out before him. True to form, Ollie ignores the reccomendation and takes to the stage for the final leg of their tour, ending with this final dance.
The final scene, therefore, seems to be the culmination of this sacrifice and embodies its beauty. Despite his struggling body, he choses to dance– despite the knowledge that their Robin Hood movie will never be made, they dance– despite the toll it takes on their family life, they dance. And they do all this for the sake of the performance. The movie takes the pair’s genius for granted and so this final scene shows them choosing to give the full extent of their gifts to the audience while they still can. The significance of the scene is only heightened by Ollie’s earlier admission that he knew all along that the movie would never be made (something Stan tries to hide from him) and so his continuing commitment to the tour and their act is also to preserve their friendship and partnership, not only to entertain an audience. By the end of the film, both men recognise that their career together is coming to a close and so they make these sacrifices to please each other and to give their relationship the conclusion it deserves.
However, I don’t think this is the full story of sacrifice in the film as, while it is ever-present within the narrative, it is never entirely glorified or even justified. I think that Ollie’s wife, Lucille is the figure who contextualises the sacrifice and illustrates its limits. While I initially felt she was simply a device intended to exacerbate problems in Stan and Ollie’s friendship, she too displays a significant degree of sacrifice. She is away from her husband for long periods, she must give up her anonymity for a life in the public eye and is forced to watch the health of someone she loves deteriorate. As such, we cannot see Ollie’s sacrifices as wholly beautiful and noble as Lucille provides the proof of their consequences. So, when Ollie announces that they will dance on that last night, Lucille watches on filled with anxiety.
But, despite her presence, I still think this final moment is moving. The important thing is that everyone recognises that this is it. Lucille’s worry and suffering shows us that these sacrifices can’t be sustained and they have to stop sooner or later. Therefore it is this recognition that they must stop that makes the final sacrifice all the more poignant– it is their last hurrah and isn’t it worth the shortness of breath, the pain in the chest one last time to recapture the magic.
Uncultured Review 