Babes in Toyland (1934)

Directed by Gus Meins & Charles Rogers. Starring Oliver Hardy, Stan Laurel, Virginia Karns, Henry Brandon, Charlotte Henry, Felix Knight, Florence Roberts, Frank Austin, William Burress.

The Victor Herbert operetta is turned into a fantastical, Christmas-themed vehicle for Laurel and Hardy (Stannie Dum and Ollie Dee), who try to help the Widow Peep (Roberts) and Little Bo Peep (Henry) when sinister Silas Barnaby (Brandon) threatens to evict them from their home unless Bo Peep marries him. Elsewhere, the boys screw up an order for little wooden soldiers, defend Tom-Tom the Piper’s Son from pig-napping charges, and help fight off Barnaby’s unearthly army. Silly but picturesque and sometimes imaginative, the story is all over the place and some of the love story/song breaks are yawners, but it’s decent enough juvenile entertainment that should keep most younger viewers and L&H fans satisfied. Remade in color by Disney in 1961 and for American television in 1986. Also known as Laurel and Hardy in Toyland and March of the Wooden Soldiers.

62/100