A Chump at Oxford

Peter Cushing’s second film. He has a minor speaking part playing one of the Oxford students who hassle Laurel and Hardy.

I appreciate the skill inherent in Laurel and Hardy’s routines. In this film, Stan performs a three-handed bit that could pass for a magic trick. They’re talented, but they don’t make me laugh.

Maybe it’s how the humor flows from the characters’ myopic self-focus, a trait that irks me. Or maybe growing up on ’80s comedies broke my sense of humor. Whatever the reason, the pair’s comedy doesn’t work for me.

That said, I enjoyed the last few minutes when Stan—playing against type as a polished nobleman—berates Ollie telling him, “Get your chin up!” a pause, then “Both of them!” That made me chuckle.