Rupert of Hee Haw

You would think that a parody of the film "Rupert of Hentzau" (a version of "The Prisoner of Zenda") would be a lot better--especially since Stan Laurel was in the lead. After all, in his pre-Laurel and Hardy days, he had done some very funny films that parodied the latest film hits. His "Dr. Pyckle and Mr. Pryde" is a great send-off of "Dr. Jeckyl" and probably his best starring film of the era. "Mud and Sand" is also a funny parody of Valentino's "Blood and Sand". So why did this film turn out to be so very bad? Well, the problem wasn't the cast--Laurel and supporting actor James Finlayson could be very funny. However, the script had no jokes--absolutely none. A parody without jokes is stupid and that is about all I need to say about this dull film.