In 1927 Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy officially paired up in the comedy short Putting Pants on Philip. However, it wasn’t the first time the duo had shared the silver screen.

In 1921, the two comedians were cast alongside each other in The Lucky Dog. This was no breakthrough for either, both had already had well established film careers. Laurel had appeared in over 50 films as an actor (while also working as a writer and director), while Hardy had been in more than 250 productions. The popular comedy duo went on to appear as a team in 107 films, starring in 32 short silent films, 40 short sound films, and 23 full-length feature films including productions by MGM and 20th Century Fox.

Biographical feature film, Stan & Ollie follows on from their Hollywood success at the end of 1944 as the pair try to resurrect their faltering careers and, at the same time, keep their relationship intact.

Acted wonderfully by Steve Coogan and John C Reilly respectively, this is a fitting tribute to two Hollywood greats.

At the age of 82, after a career as an actor/director spanning nearly 60 years, Robert Redford has finally decided to retire. But not before his last farewell in the crime drama, The Old Man & His Gun.

The film is based on the real-life bank robber and prison escape artist, Forrest Tucker, played in the film by Robert Redford. It sees Redford at his charismatic best, amalgamating some his best hits in The String and Butch Cassidy into his final performance as a 70 year old Tucker making an audacious escape from San Quinton, then conducting a string of unprecedented bank heists by himself.

It looks to be an emotional farewell to a much-loved Hollywood great, there may be tears, there may be applause.

Redford had been in several major films before he played the Sundance Kid. But it was this enigmatic role along with his absorbing chemistry with Paul Newman’s Butch Cassidy which turned him into the global star we know and love today.

This week Ilkley Cinema are giving you the opportunity to see Redford at the beginning, in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and at the end of his career with The Oldman and his Gun. Don’t miss out.

It’s been 54 years since Walt Disney’s Mary Poppins graced the big screen. The original story came along 30 years before in a series of eight children’s books written by British writer P L Travers and published over the period 1934 to 1988. If you’re interested in Pre-Mary Poppins and how it all came about, it’s advisable to watch the 2013 Saving Mr Banks, centred on the development of the 1964 film.

Mary Poppins Returns is based on the rest of the book series and picks up 20 years after the first film left off. Original music has been composed by the multiple Oscar nominated American lyricist Marc Shiaman (Hairspray the Musical) and is sung by the film cast including Emily Blunt, playing Mary Poppins, and musical theatre star Lin-Manuel Miranda (Moana & Hamilton).

In a world full of money-spinning sequels and remakes, occasionally studios get it right and it already looks like Disney may be back on their A game with what looks like a film that will, like the first, become loved by generations to come.

If you’re looking for something completely different, The Wild Pear Tree might be for you. Palme d’Or nominated director Nuri Bilge Ceylan navigates a fine cast of actors through beautiful and rustic, rural Turkey, leading the Actors to best actor & actress Cannes Nominations and a Cannes best director nomination. If you’re a fan on suitable, nuanced performances and picturesque cinematography this might be one of those foreign film gems you tell your friends to watch. This is a film about contemporary Turkey that can now be seen in contemporary Ilkley.

Kid’s Club this week is Smallfoot and the snowy film gives it a Christmassy vibe without being a Christmas film. If you enjoyed The Lego Movie then Warner Animation Group’s latest animation musical comedy adventure, Smallfoot is worth checking out.

The story is based on Yeti Tracks, A book by Sergio Pablos - a writer and animator who also happens to be creator behind the Universal Pictures mega hit franchise Despicable Me. The film brings plenty of original songs and physical comedy and will certainly keep the younger children’s attentions whilst entertaining them in the process. Smallfoot will also be the feature for this week’s Kids Club.

Philip D McQuillan