'The Three Stooges' trailer: More questions than answers or laughs

By Sarah Sluis

The Farrelly Brothers have been working on a Three Stooges adaptation for years. Several big-name cast members, like Sean Penn, were attached to the movie at one time, but it filmed with three lesser-known stars: Sean Hayes, Will Sasso, and Chris Diamantopoulos. Now the trailer's out, but it offers more questions than answers about what the picture will actually be like. Originally, the movie was supposed to be filmed as a by-the-numbers adaptation that would remain as true as possible to the original. That may be true in some regards, but Snooki of the "Jersey Shore" appears in the trailer, as well as a joke about an iPhone being an "eye-phone." Groan.

I think this movie will be a much harder sell for a younger generation that didn't grow up watching The Three Stooges. I don't even recall seeing their shorts playing in reruns on television in my childhood.

For me, the biggest thing that falls flat is the slapstick humor. What is it with all the eye-poking? I don't need to see giant bells and hammers being planted on the heads of Larry, Curly, and Moe. Today, slapstick humor is alive and well, but it's more often grounded in realism. The Jackass series features real stunts, and "Tosh.0" updates "America's Funniest Home Videos" with an emphasis on YouTube movies that make me wonder if the person in question is still in the hospital being treated for a traumatic brain injury (I prefer the softer falls).

With a no-name cast and stunts that could just as easily have been done in the 1930s, the budget for The Three Stooges will surely be low--and should be. I think this comedy will have an uphill battle when it releases this April through 20th Century Fox. The humor of The Three Stooges is better parsed and reworked for the modern age, rather than being remade without thought to today's audience. If people want to watch the originals, they're easily found on YouTube--for free. At least now I know where the Farrelly Brothers got the haircut ideas for their duo in Dumb and Dumber--Larry and Moe.

Farrelly Brothers to helm 'Three Stooges,' 'Farting Dog'

By Sarah Sluis

I haven't heard exciting news from the Farrelly brothers for some time.  Each project after Dumb and Dumber and There's Something About Mary was less inspired, and their one-line premises discouraged me
from going: multiple personalities! dating your sister! dating a fat person! conjoined twins!  rigging the Special Olympics!  Their last project, The Heartbreak Kid, did fairly well at the box office, but that was in 2007.  Recently, the brothers have announced two projects.

Today, they revealed a timeline for their long-planned adaptation of The Three Stooges for MGM.  They plan to do four twenty-minute vignettes, true to the original style of the Stooges shorts.  Their screenplay focuses on the "origins" of Larry, Curly, and Moe, with the first vignette featuring seven-year-old versions of the stooges.  The studio has already set a release date of November 20, 2009, which falls right before the Thanksgiving holiday.  Casting could prove difficult; previous talks point to "stunt" casting non-comedians such as Russell Crowe or Mel Gibson--not the typical funny men pictured in the role.

Last week, the Farrelly brothers also announced plans to helm Walter the Farting Dog, an adaptation of a
children's book series.  The rather vulgar title (which many parents of the target audience would forbid their children to repeat) refers to an adopted dog with a gas problem who is brought into a home with four children, played by the Jonas brothers (three currently star in the hit Disney show, the youngest is the "bonus" Jonas).  The film will focus on the bonus Jonas, Frankie, whose sinus problem has impaired his sense of smell and made him the only one in his family able to tolerate the stink bomb dog.  The boy's adventures with his dog will be interspersed with songs by the three older brothers.  I appreciate that this project will give the youngest brother an opportunity to shine.  With three older brothers in the spotlight, this film will not only be an ideal launching point for the "bonus Jonas's" own career, but a chance to join in on his brothers' stardom.  For the Farrelly brothers, this will mark their second foray into children's films after live action/animation mix Osmosis Jones in 2001.