Fra Diavolo (1933 film)
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| Fra Diavolo | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster for Fra Diavolo or The Devil's Brother (1933) |
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| Directed by | Hal Roach Charley Rogers |
| Produced by | Hal Roach |
| Written by | Jeanie MacPherson (adaptation) Eugène Scribe (libretto) |
| Starring | Stan Laurel Oliver Hardy Dennis King Thelma Todd Jimmy Finlayson Lucile Browne Arthur Pierson Henry Armetta Matt McHugh Lane Chandler Nina Quartero James C. Morton |
| Music by | Daniel Auber |
| Cinematography | Hap Depew Art Lloyd |
| Editing by | Bert Jordan William H. Terhune |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Release date(s) | May 5, 1933 |
| Running time | 90 min. |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Fra Diavolo or The Devil's Brother or Bogus Bandits is a 1933 film starring Laurel and Hardy. It is based on Daniel Auber's opera Fra Diavolo on the famous Italian brigand leader Fra Diavolo.
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[edit] Plot details
In the early 18th century the bandit Fra Diavolo returns to his camp in Northern Italy to tell his gang members about his encounter with Lord Rocberg en Lady Pamela. Via a disguise (as the Marquis de San Marco) he rode with them in their carriage. He charmed Lady Pamela into telling where she hides her jewes. He orders his thieves to ride to Rocberg's castle and rob Rocberg's belongings and Pamela's jewels. At the same time, Stanlio en Ollio, have been robbed too. Stanlio suggests to Ollio that they should become robbers themselves. After an unsuccessful attempt to rob a woodchopper the duo encounters Fra Diavolo. The notorious bandit wants Stanlio to hang Ollio, because Ollio was impersonating him. Then he is informed that his men have stolen Lady Pamela's jewels, but have not brought 500,000 francs hidden by Rocberg.
Diavolo once again disguises himself as the Marquis and takes Stanlio and Ollio with him as his servants. His plan is to steal the money sum of 500.000 francs from Rocberg. In an inn where Diavolo once again romances Lady Pamela Stanlio and Ollio unwittingly capture Lord Rocberg, who had disguised himself as the marquis in an attempt to win back his wife. Diavolo's attempt to find the francs is however foiled once again when Stanlio accidentally drinks a sleeping potion meant for Rocberg. Diavolo does succeed in stealing Pamela's medallion, and the loss is blamed on young Captain Lorenzo. Lorenzo is the sweetheart of Zerlina, who is to marry the next day with a boring merchant named Francesco on orders of her father, Matteo the innkeeper. Lorenzo swears he will prove his innocence before Zerlina is forced to marry Francesco.
Meanhile, Diavolo romances Pamela once again and finds out that Rocberg's fortune is hidden in her petticoat. Just as Diavolo steals the petticoat, Lorenzo finds out his true identity from Stanlio, who is "spiffed" after a visit to Matteo's wine cellar. Lorenzo's soldiers surround the inn and he then duels with Diavolo, whom he bests with a little inadvertent help from Stanlio. The good-natured Diavolo returns the jewels, and when Rocberg will not pay the reward for them to Lorenzo, Diavolo gives Lorenzo the money that he stole from Pamela's petticoat. While the jealous husband rushes upstairs to confront his wife, Lorenzo gives the money to Matteo, thereby saving him from having to sell the inn. Diavolo, Stanlio and Ollio are then taken away to be shot by a firing squad, but when Stanlio takes out his red handkerchief to blindfold himself, a bull is enraged by the color and breaks up the ranks when he charges. Diavolo escapes on his horse, and Stanlio and Ollio escape while riding the bull.
[edit] Trivia
- The game Earsy-kneesy-nosey became a fad after the film's release.
- A big goof in the film is the urban legend that bulls attack anything with a red color. Bulls are colorblind and actually attack the waving of the cape.
- In Europe the film was released under the name "Fra Diavolo". In the US it was released under different names: "The Bogus Bandit" or "The Devil's Brother". It was a bigger success in Europe than in the US, especially in France and Italy.
- Producer Hal Roach directed the film himself because he wanted to make the transition from comedy shorts tot feature length films, which would be financially more lucrative. To avoid any risks he directed the picture himself.
- Benito Mussolini, who was a fan of Laurel & Hardy, loved this film, probably due to its Italian setting.
