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Offline JLNeibaur

Here is my review of Volume Three:

http://www.roguecinema.com/article1494.html


I will have Volume Four in the November issue of this same site.  I'll post the link once it's up.




Offline The 4th Stooge

Well, I guess Goebbels and Goering WERE Hitler's minions.... :D  As for "You Natzy Spy" being off beat and dated, I agree and disagree.  When I watch it now, it doesn't seem dated at all, but 20 years ago, there were a lot of little jokes, such as "The Boy's From Syracuse", that I just didn't get until I delved deeper into my music studies.

"Hoi Polloi" just stands up as one of the greatest shorts I have ever seen, from ANY comedy team.  I mean, the sets are gorgeous, (okay, the set at the beginning), and the party scenes are just wonderfully filmed.  It just shows that in the 30s, how lavish things could be--and oddly enough, when you look at some of the shorts of the late Shemp and Joe eras, you notice how well they were filmed and how elegant they look (Gypped in the Penthouse and Quiz Whizz come to mind). 

Lest I sound like a horrible Stooge fan, I for one, cannot wait until the Joe era.  For years, I've been looking at my rapidly disintergrating videotapes (from KPLR-St. Louis, the Stooges' major stops), with the previews at the beginning, and I'm thinking that those won't be added, which isn't a major disappointment, but for some reason I enjoyed them.

I know what I'm getting myself for Christmas! (Or for Festivus!)


Offline metaldams

4th Stooge, out of all the years I've been posting on this board, your comments are the first I've ever seen about art direction in a Stooge film.  That's interesting, because I've never looked at Stooge films from that angle, but I have more so for old horror movies (i.e. Universal, Hammer, etc.).

- Doug Sarnecky


Offline The 4th Stooge

I don't know--you watch the shorts soooo many times that you start noticing how the sets looked, how the lighting was, etc.  Most of this came about because of an interview of Larry's I saw a long time ago, when he was rather bitter that they never had any sets built for them, but used the sets that were already used in films.  Have a train set? Train short. Castle set? Better believe someone's going to be putting on some armor.  While I understand his frustration, he seemed to forget that they cranked those shorts out like they cranked out B movies.  Luckily, the hectic pace didn't hurt the Stooges (except "Gold Raiders"--even I'm a better actor than that guy!)

Another short that was well-lit and had a surprisingly gorgeous opening was "Three Little Beers," when the fellows go to the club to get their "press badges." And even though it wasn't "lit" (I don't know the technical terms..) as well as earlier shorts, "You Nazty Spy!" works on so many levels--the sets, the lighting of Ms. Gray, the dream sequence where they were being roasted, all looked pretty darn good.  And it was a Jules White short! (That's a comment to some fans who feel that he may not have been the best director for the Stooges....and sometimes he wasn't.)

Of course, we also have examples of lighting and sets were just asstastic. "Booby Dupes," anyone?  Camera placement? "Shot in the Frontier."  How much more would it have cost to actually have the camera in the right damn place--I'm pretty sure Moe was on his mark.

Okay, I've ranted enough about technical stuff. Any more, and I'll sound like an obsessive Stooge fan. :D


Offline falsealarms

Added some nice reviews for volumes 1 and 4. Never know when something pops up on Google.





Offline MR77100

I will likely wait to order these when my budget clears up! it is great to hear that the Stooges are still breaking records in sales more than 30 years after the act was disbanded.


Offline BeAStooge

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The article title is misleading... this favorable review of Volume 5 appeared in the March 27 Newark (NJ) Star-Ledger. It's also posted at the Ledger's nj.com site, which serves a syndicate of papers in NJ and NE Pennsylvania, so it appears/will appear in other regional papers too.



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Offline falsealarms

Added a review from a site called Blog Critics... quite extensive.



Offline falsealarms


Offline falsealarms

Vol 6 isn't the only Stooge DVD release next week. Swing Parade of 1946 is being re-released and I posted a few under the "other" section.


xraffle

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I was reading DVDTown's review and this little sentence caught my eye: "Though they're presented in 1.33:1 aspect ratio, they look pretty good stretched to fill out a 16x9 screen."

1.33:1 content ALWAYS looks distorted when stretched on a widescreen TV. This is why I have my DVD player set up to automatically place black bars on sides of my widescreen TV when I'm watching 1.33:1 content. So, I thought that was a silly little sentence.


Offline falsealarms

I have a widescreen TV and I have my DVD player set to automatically stretch out full-framed content. If you didn't know any better, you wouldn't know the difference. Different DVD players might be better than others at stretching content.


xraffle

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I have a widescreen TV and I have my DVD player set to automatically stretch out full-framed content.

I wish I could do that as I heard that LCDs can get image retention when watching content with black bars for a long time. I had my widescreen TV for 6 months already and haven't had that problem. But I really would like to stretch the content to be on the safe side, but I can never stand it. It even drives me crazy when HD channels like TBS and TNT do it. I guess some of us notice it more than others.


ThumpTheShoes

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News flashes:

And in the "Wouldn't You Just Know It?!" dept., one of the most anticipated titles, Slaphappy Sleuths, happens to be the only one on this set with clipped audio at the start.

The Ghost Talks looks just fine, though. Damage to the film stock (those vertical rips) has been digitally mended for a nice, smooth presentation.

And, say goodbye to those silent Columbia logos at the start of each film. They're phased out by the end of this set.


Offline falsealarms

Am I the only one who doesn't understand this "clipped audio" phenomenon? I've noticed anything wrong with the audio.


ThumpTheShoes

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Am I the only one who doesn't understand this "clipped audio" phenomenon? I've noticed anything wrong with the audio.

Think of it this way: The Stooges' theme should start out, "Three-Blind-Mice. Three-Blind-Mice.." and go on from there. Instead, we get something like, "..lind-Mice. Three-Blind-Mice.."

That's all. It's just a little sloppy and unnecessary. To kinda skew the perspective, imagine how the suits at Sony might feel if (horrors!) their corporate branding jingle had some notes missing!


Offline Dunrobin

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And in the "Wouldn't You Just Know It?!" dept., one of the most anticipated titles, Slaphappy Sleuths, happens to be the only one on this set with clipped audio at the start.

Am I the only one who doesn't understand this "clipped audio" phenomenon? I've noticed anything wrong with the audio.

No, you're not alone; I've never really noticed anything either.  I guess I just don't pay enough attention.  I'll have to see if I can spot it when I watch Slaphappy Sleuths.


Offline BeatleShemp

I think the clipped audio means that the music kinda fades up on the first second of the theme, not a punchy start like most of the shorts on the set.


xraffle

  • Guest
The last two volumes didn't have any clipped audio at all. I'm surprised they're back again. I'll look out for "Slaphappy Sleuths" when I receive my set.


Offline Shemp27

As usual I was as giddy as a school girl when the brown clad santa delivered my set. The only thing wrong is the clipped audio which I would not have noticed without it being pointed out to me. Top notch keep it up sony!
Quiet numbskulls I'm broadcasting!