Hey, even comedy movies have to have their sad moments:
- The ending of The Flying Deuces
. Ollie is killed in the plane crash and for a moment, Stan is without his best friend for once. And then Ollie's spirit floats up to heaven. And then Stan wanders alone as a hobo...then sees Ollie in the field as a horse wearing a derby hat and mustache. - The sheer amount of abuse Laurel goes through at the hands of Ollie makes you want to hug the poor fellow. Thankfully, he snaps and attacks Ollie in One Good Turn.
- In Beau Hunks, the commander of Fort Arid closing the gates, then sobbing to his men that they are doomed, and screaming about the reinforcements that may never come.Commander: WHY DON'T THEY COME? Oh God, WHY DON'T THEY COME?
- Even worse, it appears that in the course of only 20 days, they have lost nearly all their men. From the looks of it, there's around ten of them left, including the commander. An entire fort housing a battalion of one the world's most badass armies almost got wiped out within 20 days. Then two of them are shot, and Stan and Ollie take their places as sentries.
- Stan is absolutely terrified in Liberty, shaking and sobbing like a baby because he's scared that they'll fall off the girders they're walking on. It's heartbreaking to see.
- The ending of the 1932 short Helpmates ends with Stan burning the house down. He says, in tears, that he was going to make a fire to make Ollie feel more comfortable. Ollie's reply? "Hey, Would you mind closing the door? I like to be left alone!" So, Stan closes the door and it starts to rain. The film ends with Ollie sitting in the rain, in the ruins of his house, wet and miserable. Oh, and his wife slapped him.Stan: Well, Ollie. There is nothing more I can do.Ollie: Of course not.Stan: Well, I'll be seeing you. Goodbye.Ollie: Hey, do you mind closing the door? I'd like to be left alone.
- Laurel & Hardy's final film, Robinson Crusoeland (AKA Utopia in the USA and Atoll K in France and Italy) ends with them stranded as the government takes all of their things away, and states that they aren't the owners of the island anymore.Stan: Nothing to do from now on but eat and sleep.Ollie: And nobody to tell us what to do!Government operative: What are you doing here?Ollie: What are we doing here? Why, this is our island!Operative: Must be some mistake. This island has been taken over by the government for insufficient payment of inheritance taxes. Moreover, you're also fined for the delay. It's my duty to seize your supplies and food. Take 'em away!(troops rush in taking all of Stan and Ollie's belongings away)Ollie: Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into!Stan: (crying) Well I couldn't help it! You're always blaming me for everything!(Laurel sobs loudly as the screen zooms out and "The Cuckoo Song" plays)
- Near the end, the police officer in Big Business asks who was responsible for the destruction of Jimmy Finlayson's house and the boys' car. They burst into tears...and then everyone, plus the policeman, starts crying too, as Finlayson has lost everything he owned to Stan and Ollie's anger, and the boys have had their beloved car completely gutted.
- The four Downer Endings of Going Bye Bye, The Live Ghost, The Bohemian Girl and The Bullfighters are tearjerkers and Nightmare Fuel, both being a case of The Bad Guy Wins. As a gangster in the fourth film ruins skins Stan and Ollie, you can't help but feel really sorry for them (Especially for Stan, who ends up sobbing in a high-pitched voice after Oliver says his "Another Nice Mess" catchphrase). The fact that it would be agonising if the movies were a different genre really doesn't help that much.Richard K. Muldoon: THOSE TWO NUMBSKULLS RUINED MY LIFE! I had to flee to New Mexico to start a new life! But once I get to these guys, and when I do catch them, I am going to skin them alive! First the little guy, then the big guy! I'll skin them both alive!
- In A Chump at Oxford, Ollie is genuinely saddened when he realizes that Stan, having regained his memories of being "Lord Paddington", no longer has any memory of him or their friendship.Ollie: Why, Stan... don't you know me?
Lord Paddington: Know you? Why I've never seen you before in all my life. - In real-life, when Oliver Hardy died in 1957, Stan Laurel swore never to appear onscreen again. He would write gags for other comedians, but he refused any and every offer for cameos that came his way.
