Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		1.5
Overall		4.0

The Three Stooges Collection Blu-ray Movie Review

Oh! A wiseguy, eh!?

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown January 29, 2025

If the names Moses Horwitz, Louis Feinberg, Jerome Horwitz and Samuel Horwitz don't ring much of a bell then perhaps their stage names will: Moe, Larry, Curly and Shemp, four members of The Three Stooges, iconic Vaudevillians turned legendary Hollywood stars circa the early half of the 20th century. Famed Golden Age comedians, you might not realize that their personal lives were full of strife and struggle; stories of financial hardship, employment abuse, personal betrayals, broken contracts, medical calamities, loss and grief, and heartache. And not only by way of their celebrity. Celebrity came to The Stooges after most of the aforementioned circumstances would've rendered other men failures and frauds. Moe and the gang were resilient above all else, even in times that it meant preserving the Act above the individual. And the appeal? You needn't look any further than one of the Stooge's own words. "The working-class people like to think of us as being a real part of them," Moe mused decades ago. "The middle class enjoys our work because they don't dig opera and art, and they think they're better than we are. The few upper-class people who watch us like to see what happens on the other side of the tracks. That's why we're so popular. We specialize in upsetting dignity. We only throw pies at guys wearing top hats. Obviously high-class people. We never throw pies at old ladies."

While the appeal -- or perhaps merely the exposure -- of The Stooges isn't nearly as strong as it once was, there's still plenty of love for Moe, Larry, Curly and Shemp. Once upon a time, reviews read, "they made me forget all my woes. This is a show to see if you want genuine entertainment." Today, the comedy is broader, simpler and more antiquated, certainly less refined than what modern audiences are used to. But there's a joy to the groans and a delight to the cartoonish violence that makes it terribly difficult to stifle a laugh. The every-moron routine hasn't grown stale and, given our current state of civility in this country, rings as timely as ever, skewering good manners in favor of impulse, imagination and pure, unbridled id. Binge too much in one sitting and you may set yourself up for a grumpier disposition upon exit, I'll be the first to admit, but taken in bite-sized chunks, as it was meant to be, it still goes down nice and smooth. And God help you if you have a young child in your home. Let them watch The Stooges and they'll be begging for more for days to come. (Just be sure to add "don't try any of this at home.")

I'm only a child of the '80s but couldn't believe how many of the shorts featured in the Sony Three Stooges Collection that I remembered beat for beat (no pun intended). It was as if each disc unlocked memories long since buried and, for the most part, memories I was more than happy to rekindle. Apparently, my flame for The Stooges hasn't burned out. It would be insane to try to capture the full breadth of the act or the the content available in this superb 20-disc collection, so I'll leave it to one of The Stooges' biggest lifelong fans, Leonard Maltin, who writes, "There was nothing else quite like their humor at Columbia. The Stooges' stuff was different. Nobody created characters that were so absurdly unreal as they. No one approached their personalities and the way they did what they did."

The Three Stooges Collection is spread across 20 discs and includes 100+ Columbia shorts and films from 1934-64:

• Disc 1 - Shorts from 1934 & 1935
  
  1. Woman Haters (1934)
  2. Punch Drunks (1934)
  3. Men in Black (1934)
  4. Three Little Pigskins (1934)
  5. Horses' Collars (1935)
  6. Restless Knights (1935)
  7. Pop Goes the Easel (1935)
  8. Pardon My Scotch (1935)
  9. Hoi Polloi (1935)
  10. Three Little Bears (1935)
  



• Disc 2 - Shorts from 1936 & 1937
  
  1. Ants in the Pantry (1936)
  2. Movie Maniacs (1936)
  3. Half Shot Shooters (1936)
  4. Disorder in the Court (1936)
  5. A Pain in the Pullman (1936)
  6. False Alarms (1936)
  7. Slippery Silks (1936)
  8. Grips, Grunts and Groans (1937)
  9. Dizzy Doctors (1937)
  10. 3 Dumb Clucks (1937)
  11. Goofs and Saddles (1937)
  12. Cash and Carry (1937)
  13. Playing the Ponies (1937)
  14. The Sitter Downers (1937)
  



