Three Little Beers

The Panther Beer Company is having trouble getting their deliveries done on time, so they hire three new guys. You can guess whom! They get off to a bad start when they spill one barrel of beer on top of the company president's head!

It's also time for the beer company's annual golf tournament. Coincidentally, the first beer run is at the fairly-swank golf course. Needless to say, the boys don't exactly fit in at the golf club.

The Stooges trying to play golf is, of course, ludicrous with some classic scenes. By the time they are done, they've ruined the course. The greens-keepers - all with strong Italian accents - are going out of their minds.

The best part of this might not have been the golf but final few minutes when they run away and spill all the beer barrels out of their truck and mayhem ensues in the streets. It's corny; it's stupid, but it is classic Stooges slapstick humor, reminiscent of the silent comedy era which was less than 10 years before this was made.

Note: This is one of those movies in which they spell Curley with an "e." Most of the time, it's "Curly."

this is definitely one of my favourite 3 stooges short. i've watched it over and over again and laugh out loud every single time.

i watched 3 stooges as a kid every Saturday morning with my dad, and am only just rediscovering them. watching them now, i didn't think i would like them, as i've grown up and my tastes have changed -- and it's true -- i love the 3 stooges now!

the title is a little misleading, as most of the action occurs on the golf course and not with the stooges' job as beer delivery men.

one thing that makes this short so good is that the stooges split up and create havoc on the golf course on their own, in their own equally funny way. this lets Larry and Curly, for instance, make trouble without Moe there to stop them.

my favourite line in this short has to be when the stooges noisily approach a man who is just about to tee off, and the golfer asks them to be quiet - and Moe replies: "oh, you've got secrets, eh?"

Larry, Curly, and Moe are bumbling brewery deliverymen. It's the company's annual golf tournament and 1st prize is 100 bucks. The guys sneak into a country club to learn to play golf.

Golf is a natural subject matter for the boys. It's easy to do and the high class backdrop clashes perfectly with the boys. I would rather have the boys dress as regular workmen while everybody else wear golf clothes. I like Curly doing his laundry. I think they could do more golf stuff. I know they like to do two parts in their shorts but a full-on takedown of golf culture would be more interesting. Then there is the Donkey Kong section. There are some stunts with doubles. The boys do take a few hits. It's hard to get more from the boys with such physically tough slapstick. This is very good although this leaves me wanting more.

"Three Little Beers" came out at a very good time. After all, Prohibition had only recently been repealed and the film capitalizes on this by having the Stooges play delivery men for a brewery.

On their new job, the Stooges learn that the brewery is offering a contest for its employees. They decide to try their hand at playing golf...and the contest offers some nice cash prizes. So, instead of delivering the beer, they sneak off to a golf course to practice. Naturally they make nuisances of themselves!

This is a genuinely funny short film. Much of it is because this is unfamiliar territory for the team, as in many of the later films, their plots are recycled from previous shorts from Columbia (not just theirs...but those of other comedians). My only complains, and it's minor, is the use of the rear projection when Moe is dancing on a barrel...it is a bit cheesy.

Exceptional early comedy from The Three Stooges, taking them out on the golf course where they completely destroy the grounds and make life miserable for the members of a golf club. Moe, Larry and Curley don't know how to play, of course, but that doesn't stop them from joining in anyway after the beer distributor they work for offers a chance for its employees to win one hundred bucks at their annual golfing tournament. Some pretty good lines here and there too, in addition to the expected physical zany routines. A good place to start for first-time Stooge viewers.

***1/2 out of ****