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.
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BJJManchester27 October 2005
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wmorrow5917 March 2002For about three-fourths of the way, Their Purple Moment is a sharp, funny Laurel & Hardy comedy, albeit one with a distinctly sour take on married life. This is the first of the L&H domestic comedies, and sets the tone for much of what would follow: Stan and Ollie are each at the mercy of their domineering wives, a pair of hard-bitten shrews who treat them like children, promptly appropriate their paychecks, and deny them any pleasures. (Later on the wives would usually be more nuanced, sometimes even sympathetic, but in this early film they're quite mean.) In what would become a standard plot for the team, this film tells the sad story of what happens when the boys attempt to fool their spouses. Of course, the only question is just how disastrously the situation is going to backfire.
Here, Stan and Ollie tell the wives they're going bowling, then defiantly set out on a spree, under the delusion they've got lots of cash on hand. So when they encounter two attractive young ladies in distress, stuck with a bill they can't pay, naturally, they step in and gallantly offer to treat them to dinner. And it's all downhill from there!
The situation the boys blunder into is a well-constructed comic nightmare that steadily builds in intensity, and the sequence is genuinely suspenseful -- right up to the food-fight finale, which is such a fizzle it practically ruins the whole show. This is surprising, considering that, according to the various books on the team, a much more offbeat and imaginative ending was planned and filmed, but then jettisoned. The original finale utilized the midget troupe of entertainers who perform a floor show in the restaurant. In the earlier version, when the boys discover they have no money to pay their bill, they were to escape by disguising themselves as midgets -- midget women, at that -- and slip away with the troupe. The idea flirts with tastelessness, but it sure seems funnier and more memorable than the finale as it stands now.
Oh well. There are good reasons to watch and enjoy Their Purple Moment nonetheless, among them the famous gag of the uncle's portrait with the hidden pocket, the spirited performance of Patsy O'Byrne as the town gossip, and the always welcome presence of Anita Garvin, here playing a good-time gal who packs a knife. There's also a priceless close-up of Stan, when it dawns on him that he has no money to cover the ever-growing tab: in an extended shot he displays a remarkable range of expressions, from horror to befuddlement, to hope and despair and back again. He was the greatest! -
rmax3048236 July 2010A 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. -
This is a comedy that lacks some good laughs. Even though the movie still is good and enjoyable entertainment of course, I don't think I laughed even once. This is probably due to the fact that the movie doesn't have any slapstick moments in it and instead relies on just one comical situations the boys has got themselves into.
The main plot line is pretty funny but it's a bit tiresome to base the entire movie around this one plot line. It's well acted out and constructed but it basically is too much of the same the whole time.
The settings are pretty enjoyable. It gives us a good view into the late '20's night life. A life which we normally only know from movies who tried to recreate the atmosphere and settings from that period. But this movie is the real stuff and therefor it's still a pretty interesting watch. The atmosphere and settings are probably the only reason why this movie is still good to watch present day.
There are some good comical constructed moments in the movie but it's all not enough to make this movie a grand and excelling Laurel & Hardy silent short.
6/10
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Michael_Elliott26 February 2008Their Purple Moment (1928)
*** (out of 4)
Laurel and Hardy hold out some of their pay so that they can go out on the town but their wives find their hiding spot. When the boys are out they run up a tab and must find a way out. There are plenty of laughs here including a wonderfully funny food fight at the end as well as a nice sequence with the two trying to sneak out of a restaurant.