• Disc 3 - Shorts from 1938 & 1939
  
  1. Termites of 1938 (1938)
  2. Tassels in the Air (1938)
  3. Healthy, Wealthy and Dumb (1938)
  4. Violent Is the Word for Curly (1938)
  5. Flat Foot Stooges (1938)
  6. Three Little Sew and Sews (1939)
  7. We Want Our Mummy (1939)
  8. A Ducking They Did Go (1939)
  9. Yes, We Have No Bonanza (1939)
  10. Calling All Curs (1939)
  11. Oily to Bed, Oily to Rise (1939)
  12. Three Sappy People (1939)
  



• Disc 4 - Shorts from 1940 & 1941
  
  1. You Nazty Spy! (1940)
  2. A Plumbing We Will Go (1940)
  3. Nutty but Nice (1940)
  4. How High Is Up? (1940)
  5. From Nurse to Worse (1940)
  6. No Census, No Feeling (1940)
  7. Boobs in Arms (1940)
  8. So Long Mr. Chump (1941)
  9. Dutiful but Dumb (1941)
  10. I'll Never Heil Again (1941)
  11. An Ache in Every Stake (1941)
  12. In the Sweet Pie and Pie (1941)
  



• Disc 5 - Shorts from 1942 & 1943
  
  1. Loco Boy Makes Good (1942)
  2. Cactus Makes Perfect (1942)
  3. Matri-Phony (1942)
  4. Three Smart Saps (1942)
  5. Even as IOU (1942)
  6. Spook Louder (1943)
  7. Back From the Front (1943)
  8. Higher Than a Kite (1943)
  9. "I Can Hardly Wait" (1943)
  10. Phony Express (1943)
  11. A Gem of a Jam (1943)
  



• Disc 6 - Shorts from 1944 & 1945
  
  1. Crash Goes the Hash (1944)
  2. Busy Buddies (1944)
  3. Idle Roomers (1944)
  4. Gents Without Cents (1944)
  5. Booby Dupes (1945)
  6. Idiots Deluxe (1945)
  7. If a Body Meets a Body (1945)
  8. Micro-Phonies (1945)
  



• Disc 7 - Shorts from 1946 & 1947
  
  1. A Bird in the Head (1946)
  2. The Three Troubledoers (1946)
  3. Monkey Businessman (1946)
  4. Rhythm and Weep (1946)
  5. Three Little Pirates (1946)
  6. Fright Night (1947)
  7. Out West (1947)
  8. Hold That Lion! (1947)
  9. Brideless Groom (1947)
  10. Sing a Song of Six Pants (1947)
  11. All Gummed Up (1947)
  



• Disc 8 - Shorts from 1948 & 1949
  
  1. Squareheads of the Round Table (1948)
  2. The Hot Scots (1948)
  3. Heavenly Daze (1948)
  4. Crime on Their Hands (1948)
  5. Who Done It? (1949)
  6. Hokus Pokus (1949)
  7. Fuelin' Around (1949)
  



• Disc 9 - Shorts from 1950 & 1951
  
  1. Punchy Cowpunchers (1950)
  2. Hugs and Mugs (1950)
  3. Dopey Dicks (1950)
  4. Three Hams on Rye (1950)
  5. Studio Stoops (1950)
  6. Don't Throw that Knife (1951)
  7. Scrambled Brains (1951)
  8. The Tooth Will Out (1951)
  



• Disc 10 - Shorts from 1952, 1953 & 1957 and Color Rhapsodies
  
  1. Corny Casanovas (1952)
  2. Three Dark Horses (1952)
  3. Spooks! (1953) in 2D & 3D
  4. Pardon My Backfire (1953) in 2D & 3D
  5. Goof on the Roof (1953)
  6. A Merry Mix-up (1957)
  7. Outer Space Jitters (1957)
  8. Color Rhapsody: Bon Bon Parade (1935)
  9. Color Rhapsody: A Hollywood Detour (1942)
  



