Monday, February 17, 2014

DVD Review - The Three Stooges: 6-Movie Set

The Three Stooges: 6-Movie Set
Starring: Larry, Moe, Curly, Curly Joe
Studio: Mill Creek Entertainment
Release Date: February 4, 2014
Retail: $9.98
ASIN: B00HFWETIK
Running Time: 8 hours 6 minutes
Rating: Not Rated

Review:

Last year, Mill Creek Entertainment acquired the rights to release Sony Pictures Home Entertainment titles including those released under Columbia Home Entertainment, which happens to own the rights to The Three Stooges franchise. Earlier this month as two-disc set containing six of The Three Stooges films were released on DVD, featuring Have Rocket Will Travel, The Outlaws Is Coming, Rockin' in the Rockies, Three Stooges Go Around the World in a Daze, The Three Stooges Meet Hercules and Time Out for Rhythm.

Released in 1941, Time Out for Rhythm features Moe, Larry and Curly as co-stars in this musical comedy. Similar to a few of their shorts, they play out-of-work actors begging for a job, which happens to be for an agency owned by Danny Collins and Mike Armstrong. The trio don't get center-stage in this film, but they pop into the film every little bit. The film has been currently unreleased for fans until it was released as a manufactured-on-demand through the Columbia Choice Collection series in 2012.


Rockin' In The Rockies was released in 1945 with Moe, Larry and Curly in starring roles, but unlike their other films and shorts, Moe Howard doesn't play Moe, instead he plays Shorty Williams while Larry and Curly continue to play their regular roles. The film was considered a flop in 1945, but is now adored by fans. It was finally made available on DVD in The Three Stooges: The Ultimate Collection.

After the deaths of Curly and Shemp Howard, Joe Besser filled in as the third stooge to finish out the final sixteen shorts. While the last short was released in 1959, the older shorts made their way onto black & white television screens, exposing a new generation to the Stooges' antics. With the newly found appeal to their slapstick humor, Moe, Larry and Curly Joe (played by Joe DeRita) stepped into the big-screen with several feature films throughout the '60s, as well as a animated television series.

Have Rocket, Will Travel was released in 1959 and finds the Stooges working as janitors for a space center. They accidentally get blasted off into space, later landing on the planet Venus, where they encounter a talking unicorn, a giant tarantula and an alien computer. The feature film's plot is a bit silly, but it is aimed for children.

In 1962's The Three Stooges Meets Hercules, the Stooges time travel to ancient Greece along with the time machine's creator, Schuyler Davis, and his girlfriend, Diane Quigley, where they encounter the legendary Hercules! Yes, it is a bit silly, but it is also funny.

The Stooges plays butlers in the 1963 film Three Stooges Go Around The World In a Daze, which a spoof of the Jules Verne's classic Around the World in Eighty Days. The Stooges escort their boss, Phileas Fogg III, around the world. It is one of the better feature film outings for the trio. It was also directed by Moe Howard's son-in-law, Norman Maurer.

The Stooges return for the final feature film, The Outlaws is Coming, which is once again directed by Norman Maurer. A magazine editor Kenneth Cabot (played Adam West) is sent to Wyoming along with the Three Stooges to write an article on Rance and his gang.

Growing up a Three Stooges fans, I have wonderful memories of watching The Three Stooges on TBS in the late '80s and early '90s along with several of the feature films. Though the titles have been released on DVD before, it is nice to see them on one set (though there are a few missing, like The Three Stooges in Orbit and Snow White and the Three Stooges). Time Out for Rhythm is completely new to me and it was a delight to watch, though the Stooges have a small part. Rockin' in the Rockies is also a wonderful film. The latter entries with Curly Joe are the ones I recall watching on TBS when I was a kid. They are a bit silly, but they are still fun to watch. There are no extras on the two-disc set. Overall, The Three Stooges: 6-Movie Set is a must-have for any fan.


*Disclaimer - I received a complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.


3 comments:

  1. Hi Billy!

    Given the 4 Hours plus content on each DVD, how did you find the visual quality? For instance, did you notice any digital artifacting?

    CHEERS!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There is no extra content on the DVDs. Considering there is three films on each disc, the film quality was decent. I didn't notice any digital artifact, but the films aren't digital restored. Most of the films were in full screen, though I believe there was one or two in widescreen, but I don't remember which ones. I just changed the screen size on my TV to the expand the films into widescreen anyway.

      Delete
  2. In my search for some post release feedback for THE THREE STOOGES - 6 MOVIE SET, I discovered some very positive feedback at threestooges.net's "Three Stooges 6-Movie DVD Collection" thread. Based on the posts, some of which have comparison screenshots, the differences between the Original and Millcreek releases are minor, both on the plus and minus side.

    In my opinion, for those who already have the Original releases of the six "Stooges" Features, the Millcreek purchase isn't necessary. For those who haven't, the new Millcreek 2 DVD Set is a fine way to get these Titles at a nice low price.

    CHEERS!

    ReplyDelete

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