The Three Stooges (2012)

Directors:  Peter & Bobby Farrelly
Cast:  Chris Diamantopoulos, Sean Hayes, Will Sasso

Taking a break from LES VAMPIRES to go slightly against my credo.  This and the next post will be on two modern films, The Three Stooges and The Artist, respectively.

THE PLOT:  Even if you're a valley girl who doesn't give a rats' ass about classic film, you know who The Three Stooges are.  The trio, comprised of Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Moe's brother Jerome "Curly" Howard (and later on, Moe and Curly's brother Shemp Howard, Joe Besser and "Curly" Joe DeRita), tore up the screen in the 30s-60s with their hilarious slapping, eye-poking, tool-abusing humor.

In this updated version of the classic Stooges, Moe (Chris Diamantopoulos), Larry (Sean Hayes, whom valley girls might recognize as Jack [?] from Will & Grace) and Curly (Will Sasso) are on a mission to save the orphanage they were raised in from closing.  Hilarious hijinks ensue as the Boys try different outlets to get $830,000, including a chance to suffocate an adulterous woman's husband, who turns out to be the kid who stood Moe up for adoption when the Stooges were ten.  In the end, the orphanage is paid for by the Stooges, unbeknownst to them.  

THE REVIEW:   I went into the theater not knowing what to expect besides the slapstick I know and love.  In fact, I secretly expected the Farrellys to make a total disaster out of the comedy icons.

The film is a decent 92 minutes, and all of it is surprisingly quite pleasing.  While listening to Moe and Larry talk, I could've sworn that I was listening to a recording of the original Moe and Larry; the voices were THAT spot-on.  The slapstick was nailed down pat and the plot, while I didn't really appreciate the fact that it was taken out of The Blues Brothers, was very Stooge-y and good.

There are a couple of things I didn't appreciate.  The pissing match for one.  I couldn't look because it was too disgusting and totally un-appreciative of the Stooges' brand of humor.  Same thing with the lobster biting Larry's...well...you know.  I don't understand how the Farrellys can call themselves Stooges fans and then proceed to just slap them and their fans in the face with that kind of humor.

Things I liked were the inclusion of the opening credit music from the original shorts, the use of creative titles, the recycled gags and the use of material from the shorts (Men in Black, etc.).

All in all, speaking as a Stooges fan, I didn't really feel like I was watching a movie with a plot.  I felt as if I were watching a very good impersonation.  Don't get me wrong, I was paying attention to the plot and I liked it, but at the end of the day, that's all it was:  a superb impersonation by Stooges fans, for Stooges fans.

I give it 3.5 out of 5 stars.  The gross humor was too shocking and appalling for my Stooge fan blood, but this film had me, as well as everyone else in a surprisingly empty theater, laughing our butts off.  It did its job as a friendly homage to the Stooges.