• Disc 11 - Columbia Comedy Shorts Featuring & Starring Shemp Howard
  
  1. Home on the Range (1938)
  2. Glove Slingers (1939)
  3. Money Squawks (1939)
  4. Boobs in the Woods (1940)
  5. Pleased to Mitt You (1940)
  6. Pick a Peck of Plumbers (1944)
  7. Open Season for Saps (1944)
  8. Off Again, On Again (1945)
  9. Where the Pest Begins (1945)
  10. A Hit With a Miss (1945)
  11. Mr. Noisy (1946)
  12. Jiggers, My Wife (1946)
  13. Society Mugs (1946)
  14. Bride and Gloom (1947)
  



• Disc 12 - Columbia Comedy Shorts Starring Joe Besser & Joe DeRita
  
  1. Waiting in the Lurch (1949)
  2. Dizzy Yardbird (1950)
  3. 'Fraidy Cat (1951)
  4. Aim, Fire, Scoot (1952)
  5. Caught on the Bounce (1952)
  6. Spies and Guys (1953)
  7. The Fire Chaser (1954)
  8. G.I. Dood It (1955)
  9. Hook a Crook (1955)
  10. Army Daze (1956)
  11. Slappily Married (1946)
  12. The Good Bad Egg (1947)
  13. Wedlock Deadlock (1947)
  14. Jitter Bughouse (1948)
  



• Disc 13 - Full Length Columbia Film
  
  Time Out for Rhythm (1941) - Musical comedy in which a producer and his partner navigate conflicts arising from their competing interests in two women involved in show business. The Three Stooges appear as comic relief throughout the picture. The film intertwines professional rivalry and personal relationships amidst a backdrop of lively performances and musical numbers.



• Disc 14 - Full Length Columbia Film
  
  Rockin' In the Rockies (1945) - Musical comedy featuring rancher Rusty Williams, who returns to find his cousin Shorty and a motley crew attempting to prospect for gold. The film explores the chaos that ensues with Shorty's partners, including two runaway vagrants and two stranded singers.



• Disc 15 - Full Length Columbia Film
  
  Have Rocket Will Travel (1959) - Follows the Three Stooges as janitors who accidentally launch themselves to Venus. There, they encounter extraordinary creatures and a powerful alien computer that replicates them as evil counterparts. Upon returning to Earth, they are celebrated as heroes despite the interstellar chaos they caused.



• Disc 16 - Full Length Columbia Film
  
  The Three Stooges Meet Hercules (1962) - Larry, Moe and Curly Joe, along with a young scientist and his girlfriend, travel back to ancient Ithaca using a time machine. There they encounter King Odius and the legendary Hercules as they navigate a series of slapstick adventures.



• Disc 17 - Full Length Columbia Film
  
  The Three Stooges in Orbit (1962) - Larry, Moe and Curly Joe get caught up in another intergalactic adventure, teaming with an eccentric scientist to protect his invention from hostile Martians. Slapstick comedy and classic Stooges' antics define their quest to save Earth.



• Disc 18 - Full Length Columbia Film
  
  The Three Stooges Go Around the World in a Daze (1963) - Phileas Fogg III, who reprises his ancestor’s legendary journey in response to a deceptive bet, is accompanied by his servants, the Stooges, and Amelia Carter. Fogg must evade false accusations and perilous encounters to complete his global adventure.



• Disc 19 - Full Length Columbia Film
  
  The Outlaws Is Coming (1964) - Stars The Three Stooges alongside Adam West as a Boston-based magazine editor. Tasked with traveling to the West to help curb violence, the group encounters numerous misadventures as they contend with notorious outlaws and aim to preserve peace. Directed by Norman Maurer, this film marks the final feature-length entry for the classic Three Stooges troop.



