Stan and Ollie

This version of the story of Laurel and Hardy, focusing on their last days in showbiz as their final tour of the UK sees them confronting their legacy and the relationship between each other, has a nicely elegiac quality that overcomes a couple of the more clichéd elements and a few moments of contrivance to carve out an emotionally resonant story. It’s boosted by strong performances from both leads - Steve Coogan shows a surprisingly physical skill (it’s always been obvious he’s a verbally capable comic, but in this role he’s able to show off how he can embody one of the best physical comedians of all time), and John C. Reilly has a sweet gentleness as the adaptable Hardy. Nina Arianda and Shirley Henderson steal large chunks of the scenes they’re given as the respective wives, and there’s a sweetly sentimental ending that doesn’t feel like it’s overstretching for effect. I don’t want to over-rate this film, it does have moments of cheese and cliché, and as histories go it’s more broadly reminiscent of truth rather than point-by-point accurate. But it’s effective in showing how two old men travel towards an end neither wants to see coming, and that gives it weight and charm.