“You’re allergic to horns — in fact, you’re on the verge of hornomania!”
![](http://filmfanatic.org/wp-content/uploads/2006/12/Saps-at-Sea-Poster-157x300.jpg)
Synopsis:
After Ollie (Oliver Hardy) has a nervous breakdown, he and Stan (Stanley Laurel) quit their jobs at a horn-testing factory, rent a boat for relaxation, and find themselves out to sea with an escaped convict.
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Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:
- At Sea
- Comedy
- Fugitives
- Laurel & Hardy Films
Review:
While diehard Laurel and Hardy fans won’t be disappointed, this film is ultimately more a series of comedic skits (Stan and Ollie in a horn-testing factory; Ollie trying in vain to recuperate; Stan and Ollie dealing with a fugitive convict) than a full-length narrative. The material is mostly unoriginal, and the scene where Stan and Ollie are forced to eat an inedible meal on their ship is downright derivative of Chaplin’s shoelace-eating sequence in The Gold Rush (1925).
![](http://filmfanatic.org/wp-content/uploads/2006/12/Saps-at-Sea-Eating-1024x639.png)
Film fanatics will be better off watching one of L&H’s earlier masterpieces, such as Sons of the Desert (1933), Way Out West (1937), or Blockheads (1938).
Redeeming Qualities and Moments:
- The opening scenes at the horn-testing factory
![](http://filmfanatic.org/wp-content/uploads/2006/12/Saps-at-Sea-Horn-Factory-1024x622.png)
- A surrealistic moment as Stan peels a banana without any fruit inside
![](http://filmfanatic.org/wp-content/uploads/2006/12/Saps-at-Sea-Banana-1024x630.png)
Must See?
No. I’m not sure why this film is listed in the back of Peary’s book, other than its status as one of Laurel and Hardy’s later full-length works.
Links:
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One thought on “Saps at Sea (1940)”
First viewing. Not must-see.
I’m certain that L&H fans remain out there somewhere. I just can’t imagine who they are. Kids? As stated, this is little more than a series of gags held together by a thin premise. Mostly non-stop slapstick. I guess you either go for this stuff or you don’t. I most certainly don’t.