For Stooge fans, this fifth volume of the chronological filmography of one of cinema’s most beloved comedy teams is a bittersweet one. Covering the pivotal years of 1946-48, this two-disc set of 25 shorts allows us to see the increasingly alarming physical signs of Curly’s deterioration – the result of a stroke that would soon end his legendary career. 1947’s HALF WIT’S HOLIDAY (utilizing generous chunks from the earlier HOI POLLOI to lighten the grueling shooting schedule) would be his last starringappearance with the act (his final bow is a cut-a-way cameo in HOLD THAT LION filmed later that year): the kid brother of the Howard (i.e. Horwitz) family, Curly lingered on until 1952 – succumbing at age 48 – bringing a dark cloud over the Hollywood slapstick community.
Remarkably, some of the later Curly two-reelers are still pretty funny – 1946’s G.I WANNA GO HOME being a standout. The fact that passing the baton to eldest brother Shemp seemed so effortless is not all that accidental. Shemp was the original third Stooge of the act – leaving the team in 1932 to pursue a solo gig; his appearances in dozens of features and shorts for the likes of W.C. Fields and Abbott and Costello are joyous highlights (Bud Abbott called him the one of the greatest straight men in the business – no small praise from undeniably THE greatest straight man of all time!).
The Shemp shorts continued a down a broken glass-strewn path that the Curlys had begun – the road to unprecedented and escalating surreal violence. Indeed, as a group, the Shemps are probably the only movie series that might be wholeheartedly endorsed by the Marquis de Sade. Their jaw-dropping endless barrage of eye gouging, teeth pulling, flame-torch burning and razor-blade attacking (accompanied by the appropriately excruciating sound effects) are enough to give any splatter fan a coronary.
Another reason for the importance of this set is the underlining fact of this DVD collection’s superb quality. Not since these flicks’ original release have viewers been privy to such pristine 35mm materials in crisp gorgeous black and white with crystal-clear mono audio. This brings us to yet a further endorsement of this particular volume – the inclusion of two Shemp shorts that had carelessly drifted into the public domain. For decades, Stooge aficionados have been relegated to accepting the negligible awful bootlegs of 1947’s BRIDELESS GROOMS (with a bevy of mercenary Columbia starlets nearly as sanguine as the boys) and SING A SONG OF SIX PANTS (wherein they’re loose in a tailor shop – enough said!) Now with seemingly each shot digitally re-mastered from the camera negatives, one can shamelessly display these exercises in merry sadism with a pride befitting their bloodthirsty narratives. Don’t know if it’s the fact that the “boys” are now well into middle age, the post-war noirish harsh lighting, the changing, more liberal tastes in extreme sight gags…or all of the above, but there’s nothing in filmdom that compares with these gloriously politically incorrect laugh fests. Yet an additional plus is seeing the brilliant comic Emile Sitka getting more screen time as a perfect victim of their skin crawling shenanigans. Such outings as FRIGHT NIGHT, OUT WEST, SHIVERING SHERLOCKS, PARDON MY CLUTCH, SQUAREHEADS OF THE ROUND TABLE, HEAVENLY DAZE, MUMMY’S DUMMIES and CRIME ON THEIR HANDS all live up to their titles and run the parody gamut from the western to the historical – smack dab into the worlds of horror, noir and even an amazing trip to the afterlife. Another must-have from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment – with Shemp’s key Lucio Fulci moments champing at the bit in Volume 6.
- Mel Neuhaus
THE THREE STOOGES COLLECTION, VOLUME FIVE: 1946-1948: (B&W; Dolby Digital mono; full frame [1.33:1]; dual layer; Sony Pictures Home Entertainment)