I viewed this in the UK, 21-disc set, which is a dream come true for fans of Laurel and Hardy. The price has recently dropped on the set so any fan should certainly look into picking it up. -
TheLittleSongbird14 August 2018Stan 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 -
In this 1928 silent comedy short, Stan and Ollie actually have paying jobs, and wives who insist on receiving ALL of their salary every time. Judging by the screenplay, the wives clearly have their husbands on too short a leash, causing them to rebel on the sneak, as they go to a restaurant and pick up 2 youngish women who have been left with the bill for 4 to pay, after their escorts were thrown out for having no money. The boys assure them that this won't happen with them, not realizing that Stan's wife had found his secret hiding place where he stashed a little bit each payday. Ollie's wife had also discovered his hiding place, so he also had no money. When it came time to pay for dinner with the girls, Stan discovered his wife had left him only worthless coupons in his wallet. They can't even pay the taxi driver who brought them to the restaurant, so invite him also to share in their dinner....... Stan does a lot of crying in the second half, after he realizes that he has no money. He is also the cause of 3 or 4 waiters falling on their faces, into the meals they were bringing. When the boys take their dates into the restaurant, Stan's date mysteriously slips at the door and falls backwards, Stan falling on top of her crosswise. Then, once they get into the restaurant, the same thing happens. "What are you, a wrestler" she exclaims ........The town busybody sees the boys pick up their dates, and hurries off to tell their wives, who accompany her back to the restaurant. Strangely, instead of making a beeline for the boys, and making a scene with their dates, they sit at a boothed table next to the kitchen., and don't even let on that they have seen the boys. The boys finally notice them when they run from the waiter, who just discovered they had no money. They run to the kitchen, then through the opening to the wives' booth, crawling under the table and out, when they see who they are. They run back into the kitchen, followed by the manager and their wives. Hardy claims that Stan brought him here, instead of to the bowling alley, where they were supposed to go. After some hesitation, without speaking to defend himself, Stan picks up a squishy pie and throws it at Ollie, who ducks, so that Ollie's wife gets it in the face. Ollie retaliates by throwing a pie at Stan's wife, which hits its mark. Stan then throws some eggs at Ollie, but they hit the cook, instead, who retaliates. Soon the manager and a waiter who just arrived are also involved. The film ends on that note........Some reviewers believe that the food fight was an inappropriate way to end the film, but I'll bet the kids enjoy it, if they haven't seen too many pie fights recently........The 2 dates and the taxi driver disappear after the boys run for the kitchen. The food fight would have been even more interesting if they had participated! The ending does leave a bunch of loose ends, but apparently a better ending couldn't be designed........See it at You Tube.!
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BA_Harrison5 January 2021Once again I seem to be in the minority: I think that Their Purple Moment sees Laurel and Hardy in fine form. It starts with Stan (playing Mr. Pincher) being waylaid by his battle-axe wife at the front door, the woman demanding the poor guy's wages. However, Mr. Pincher has been holding back a few dollars from each pay packet in preparation for a special night out with his pal Ollie.
Pretending to be going ten-pin bowling, the two men sneak off for a wild time at a boozy joint where they hook up with a couple of young women. The foursome tuck into big steaks and pints of beer while enjoying a dancing midget cabaret act, but when it comes to settling the bill, Mr. Pincher realises that his wife has found his hidden cash and replaced it with grocery coupons.
Laurel's facial expressions after he discovers that he has no money are hilarious, alternating between confusion to utter dismay; Hardy's face is also a treat when he sees that they are skint. Together, the pair try to leave the establishment without paying, but must avoid their wive (who have tracked them down) while also dodging angry staff.
In addition to the funny expressions, the dancing midgets, and the angry sped-up wives striding down the street, viewers are also treated to Laurel doing one of his fancy tricks (catapulting a spoon into a glass), and a messy finalé in the kitchen that sees lots of grub being hurled (others seem to find the ending something of a let down, but I love a good food fight!).
