The laughs are as solid as classical music in this comedy short that is not just directed. It's choreographed. Stan and Ollie are vaudevillians heading to Pottsville with one fiddle and no music. "Why do you want to go to Pottsville?", they are asked aboard the train, and explain their profession. "I bet you're good", the conductor tells them in a deadpan manner, obviously dubious about their act. For 20 minutes, the train ride they take is the track to comic disaster, and no passenger will have any peace as long as they are aboard. There won't be any room left for marks in their berth, but hopefully there'll be oxygen near by for viewers laughing non- stop. I rank this among their top two reelers, and one of the great early talkie comedies period. Imagine the sight of chubby Stanley and skinny Laurel trying to undress, literally cheek to cheek.This deserves solid attention, because the funniest bits are so subtle that distracted viewers could easily miss them. I didn't spot the young Paulette Goddard, but it'll be fun to go through the train sequences and pause the DVD (excellently transferred on a beautiful collection of Laurel & Hardy shorts and features from their Hal Roach days) to find her.

As several reviewers have pointed out, the main problem with this early L&H talky comedy short is that their struggles to get into their upper berth, and struggles to undress with both in the same birth simply takes up too much time(2/3 of the run time). Especially, their struggles, once in the berth, get too repetitious after a while, although it is somewhat humorous. There are a couple of intermissions, when we briefly see a massive brawl in the next car, which Stan inadvertently started when he walked in on a woman in night clothes. The men are tearing each other's clothes off. We could have used more time focusing on this mayhem, and less time devoted to the boys' struggles in their berth........The beginning portion, which takes place in or near the train station, includes some amusing incidents. The stationmaster rattles off the stations that the train will stop at unintelligibly: rather like an auctioneer. Thus, they boys aren't sure they are getting on the right train for Pottsville. Unfortunately, while waiting to board the train, their folder of sheet music gets loose, and the sheets fly all over. Thus, they are frantically trying to collect them as the train is ready to pull out. Near the end of the train, in their haste, they again spill the music. Finally, they give up, as they have to run to catch the last car of the departed train. At least, they have tickets this time! I can't imagine what they could play worth listening to with just their base fiddle, which they forget in their rush to get off at Pottsville, still undressed.

A LAUREL & HARDY Comedy Short.

Vaudeville musicians Stan & Ollie board a train heading for Pottsville. Finding their reserved `upper', their attempts to get into it & maneuver around it are a study in total frustration. They'll have more bruises than just BERTH MARKS when they finally reach their destination.

This little film is pure slapstick and very funny. The Boys make travelling in an upper berth look absolutely hideous.