TheLittleSongbird Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy were comedic geniuses, individually and together, and their partnership was deservedly iconic and one of the best there was. They left behind a large body of work, a vast majority of it being entertaining to classic comedy, at their best they were hilarious and their best efforts were great examples of how to do comedy without being juvenile or distasteful.After their previous 1928 efforts saw a step in the right direction and the two were starting to hit their stride while still evolving, 'Their Purple Moment' sees a couple of steps backwards and something of a disappointment. Certainly far from terrible and it is a long way from a misfire of theirs (up to this point '45 Minutes from Hollywood' was the only one to fit this distinction), but 'Their Purple Moment' is far from a gem. It is a shame because their previous 1928 efforts were so promising and the concept here was not a bad one.Laurel and Hardy's work was never known to have particularly great stories, which tended to be the weakest element. 'Their Purple Moment' is no exception, on top of being flimsy it is also more predictable, hackneyed and repetitive than most with outcomes being easily foreseeable and some of the content being hit and miss as well as rather repetitive at times. The pace sometimes could have been tighter. 'Their Purple Moment's' weak link is the ending, a real fizzler that is rushed, uninspired and somewhat tasteless.On the other hand, Laurel and Hardy are more than very amusing, particularly Laurel, and they work well together. Three quarters of 'Their Purple Moment' does mostly amuse and has some fun and well timed moments and gags. It's not dull, is competently directed, has a nice supporting cast and holds up quite well visually.All in all, definitely worthwhile but not a Laurel and Hardy essential. 6/10 Bethany Cox

Robert J. Maxwell A silent short in with Stan and Ollie go to a fancy restaurant with two girls they've met, thinking they have outsmarted Stan's wife by Stan's having stashed a lot of cash from his paycheck in a secret hiding place. There is no hiding place that is a secret to one's wife, as many a husband with, say, a pornographic tape has discovered. Stan's wife has found the hidden wallet and substituted cigar-store coupons for the bills.In a gay old mood, Stan and Ollie invite strangers to their table for steaks and beer, and Stan passes out tips to the troop of midgets marching around the floor. Then the two evildoers find out that they have no money to pay for this big night on the town -- the cab fare (they invite the driver to dinner), the tips, the huge meals, the drinks, all coming to the throat-tightening, aqueous-humor-coagulating total of almost $29.Every time the lights go down, they try to crawl out, and every time a waiter trips over Stan's back and falls face first into the tray he's carrying.It all involves a good deal of slapstick, raising questions like "What is slapstick?" and "is slapstick funny?" Not to get into it but a slapstick was two slats of wood that produced a loud sound but little force when used to whack someone. The meaning has broadened to include pratfalls, tumbles down stairs, and other physical acts that take place in a comic context. It must be at least a little funny to some people because it's been around since the commedia dell'arte and before. Chaplin, an acknowledged genius, used it all the time. People slip in giant banana peels in Woody Allen's "Sleeper." The falling waiter gag is used, not once in this short, but three or four times. Once may not be funny, but EVERY TIME that Stan is on his hands and knees and the waiter's face plunges into the cake on the tray, it's a running gag and I find it kind of funny. Some might not.

Jackson Booth-Millard Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy are the most famous comedy duo in history, and deservedly so, so I am happy to see any of their films. Mr. Pincher (Laurel) is having to give his wife (Fay Holderness) some money, and he hides his money in what seems a very good secret hiding place for his money, a painting of a man wearing a coat, with the coat opening up. She sees this hiding place, and takes quite a lot of cash without him knowing, and then he and and Ollie decide to go and enjoy themselves, telling their wives they are going to the bowling alley. On their way, the boys stop outside a restaurant to look at some photos, watching some men chucked out for not paying. They see the two women (Kay Deslys and Anita Garvin) left by them, and they invite them to join them for a meal, and a local Gossip (Patsy O'Byrne) sees them and goes to tell Mrs. Pincher and Mrs. Hardy (Lyle Tayo) what their husbands are up to. The boys meanwhile are doing a couple of tricks for the women, and order some steaks, and when Pincher wants to treat some stage performers, that's when he notices the little he has in his wallet. He is whimpering as he watches Ollie and the women tuck in to their meals he knows he can't pay for, and when Ollie finally sees the wallet too, they both try to escape a couple of times. Eventually the Waiter ('Tiny' S.J. Sandford) wanting payment comes over, sees the wallet, and the boys are chased by him, and just after the wives arrive. Everyone is in the kitchen, Ollie blames Pincher for everything, and Pincher unintentionally starts a food fight with the chef and everyone else joins, with Ollie last to get a pie in the face. Filled with good slapstick and all classic comedy you want from a black and white film, it is an enjoyable silent film. Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy were number 7 on The Comedians' Comedian. Worth watching!

BJJManchester The Laurel and Hardy team was now reasonably well established at this time in 1928,but for some reason THEIR PURPLE MOMENT takes one or two steps back;Stan is billed as 'Mr.Pincher'and not Mr.Laurel,and a proposed final scene involving an escape from the night club involving a midget troupe was removed before the film's release,and replaced with a rushed,rather(for L & H)hackneyed final pie throwing sequence.Still,there are some very funny moments,especially with a waiter who keeps on falling into a tray of mashed potatoes;these gags were reworked into the following year's THAT'S MY WIFE(1929).Edgar Kennedy was apparently in these deleted scenes.