Topic: Where the Pest Begins (1945) - Shemp Howard

[metaldams]

http://www.threestooges.net/filmography/episode/278
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0171919/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CQ6u3UJEVuA

Watch WHERE THE PEST BEGINS in the link above



      Kind of the first Shemp solo Columbia film where Shemp is Shemp...kind of.  I'll get to that in a moment, but first things first.  WHERE THE PEST BEGINS brings us a world never touched upon in a Stooge short, a world where both Christine McIntyre and Rebel Randall co-exist.  Not only do they co-exist, but they are married to Tom Kennedy and Shemp, respectively.  Only in Hollywood.  Both ladies are lovely, and are absolutely sweet as well, especially Christine.  You can tell so much they want everybody to just get along.  Both very endearing characters, any guy would be lucky to have them as wives.  A pleasure seeing these two ladies on the screen.

      Now for Shemp.  The very first scene in the film, he's being a swell guy, making breakfast for his wife.  Of course, he screws everything up and gets in his little one liners as he's doing so.  Lots of messy slapstick, and it's Shemp as we know and love him.  After this, he's with his dog, who starts to cause havoc on the moving neighbors, and Shemp's reaction is.....joy.  Yeah, he's basically a sadistic bastard in this film, or "pest" as the title implies.  Let's also not forget the way he ogles his neighbor's wife.  The main reason why I can't rate this a classic like I did years ago is because now I realize what an unlikable character Shemp is.  Perhaps I'm forgetting something, but for all the destruction The Three Stooges caused over the years, it was rarely done out of malice to innocents.  If they'd wreck someone's home, it was out of incompetence.  Here, Shemp finds glee in Tom Kennedy falling into a barrel of dishes or his dog attacking a mover.  I guess they haven't figured out how to write for Shemp yet, and really, he really feels at home when he's a Stooge.  Funny, I don't feel this way about Shemp at Vitaphone.  Perhaps there is some truth that outside of The Three Stooges, character was less of a strong point than gag at Columbia.

      Truthfully, it's the likability of the Shemp character that's the issue for me.  The pacing, the slapstick, the outdoor settings, the acting, everything else is fine.  I'll still rate this as the best Shemp solo up to this point because at least they're getting closer in a slapstick sense for Shemp, but character wise, a little off. 

      Interestingly enough, directed by Harry Langdon and shunned Three Stooges and Vera Vague director, Harry Edwards.

7/10

[Paul Pain]

We continue to slowly but surely get better here.  metaldams pretty sums everything up.  I will point out the highlight of the film: Shemp getting Tom out of the barrell.  Shemp isn't quite there yet, but it's going to continue to get more or less better for the next few shorts.  It's a bit painful seeing Shemp be so sadistic because otherwise this would be plain hilarious.  The chemistry is there, but Shemp's character isn't.  Peak solo Shemp and peak Stooge Shemp are two entirely different entities who are, in their own ways, absolutely delightful.  We'll get there, friends; don't worry.

However, it's a bit too Tom and Jerry-ish with the de facto villain never getting his just desserts.

7/10

[Shemp_Diesel]

So far, the best Shemp solo to date--I would even say, the best period. Nothing too much wrong with this one in my eyes--Shemp is hysterical, and unlike previous commenters, I don't find Shemp unlikable in any way. He's a pest, but a hysterical one & I don't see any malice on his part in regards to his behavior towards Tom Kennedy.

I too, like that scene where Shemp appears to be ogling Christine--as if Rebel Randall wouldn't be enough woman for him. 

And, I would be remiss if I didn't mention the Shemp special, Shemp's little handy concoction...

8.5 out of 10...

[Dr. Hugo Gansamacher]

Yeah, Shemp is a big jerk in this one--and not for the last time in these shorts. But at least his character and the comic setup are completely consistent. Speaking of consistency, some applause for Tom Kennedy's contribution to this short. He seems to me to strike just the right balance between the sympathetic and the derisible. He establishes the character perfectly with almost no dialogue through most of the short.

[Big Chief Apumtagribonitz]

Well, there's seventeen minutes I won't get back.