Back to the Woods

Back to the Woods (1937)

** (out of 4)

The Three Stooges in England are sentenced to fifty-five years in prison but the prosecutor thinks the country could save money by just shipping them to America to fight Indians. The judge agrees so the boys are off to fight "redskin savages", which shows you what was going over for comedy back in the 1930's. Here was another new Stooges short to me but I didn't find myself laughing very much. It seems opinions on this one are rather mixed at best so I'm going to have to side with those who don't find this very funny. There are certainly a few nice chuckles but there wasn't anything here that had me busting a gut through laughter. The biggest problem is that there are long sequences where nothing funny happens and the big jokes turns out to be a dub. The best example of this is when the boys arrive and meet three women. Soon a long dance follows but I found this to be rather tiresome. Another joke that doesn't work is when the Stooges are hitting the Indians in the stomach and then putting some hot wood in their pants.

We are back in "Merrie Old England" and the boys say they are related to the Three Musketeers but the court says they are criminals who tried to attack His Majesty's guards. They are sentenced to New Cape Prison for 55 years. The prosecutor, played by Stooges regular and favorite Bud Jamieson, however, recommends the court save money and send these "knaves to the new colonies in America to fight the redskin savages." That sounds good to Curly. "I just love corned beef and savages," he says.

Soon we see three beautiful pilgrims who open the door to let in the Stooges. The boys are impressed. Who wouldn't be with these gorgeous governor's daughters: "Faith," "Hope," and "Charity?" Poor Charity is third pick of the lot. Larry says he doesn't charity because he's already on the WPA (Willing Pilgrims Association.). Yup, comedy was really corny back in the 1930s.

It gets cornier as it goes on, with a prolonged dance scene, a horse racing skit, a funny speech by a Chief who is labeled "an Indian giver," and then some more corny antics by the Stooges as they go out "a-hunting-we-will go" to get food for their new sweethearts.

The second half features the hunting scenes and The Boys various encounters with the Indians. Yes, it's pretty crude stuff, but it generally funny material.

It's Merrie Olde England. Larry, Curly, and Moe are sentenced to long prison stints. Instead of spending money on feeding them, they are sent to the colonies to fight the savages. They meet three fetching daughters of the governor. The Indians turn out to be tough negotiators and they forbid the colonists from hunting until they paid off their debt. The boys go hunting anyways. This has plenty of The Stooges running around doing their physical slapstick comedy. The one joke that really got me is making the Indian chief a hardnosed money man. That's satire which I've never seen before and it hit me in a weird way. This is generally a solid Stooges short and it has its fun moments.

Back to outrageous historical times, the Stooges about to be thrown into prison, instead get kicked out of England and sent to the struggling American colonies in the 17th century. Bottom line, the court didn't want to feed them. Let someone else do it!

Moe, Larry and Curly turn up in Massachusetts and meet the beautiful daughters of the governor, played by no nonsense Vernon Dent. Is there any other type of role? As expected, there's a feud going on with the Indians (who want an old debt paid off), forbidding the settlers to hunt. Out to impress the ladies, the Stooges defy the Injuns, go hunting and that's where the fun starts. Lots of goofy escapades with the enemy, including Chief Rain in the Puss? (played by stone-face Theodore Lorch, as usual). Look for veteran actor Blackie Whiteford as an indian, who appeared in dozens of westerns.

Best bit; In prison, the Stooges drop their ball and chains (one at a time), which chime(!), sounding like the famous NBC chimes. Fairly clever stuff, written by Andrew Bennison, longtime Hollywood writer. Also the last movie directed by Jack White, brother of producer Jules White.

Grumpy Bud Jamison plays the court prosector, veteran actor Murdock MacQuarrie plays the judge. Former model Ethelreda Leopold plays Hope, one of the governor's daughters. She was a famous bit actress for decades.

Look for Curly's original skunk cap and the super fast canoe!

Always remastered on Columbia dvd, generally by decades, 30s, 40s and 50s episodes. Thanks to METV for running these mini classics on Saturdays.

One of the better Stooge films. The portrayal of Native Americans is less than PC, but if you bear in mind the period in which the film was made, you'll enjoy it.

The premise is that the Stooges are petty thieves, exiled by the British government to colonial America, where they must hunt for food against the edicts of Chief Rain In The Puss. Eventually the hunters are the hunted, as the Chief's warriors attack our heroes. Can the three knuckleheads escape certain death? See for yourself.

Highlights include Curly's commentary of an imaginary horserace, the boys' rendition of "A-Hunting We Must Goeth" with a soulful piece of scat by Larry, an extremely violent dance, and Curly's surprisingly athletic display of the martial arts.

The social commentary is a bit dated, but otherwise a fine film!