Laurel & Hardy II: Way Out West/Block-Heads/Chickens Come Home [Import]

This second release of films of the great Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy by Hallmark proves beyond a shadow of a doubt how LITTLE(if at all!) this company cares about the material it owns.
They have truly made incompetence and indifference into an art form.
As with their first release Hallmark has chosen again to use whatever inferior original film elements they have on hand,use the absolute basic of digital enhancement and release these as if they were indicative of the best that were available.
I have seen both of these features in their European versions and can tell you without a second thought that these Hallmark releases are close to the worst that could have been released here in North America.
Some specific comments:
Again none of the original MGM lion openings are in these versions and the short "Chickens Come Home" is another "Film Classics" 50s release c/w opening "plaque".
During the dance sequence in 'Way Out West' The Boys are shot firstly with their backs to the town.About half way through the camera turns and the saloon is now behind them.At this juncture you suddenly see the picture "jump" and The Boys are now dancing out of sequence to the music accompanying them(!!),then just as they start up the stairs another "jump" occurs and they go back in sync.Absolutely astounding.
Both of these Hallmark releases beg the question:Do they have quality control personnel?? That is,does anyone ever just simply sit down and watch the finished product?? The only person that might have "passed" them would have been Ben Turpin.....maybe.
As I have stated in my review of Hallmarks' previous L&H release all of these films are available in their original versions(and in FAR better shape than these mediocre prints/sources would indicate).So there is NO excuse for such inferior release product such as this.
When one sees Laurel and Hardys' silent films preserved and released in far superior condition than these it has to make you wonder.
When a foreign company such as Lobster Films of France can release an astoundingly clear,fresh and wonderfully transferred print of the 'Flying Deuces'(that puts the Hallmarks to shame!),which is in the public domain and been through more hands than in the US Marine Corps,this also has to make you wonder.
And lastly when one sees what REAL and proper film restoration is all about with the release last year of Metropolis(see my review on that) this has to convince even the most undecided that there is definitely something wrong here.
And there is.....VERY wrong.
Hallmark it would seem is the WRONG company to have control of the Laurel and Hardy product.They are no more interested in their subject matter than they are in obtaining the best possible prints and doing the proper restoration and digital work needed to produce a fine product that everyone can be proud of.
For shame Hallmark.

Those three movies are really good Laurel and Hardy and the quality of images are ok. Of course it is not a high tech quality for collectors but it is absolutely correct. I think that Way Out West and Block-Heads are two very good introductions to Laurel and Hardy's productions. It's a good way to discover these two legends.