Admittedly, the originally planned ending involving Stan and Ollie pretending to be midgets to escape the club might have been even better, but this is still worth at least 7/10 in my book. -
Horst_In_Translation9 March 2019"Their Purple Moment" is an American short film from 1928, so this one is already over 90 years old. The names of director Parrott and writer Walker especially may indicate to film buffs already that this ia another Laurel and Hardy short film. Guiol is uncredited on board as well as a director about 3 decades before his Oscar nomination. This is still from Stan & Ollie's silent days, don't be fooled by loud soundtracks or over-the-top sound effects, especially near the end. I liked this one. It is not among their really most known, but it deserves to be seen and I think it is superior to some of their more famous works, even if the story is generic L&H material. The two end up at a restaurant with two other girls despite Stan being married, but his wife made sure the evening will turn into a disaster. Oh well, not that it wouldn't have without her involvement. Also certainly isn't helping that our two "heroes" run into a pair of gold diggers here mostly. What I liked most about it, is that the focus is really on Stan and Ollie most of the time and there are no stupid subplots. They don't need sound or color to make this one be fairly entertaining. The restaurant parts sure got some comedy gold to them. It does get slightly worse near the end, or in the second half in general, but everybody who likes pointless pie fights may not see it as much as a waste as I did. Oh well, it wasn't that bad. Waste is a bit too much though. Overall, an okay watch, but the film could have done with a better title honestly. I still say go check it out. Also interesting how Stan and Ollie's character names are so differently. They were seemingly not going by their inseparable selves that they are seen as now and already were during their lifetimes. But honestly, if you ever thought the name Mr. Pincher implies to be taken only a bit seriously, you are dead wrong. He is a stenz as I learnt not too long ago, probably not a big stenz as Ollie though looking at his face expressions when they meet the ladies. See it. 20 minutes worth checking out. 21 actually.
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HAVING MADE SOME real progress after their almost accidental teaming as members of what was called THE HAL ROACH ALL-STARS, most of the now familiar L & H situational comedic routines had been established. THEIR PURPLE MOMENT does a lot in defining their eternal struggle with "the Wives."
IN A DRAMATIC SORT of departure from what they had been doing, Stan is called "Mr. Pincher" (for 'penny pincher' we presume); but Ollie retains his own name. This is a kind of throwback to pictures such as PUTTING PANTS ON PHILLIP and DO DETECTIVES THINK?, in which their own names appeared only in the credits.
THERE ARE DEGFINITE symptoms of a maturation of not the LAUREL & HARDY characters; but rather of the HAL ROACH style. The comedies became more and more slow-paced, methodically developed and much more "believable." The Title Cards, most ably written by Roach regular, H.M. Walker, were as witty and clever as ever. But there was none of the going for the laugh outside of the existing story on he scene; as was the practice over at Mack Sennett's KEYSTONE Studios.
THE TYPICAL INTERPLAY that the boys are brought into are typically L & H type of double-edged gag and tit for tat back and forth "Bow & Fiddle", back and forth developing and milking of each gag to its greatest potential. Reliance on Stan's dim-wittedness and Ollie's slow burn were not only appreciated by this point, but rather they were now anticipated.
THE ACTION IN the first three quarters of the picture builds and serves as exposition of both the storyline; as well as the boys themselves. Although they are always the same twosome, there is very little continuity of situations from one short to another.*
IF THERE WOULD be any area of criticism that we could be the ending; which atypically leaves things just a little flat.
BUT SCHULTZ THINKS that this is a minor shortcoming. And Schultz's compadre, this writer, whole heartedly agrees.
NOTE: * In all of their shorts, only the sound comedy two-reelers TIT FOR TAT and THEM THAR HILLS makes mention of the earlier of the two movies and references having met both Charlie Hall and Mae Bush as previous protagonists. -
Stan and Ollie have tough wives. No only are these women meaner looking than those you usually see in a Laurel and Hardy domestic comedy, but they are incredibly over-bearing and keep practically every dime the boys make. It didn't seem all that surprising then when they boys wanted to stash away a few bucks and go for a night on the town. The problem is that Stan's wife finds the stash and substitutes it for coupons. The other problem is that the boys run up a huge tab and chase after girls. Hmm....perhaps the wives DID have the right idea after all! I was very surprised when I looked at all the reviews on IMDb for this early Laurel and Hardy film because the ratings were so darn low. I can't understand this as this is a pretty typical Laurel and Hardy short--certainly NOT among their worst. Another thing that surprised me is that IMDb mentions a lost segment with midgets, but there were quite a few scenes in this film with midgets performing at a nightclub (the ubiquitous "Pink Pup").
The film has more than its share of laughs and is highly reminiscent of many of the team's better efforts such as SONS OF THE DESERT and BLOTTO. Sure, it's familiar--but it's also quite funny.