• Disc 20 - Columbia Tristar Television Movie & Extras
  
  
  • The Three Stooges (2000)
  • Miscellany: Three Stooges Scrapbook (1960)
  • Miscellany: Movie Maniacs' Leonard Maltin on The Three Stooges Columbia Shorts (2024)

The Three Stooges Collection Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Sony has (almost) gone all-out on The Three Stooges Collection. The "almost" remaining due to some of the films exhibiting print lines, specks and light wear. It's not a deal-breaker by any means, but it does keep the 1080p/AVC-encoded video presentation from a perfect score. Thankfully, the bits most fans will purchase the set to own -- every Columbia short The Stooges made -- fare far better, without any of the minor issues that haunt the films. Detail is exceptional, from the refined grain fields to the crisp, clean edges and revealing textures. Softness abounds, of course, but every instance struck me as optical; always a product of the original photography and never an encoding shortcoming. Contrast is dialed in flawlessly too. Black levels are deep and inky, brighter areas of the image are nice and bright, and midtone grays look fantastic. The production design of each short, for good or ill, is on full display, as are the costumes, none of which is ever quashed by poor delineation. Shadows are natural and forgiving, allowing for plenty of additional detail that wasn't always as visible in previous outings. The restoration quality is quite good and rarely did I notice any evidence of artificiality. Banding, blocking and other errant anomalies are MIA as well, even in the films, which again, come with a set of slight problems that don't affect the shorts. (To my eye, The Three Stooges in Orbit suffers the most.) There is a small bit of haloing visible in several shorts, but nothing too offensive or irritating. That said, with twenty discs of content, some edge halos and print wear hardly seem worth getting worked up about. The Three Stooges Collection offers excellent video, pure and simple. It won't get much better than this.

The Three Stooges Collection Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Three Stooges Collection presents all of its shorts and films with DTS-HD Master Audio mono mixes and the results are terrific. Dialogue is clean and clear, without much in the way of air hiss or any distracting noise floor. Smacks, cracks, baps and bops are reproduced with violent precision, as they should be, and sound effects have plenty of pop and whiz-bang strength. There's no low-end support of course, but it's hardly missed. The shorts (especially) and films sound better than they ever have. Sony has done a fine job retaining the tone and tenor of the original sound designs without sacrificing quality or the expectations of modern cinephiles.

The Three Stooges Collection Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The 20-disc Three Stooges Collection is a handsome box set, but also one of the more unique designs I've encountered. Seemingly normal at first, a sturdy slipbox is encased by two hinged, vertical side "doors" that swing out and down to allow the removal of the cover component. Inside the set are five standard Blu-ray cases held standing in place. The Blu-ray cases can be lifted out of the Pac-Man like enclosure from there. Also of note, the top of the inner slipbox has a button that, when pressed, plays audio and dialogue from the Stooges. It's a fun little detail but not an entirely important one. All the same, the box set is sturdy and well-constructed, so any odd design choices don't amount to any issue. The set is extremely light on extras but still includes:

• Three Stooges Scrapbook from 1960 (HD, 24 minutes) - Less an extra and more an additional color short.

• Movie Maniacs on The Three Stooges Columbia Shorts (HD, 18 minutes) - A quick trip through the Stooges' canon with Movie Maniacs' host (and Stooges superfan) Leonard Maltin.

The Three Stooges Collection Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Give it up for Moe, Larry and Curly. Throw in some love for good ol' Shemp too. The Three Stooges Collection features 100+ Columbia shorts and films The Stooges put on the screen -- in all their iterations -- and fans of the trio will be nothing short of satisfied. With excellent video and faithful audio, the only disappointment to be had is the glaring lack of extras. No feature-length documentary about the lives and times of the Stooge actors? Tsk tsk tsk. Even so, at such a generous price point, no fan of The Stooges should be without this box set sitting on their shelves. Recommended! Nyuk nyuk nyuk!