''Them Thar Hills'' is a 1934 American comedy

short film A short film is a film with a low running time. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of not more than 40 minutes including all credits". Other film o ...

directed by

Charley Rogers Charles Rogers (15 January 1887 – 20 December 1956) was an English film actor, film director, director and screenwriter best known for his association with Laurel and Hardy. He was born in Birmingham, Warwickshire, England, and was the so ...

and starring Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy.Thames, Stephanie
"Them Thar Hills (1934)"
article,

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(TCM), Time Warner, Inc., New York, N.Y. Retrieved May 27, 2019. The film was so well received by audiences that producer Hal Roach and

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. (also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures, commonly shortened to MGM or MGM Studios) is an American Film production, film and television production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered ...

made a sequel, '' Tit for Tat'', which was released five months later, in January 1935.

Plot

At the behest of a medical practitioner, Stan and Ollie embark on a therapeutic retreat to the mountainous environs, with the aim of facilitating Ollie's convalescence from

gout Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of pain in a red, tender, hot, and Joint effusion, swollen joint, caused by the deposition of needle-like crystals of uric acid known as monosodium urate crysta ...

. Their sojourn leads them to a secluded site adjacent to an erstwhile abode of moonshiners, who, in a last-ditch effort to evade Prohibition authorities, disposed of their contraband by inundating a proximate well with copious quantities of illicit liquor. Unaware of the tainted nature of the water source, Stan and Ollie unwittingly incorporate it into their daily regimen, employing it for culinary purposes, most notably in the preparation of coffee. Stan's discernment of an anomalous hue in the potable fluid elicits Ollie's dismissive ascription of its peculiarity to the purportedly endemic presence of iron in mountainous aquifers, ostensibly fortifying its therapeutic efficacy for the nervous system. The narrative unfolds with the arrival of a stranded couple beset by vehicular misfortune, whose interaction with Stan and Ollie serves as a catalyst for ensuing entanglements. While the husband, characterized by a disposition of irascibility, ventures to procure fuel with Stan's assistance, his amiable spouse forms an affable rapport with the affable duo, finding solace in their genial company and libations of the potent "mountain water". Upon the husband's return, the unforeseen inebriation of the trio precipitates a crescendo of discord, culminating in a sequence of retaliatory antics, emblematic of a "tit for tat" paradigm. The ensuing chaos is epitomized by the destruction of the travelers' domicile, the ignominious treatment of the aggrieved husband, and Ollie's inadvertent immersion in the well, catalyzing an explosive denouement.

Cast"Them Thar Hills (1934)"

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(IMDb). Retrieved January 31, 2017.

Stan Laurel Stan Laurel ( ; born Arthur Stanley Jefferson; 16 June 1890 – 23 February 1965) was an English comic actor, director and writer who was in the comedy double act, duo Laurel and Hardy. He appeared with his comedy partner Oliver Hardy in 107 sh ...

as Stan * Oliver Hardy as Ollie * Mae Busch as Mrs. Hall * "Charley" Hall as Mr. Hall Uncredited * Billy Gilbert as doctor * Richard Alexander as moonshiner * Bobby Dunn as moonshiner * Sam Lufkin as moonshiner * Eddie Baker as officer * Bobby Burns as officer * Baldwin Cooke as officer

References

External links

* * {{Charley Rogers 1934 films 1934 comedy films American black-and-white films Films directed by Charley Rogers Laurel and Hardy (film series) 1934 short films American comedy short films 1930s English-language films 1930s American films Films scored by Marvin Hatley Films scored by Leroy Shield English-language short films