The reincarnated Three Stooges are not a critical favorite to say the least.
In this image released by 20th Century Fox, clockwise from left, Chris Diamantopoulos, Sean Hayes and Will Sasso are shown in a scene from "The Three Stooges." (AP photo/20th Century Fox)The reincarnation of The Three Stooges is prompting eye-poking comments from critics. The Farrelly brothers tribute to Moe, Larry and Curly (Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Jerry Howard) and their great Columbia shorts arrives in theaters on Friday.
Chris Diamantopoulos, Sean Hayes and Will Sasso star in the film with a supporting cast that includes Larry David, Jane Lynch, Sofía Vergara, and Jennifer Hudson.
Here is a sampling of comments from critics:
I don’t think the Stooges are funny, although perhaps I might once have. Some of the sight gags were clever, but meh. The three leads did an admirable job of impersonation. I think this might be pretty much the movie Stooges fans were looking for. I have no idea what their children will think about it. – Roger Ebert
Don’t believe the old catchphrase: Imitation is merely the laziest form of flattery. And rather than salute the old Stooges with something fresh, what the Farrellys have done is try to copy them exactly, from comic sound effects to Curly’s “Soitenly!” ... why would you want to see anyone do an impression, when the originals are as close as a DVD rental? – Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger
The Farrellys, who have fallen off raunchy comedy's cutting edge in recent years, manage the right tone. Sound effects amp up the laughs (an accidental poke in Vergara's D-cup might be the raciest thing in it) and they've scored with their casting. – Roger Moore, McClatchy-Tribune News Service
At their best, the original Three Stooges were demented geniuses, savants of slapstick, bringing a real sense of joy to smacking faces and pulling noses. Hey, don't knock it. There is a place for that sort of thing. And the new film "The Three Stooges" couldn't find it with a map and a compass ... The movie is content to simply mimic the old Stooges, bringing nothing new to the table. – Bill Goodykoontz, Gannett
The faith the Farrellys have in the lasting entertainment value of this specific brand of vaudeville-born physical comedy is touching, if misguided. The Stooges’ work may well be timeless, but that doesn’t mean it can be easily transferred. – Alison Willmore, AV Club
The Three Stooges is not the film I wanted – it should have been rated R and geared for adults. (Women need not apply.) Something tells me I would have been just as satisfied had they done away with the script and just let the boys slap, kick, and punch each other for 92 minutes. Is it a good film or even a fitting tribute to my childhood idols? Hell no! But, if you have even so much as one ounce of sentimental effusion for the boys, don't wait for Netflix. Wrong as it may be, I plan on seeing it again this weekend. – Scott Marks, San Diego Reader
Diamantopoulos, Hayes and Sasso deliver impressions rather than performances, and the movie itself is just a repetitive, unsuccessful impression that neither honors the Stooges’ legacy nor provides any justification for bringing them into the present day. – Josh Bell, Las Vegas Weekly
Remember "Brain Donors" from 1992? It was an attempt, valiant but limited, to recapture the magic and the dynamic of the Marx Brothers, with John Turturro more or less "doing" Groucho. "The Three Stooges" amounts to the same sort of cover-band project. – Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune
It's just not enough to say that “The Three Stooges,” the latest from the Farrelly Brothers, is the death of comedy. Rather, it's the death, burial and decomposition of comedy. It is where comedy, once alive, ends up as dust blowing in the wind, like something out of an old Kansas song. – Mick LaSalle, San Antonio Express-News