Classic Comedy on DVD & Blu-ray
Silent two-reelers, Hal Roach studio shorts, golden-age television sitcoms and cult midnight comedy — restored and released on DVD and Blu-ray. The comedy catalogue is one of the strongest parts of the VCI archive, built around material that has rarely been given proper restoration attention.
Laurel & Hardy and the Hal Roach Studio
Laurel & Hardy: The Definitive Restorations is the centrepiece of the comedy collection — a limited reissue Blu-ray set assembled from restored elements. Around it sits VCI's ongoing work on Charley Chase, the Hal Roach performer and director whose reputation has grown steadily among silent comedy enthusiasts. Charley Chase at Hal Roach: The Late Silents (1927) is available on DVD and Blu-ray, with The Talkies Volume 3 covering his 1934–1936 output. Hal Roach Forgotten Comedies collects further material from the studio that produced Laurel & Hardy and Our Gang.
Cult and Midnight Comedy
Attack of the Killer Tomatoes, the low-budget satire that became a genuine cult property, is available as a two-disc special edition. Frank Henenlotter's Brain Damage and John Landis's An American Werewolf in London both sit on the comedy-horror line, the latter on standard Blu-ray and 4K UHD. Also here: Dracula and Son with Christopher Lee, the Swedish horror comedy Evil Ed, Hillbillys in a Haunted House on Blu-ray, and the Hillbilly Comedy Collection.
Golden Age Television Comedy
The classic sitcom material runs deep. I Married Joan, the Joan Davis vehicle, is collected across five volumes. Four Star Playhouse, the anthology series built around a rotating cast of film stars, is available in volume one, and Television's Lost Classics gathers rare pilots and unaired material on DVD and Blu-ray.
Comedy From Around the World
The British Cinema Collection Volume 2 focuses on comedies from UK studios. The Mexican strand of the catalogue contributes Ahi Vienen Los Gorrones, El Proceso de las Señoritas Vivanco, Por Ellas Aunque Mal Paguen and Luis Buñuel's The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz, all with English subtitles. Rounding out the range: Danny Kaye in Inspector General, Gene Wilder in Quackser Fortune Has a Cousin in the Bronx, Quick Let's Get Married, 3 Nuts in Search of a Bolt and the East Side Kids double features.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Are the silent comedies scored?
- Silent titles are presented with music tracks. Details of the score and any alternate audio options are listed on each product page.
- What is included in the Laurel & Hardy set?
- The Definitive Restorations is a multi-disc Blu-ray set. Its full contents and running times are listed on the product page. It is a limited reissue rather than a permanent catalogue item.
- Are the TV comedy collections complete series?
- Some are complete series and others are volume-by-volume collections. The product title and description state which.