FINEBARI3 writes: I think this theory can be applied to the Stooges, and even though I am a Shemp gal, Curly is the best and they were there best with him, and the writing and production levels were at the top as well.
OK...discuss.
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I have to disagree here. There were classic Curly shorts and classic Shemp as well. There were weak Curly shorts and weak Shemp effots.
In my opinion, when Shemp wasn't forced to remake old films and the shooting schedules weren't cut back, some of his films are BETTER in writing and production quality than those in the Curly cannon. "Squareheads Of The Round Table", "Dopey Dicks", "Three Arabian Nuts", "Fuelin' Around", "Brideless Groom", "Hot Scots" and "Crime On Their Hands" are a few of the stellar Shemp titles that were made far beyond the three year mark for the Stooges as a team. View these again if you need to be refreshed of just how funny the Stooges could be without having to rely mainly on the slapstick/cartoon style violence. There are great one liners, solid story lines and stellar production values!
The defining film of the Curly era is a toss up between "Hoi Polloi"(solid story, lots of slapstick and clever gags) and "Boobs In Arms" (classic plotline, great gags, clever dialogue and it didn't rely on the slapstick for the bulk of the laughs). For Shemp, it's "Squareheads" (an airtight script, clever gags, stellar pacing and all with nominal slapstick violence)or "A Snitch In Time" (one of the more slapsticky violent shorts in all of Stoogedom but damn if it doesn't work. It's like watching a Road Runner cartoon on steriods!)