About
Film Forum stacks two weeks of Laurel & Hardy — Sons of the Desert, Way Out West and piles of shorts — slapstick's greatest duo back on the big screen.
Laurel & Hardy's comedy was engineered for a packed house — the slow burns, the escalating destruction, the dance breaks — and it plays completely differently with a theater laughing around you than on a laptop. Film Forum's festival gathers the essential features and the best of the shorts in one two-week binge, some with live piano accompaniment the way the silents were meant to be seen. It's the rare repertory series you can bring anyone to: kids, grandparents and comedy-nerd friends will lau
What to expect
Rotating double-bill-style programs of features and short-film blocks in Film Forum's intimate screening rooms, with an enthusiastic repertory crowd and occasional live piano on the silent titles. Check the daily schedule, as programs change throughout the run.
Good to know
- Film Forum is on West Houston Street — take the 1 to Houston St or the C/E to Spring St
- Programs rotate daily, so check the calendar for which features and shorts play when
- Select silent programs come with live piano accompaniment
- One of the most kid-friendly repertory series of the summer
- Membership cuts every ticket price if you plan multiple visits
More film this weekend
Common questions
Where should a newcomer start?
Sons of the Desert and Way Out West are the canonical features, and any shorts program delivers the duo's best-loved routines in one sitting.
Are these restorations?
Film Forum typically screens the best available prints and restorations for its retrospectives — the big-screen presentation is the point.