Topic: Best Stooge Remakes?

[Hammond Eggar]

This topic has been in my head for a couple of weeks.  I'm sure most of us prefer the original Stooge shorts to the various remakes, of which there were many, especially during the Shemp and Besser eras.  Here's what I'd like to know.  Are there any Stooge remakes which you actually prefer over the original?  Do you think any remakes improve upon their original short?

I would say, "no."  I don't think any remakes are actual improvements, but there are the odd titles that come close to equaling their predecessors.  For me, the Shemp short Up in Daisy's Penthouse is one I enjoy almost as much as the original Curly short, 3 Dumb Clucks.  The remakes are usually hard to watch, especially if the original short ranks as one of your favorites.  For example, one of my favorite Shemp shorts is Sing a Song of Six Pants, which is why I find it difficult to watch Rip, Sew and Stitch.  It brings nothing new of any value to the storyline.  The bit in which Moe uses a razor blade to cut off some of Shemp's hair is unnecessary and not really very funny.

So, after all this, which remakes, if any, do you think are better, or improve upon, the originals?

[Moe Hailstone]

I can't think of any remakes from the Curly years to Shemp/Joe, but I can think of a few Shemp shorts that were redone with Shemp to make a different plot that I liked:

Heavenly Daze / Bedlam in Paradise-

Even though the main focus is Shemp dying and trying to get Moe and Larry to do good, each short has a different angle.  One deals with the Devil, the other doesn't.  I can watch both and enjoy them.

The Hot Scots / Scotched in Scotland-

Either one is very funny since they both have all the jokes that always make me laugh.

The only remake that really bothers me would be Commotion on the Ocean (remade from Dunked in the Deep).  It just didn't flow right, and now with the help of the Internet I know that it was the last Shemp short made even though he had passed away three shorts earlier.  Kind of weird to see a short with Shemp when it wasn't really him, but older footage.   

[falsealarms]

Fans usually point to -

ANTS IN THE PANTRY - PEST MAN WINS
HEALTHY, WEALTHY AND DUMB - A MISSED FORTUNE
THREE DUMB CLUCKS - DAISY'S PENTHOUSE
A PLUMBLING WE WILL GO - VAGABOND LOAFERS

Those pop into mind first, among the most cited superior remakes.

[ericcraddock]

{The only remake that really bothers me would be Commotion on the Ocean (remade from Dunked in the Deep).}


I disagree. I love Commotion. Gimme the high seas! Gimme the salty water!  In my opinion, it is at par with Dunked.
E

[locoboymakesgood]

Dunked In the Deep isn't a great short to begin with, one of my least favorites.. Eugene Roth is a great foe to the Stooges, but not as Borscht. Commotion On the Ocean to me is just painful to watch, because not only do we have a remake of a weak short as it is.. but a remake of a Shemp short.. without Shemp!

I'm in the minority when it comes to actually enjoying some of the Palma-remakes. HOT STUFF, in my opninion, is almost as good as FUELIN' AROUND. I like the fact that Moe and Larry had some extra screen time, and their bit with the two women are hilarious!

Commotion on the Ocean is a huge stinker to me.. even moreso than Dunked In the Deep.

[busybuddy]

I like Bubble Trouble better than All Gummed Up. I like the part where Shemp howls at Mrs. Flint, and the whole stooge/gorilla fight at the end. Especially when the ape flips Moe over his shoulder and when Moe's head gets flattened.