"The Three Troubledoers" is a Three Stooges short directed by Ed Bernds. He stands out as the best director the Stooges ever worked with, and almost all of his efforts with the boys are splendid. "Troubledoers," however, is one of the only Bernds-directed Stooge films that misses the mark. Basically there are two problems: Curly's declining health, and Larry's insignificance (he has perhaps the fewest lines he's ever had in a Stooge film and is given very little to do). On the PLUS side, this short highly benefits from the performances of two supporting players: Christine McIntyre as the lovely, distressed Nell, and Dick Curtis as the menacing outlaw Badlands Blackie.
Highlights: When sheriff Curly disguises himself as the Justice of the Peace, he has some amusing dialogue ("Do you take this horse collar for your lawful wedded harness?"), and he attempts to place the wedding ring upon his own finger instead of the finger of Blackie's unwilling bride Nell; later on, when a real Justice of the Peace tries to do the same thing, Blackie shouts, "Oh, no, you don't!" The Stooges' makeshift bazooka backfires, actually shooting soot into Moe's eyes, a real-life accident.
Again, "The Three Troubledoers" was unfortunately not worth the time and effort, but this slight setback is more than made up for in most of the other Stooge films directed by the incomparable Ed Bernds.
Highlights: When sheriff Curly disguises himself as the Justice of the Peace, he has some amusing dialogue ("Do you take this horse collar for your lawful wedded harness?"), and he attempts to place the wedding ring upon his own finger instead of the finger of Blackie's unwilling bride Nell; later on, when a real Justice of the Peace tries to do the same thing, Blackie shouts, "Oh, no, you don't!" The Stooges' makeshift bazooka backfires, actually shooting soot into Moe's eyes, a real-life accident.
Again, "The Three Troubledoers" was unfortunately not worth the time and effort, but this slight setback is more than made up for in most of the other Stooge films directed by the incomparable Ed Bernds.