By the way, I mentioned The Pink Pup because I recently noticed that it also appears in at least two other Laurel and Hardy films made about this same time--THE BATTLE OF THE CENTURY and THAT'S MY WIFE. -
CinemaSerf12 September 2022Stan and Ollie decide to hold back a few bucks from their weekly paychecks so they can save up and have a night on the town (without their wives!)... When they finally embark on their secret evening of fun, they alight on two girls outside a restaurant who have been stood up. Convinced that they are flush; they offer to bankroll them and after a rather nice dinner discover that their secret evening has been anything but.... and that they have nothing to pay the bills with but coupons! It gets off to quite a good start, but the ending let's it down quite badly. Anita Garvin & Kay Deslys are good as the gals and the music has a few recognisable bars from "Baby Face' and "Ain't She Sweet"
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Libretio18 March 2005THEIR PURPLE MOMENT
Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
Sound format: Silent
(Black and white - Short film)
Two luckless nightclub revellers (Laurel and Hardy) are unable to pay their bill, provoking violent retribution from a hot-tempered waiter (Tiny Sandford).
Typical L&H scenario, less substantial than some of their best work from this period, but worth a look nonetheless. Stan takes center-stage this time round, caught up in a financial dilemma after holding back part of his wages to fund a night on the town, only to find out - too late! - that his aggrieved wife (Fay Holderness) has replaced his stash with worthless coupons. Some of the prolonged closeups of Laurel as he slowly becomes aware of the unfolding disaster reveal his genius for characterization and mime. 1920's morality is represented by Patsy O'Byrne, playing a hatchet-faced busy-body who takes great joy in alerting L&H's respective spouses (Holderness and Lyle Taho) to their husbands' bad behavior. The ending fizzles, but the movie still has much to recommend it. Directed by James Parrott. -
This is another of Laurel & Hardy's early shorts that I watched on Hulu as linked from IMDb. This seems to be the first time they have wives that boss them around so they have to sneak around in order to have some fun like later on in films like Be Big or Sons of the Desert. In this one, Stan & Ollie go to a restaurant after a couple of men run out on their dates so the boys volunteer to help pay for the women (Kay Deslys, Anita Garvin) left behind. But both men find out their wives took their money without them knowing. And the gossiping woman, seeing them all there, goes back to tell the spouses what's what. I'll stop there and just say that not much funny happens until the food fight that ends the picture. It replaced an earlier sequence that involved Stan & Ollie dressing as women that was filmed but I'm guessing that's now lost. There's a still from that scene in Randy Skrevedt's book "Laurel and Hardy: The Magic Behind the Movies". On that point, Their Purple Moment is at least worth a look.
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JoeytheBrit4 September 2009This silent Laurel & Hardy short falls short of the boy's usually high standards, due largely to a dearth of fresh ideas. They play the usual henpecked husbands, this time married to a couple of shrewish, tight-fisted battleaxes who commandeer the boy's wages the moment they walk through the door. Canny Stan has been hiding the occasional rolled up note under the collar of his shirt and squirreling it away. When Ollie gets wind of Stan's stash he decides they'll go out on the town and blow it all. Unknown to the boys, however, Mrs Stan has discovered her husband's hiding place and replaced the real money with fake cigar store notes.
It would be nice to write that much hilarity ensues, but unfortunately that just isn't the case with this one. There's barely a smile raised in the first five minutes – although this fallow period is brought to an end by a great sight gag involving the boys abandoning a rapid pursuit of a couple of pretty young girls when they realise their wives are watching. Having escaped the wives the boys end up wining and dining a couple of slight psychotic gold-diggers in a swanky restaurant, which is when Stan discovers to his horror that his money has been switched.
It's almost as if everyone was working to a looming deadline with this one and just threw anything at the screen that they thought might raise even a small laugh. There are very few fresh ideas and not a lot of laughs, and the camera spends far too much time studying Laurel's expressions as they alternate between fear, confusion and not-quite-with-it attempts to make sense of what has happened. The boys try to make their escape but keep inadvertently drawing attention to themselves as they do so, and the film ends weakly in the restaurant's kitchen with each character receiving a pie in the face or over the head in turn. Definitely not one of the boy's best. -
jboothmillard18 June 2009Stan 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!