"An Ache in Every Stake" or "All This and Bedlam Too" is a Three Stooges short film from 1941, so this one had its 75th anniversary already last year and this one is from the days of World War II. And unless some of their other stuff from that time, it is not a political film this time, no anti-Nazi propaganda. It runs for 18 minutes like many other Stooges shorts and it is very obvious if you look at the scenes that they wanted to turn Curly into the big star here, especially if you compare his material to Larry's. These two were still in their 30s at that point, while Moe was comfortably in his 40s already. This one has the trio work as icemen, a profession not common today anymore at all, at least not here. Director Del Lord has worked with the gang on many occasions and same is true for some of the supporting cast. Writer Lloyd French is mostly known for his works with Stan and Ollie. The best moment is Curly in the kitchen struggling with dice and eggs and that could have been me too given my cooking skills. Oh yeah, this one includes some pie humor like several other times for the Stooges, even if no pie fight here, and it was remade too later on (about a decade), also like so many other Stooges short films. I guess that is all for now. Sadly, I did not enjoy the watch too much as the comedy is too absurd and over-the-top for my taste, but that's a common problem I have with the Stooges. As a consequence, I think it is way overrated here on IMDb and I give it a thumbs-down, even if I must admit that the comedy and general approach are somewhat typical for the Stooges, so chances are good you will like this one if you like some of their other stuff. And if that's true, then this is the only scenario where I would recommend seeing it.
Review of An Ache in Every Stake
