Customer Reviews

THE THREE STOOGES [3 episodes] ~ Loco Boy Makes Good (1942) / Matri-Phony (1942) / Saved by the Belle (1939) [VHS]

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The other two on this tape (Matri-Phoney) and (Saved by the Belle) are pretty good also, but "Loco Boy makes Good" is truly hilarious. The threesome entertains a sophisticated audience with some unusual dance steps, as Curly accidentally ends up in a magician's coat. I like the part where all three as waiters appear to walk into each other and you cringe, expecting the crash - but twice they miss each other. It really fakes you out.

LOCO BOY MAKES GOOD was an excellent short. I laughed at this short possibly more than any other. Possibly Curly's funniest short ever. One of my personal favorite shorts.

MATRI-PHONY is another funny short. Vernon Dent is funny as the emperor. Curly in drag is funny as well. A great short.

SAVED BY THE BELLE is not that funny. There are a few good scenes, but not enough of them.

Still a good tape for your collection.

LOCO BOY MAKES GOOD (1942) - An excellent short. Excellently written, directed, and performed, and the scenes in the nightclub with all the pests running amock is simply hilarious. Ironic that this short deals with suing somebody, since Columbia was actually sued for this short in court because writer Clyde Bruckman stole some of the material from a Harry Lloyd movie without permission, and Lloyd wasn't too happy with that.

MATRI-PHONY (1942) - Taking place in Roman times. A good, fast-paced short. I notice that the "plunk" sound effect (for when somebody gets stabbed or eyepoked) is used in this short more than any other. There's a pretty bad error in this one, though: in the part where the emperor is about to kiss Curly (in drag), it suddenly and for no apparent reason replays an earlier, unrelated scene for a few seconds, then it goes back to the original scene. That was some really weird editing there. It's like this on every print I've seen.

SAVED BY THE BELLE (1939) - A good Charley Chase film, one of his best (and his last short with the boys). The ending will have you howling.

Great tape. I recommend it.

This tape includes three shorts, all of them featuring Moe, Larry, and Curly.

Loco Boy Makes Good from 1942 is the first short. The boys attempt to scam a hotel by falling on a piece of soap in the lobby and sueing. However, they see that the old woman running the hotel is down on her luck, and they instead attempt to raise money for her. They turn the hotel into a nightclub and although their act fails, their antics on the dance floor turn out to be a hit. The dance floor bit is hilarious and unlike most of their gags, these are actually considered funny by those around them on the screen.

Matri-Phony, also from 1942, is set during ancient civilization. It opens on a sign for the stooges' pottery shop that says, "Mohicus, Larrycus, and Curleycue: The Biggest Chiselers in Town." The story revolves around the boys who try to hide a redhead in their shop so she does not have to marry the emperor. When they are caught, gags ensue. There is a variation of the famous clam chowder scene with a hungry crab. In the beginning, there is a snake charmer playing "The Music Goes Round and Round," a hit in the 1930s and a song often played in Stooge films. This one is excellent aside from one small error in editing when a few frames of film repeats which is slightly confusing.

Saved by the Belle from 1939 is set around the boys being stuck in Mexico, trying to pay off their debt to their hotel so they can leave without being executed. It is a clever story that is strongly relied on. The gags are unique for a Stooge comedy, but are also refreshing and funny. There are less violent gags than normal, and those that are violent are not directed toward anyone. For example, there is a very funny scene where Curly mistakes a hand grenade for a green pineapple, which he throws out the window, causing an explosion. This short was directed and produced by silent film comedian Charley Chase, a man known for his smart comedy, which seems to have rubbed off in this short.

I didn't care much for this tape. Matri-phony was really the only one I liked. The other two didn't seem very funny. In Loco Boy Makes Good (1942, #60) The stooges help an old lady transform her hotel into a night club. Later on, Curly gets the magician's coat by mistake. In Matri-phony (1942,#63) Curly takes an innocent Girl's place at the altar. And finally in saved by the belle (1939,#40)The stooges are caught in the middle of a revolution. The only gag that I liked in this short is when Curly thought the hand grinade was a pineapple. It was alright, but I wouldn't reccomend it too much. I would rather see "An ache in every stake", or "Disorder in the court".

A good collection of fine stooges shorts. As usual when the boys do right good things happen and when they do wrong chaos enuses.

My favorite of the lot is MATRI-PHONY (1942) which in my mind ranks with the best of their stuff. (which doesn't say much for my mind.)

A very good choice for the new stooges fan and once again an old reliable one for us old timers with appearences of all the old backround crew.

Basically the stooges shorts are a snapshot of vaudville which thanks to the magic of television will live forever. That alone makes them worth the money. Even better they are a very funny snapshot.