The Yoke's on Me

"The Yoke's on Me" is undoubtedly the most controversial film in the Stooges' 23 years of shorts. The reason is understandable; by today's standards, this film can be considered racist. For this reason, it is rarely shown, if ever, on television.

Let me just state that, for the record, the Japanese seen in the film were not soldiers; they were Japanese-Americans sent to a relocation center during World War II. They were treated and shown as the evil enemy in this film. By all accounts - including the US government, who made an apology and reparations in the 1980s - Japanese-Americans during World War II were as loyal and hardworking as any American. Their imprisonment during this time is a dark blot in American history.

There are some Stooge laughs in this film, but the memories of how Japanese-Americans were treated during this time sullies the entertainment value. Let's not confuse the loyal Japanese-Americans with their representation in this film as evildoers. Loyal Japanese-Americans and the World War II-era evil empire of Japan are not synonymous. 2 out of 10.

I'll never forget the first time when I watch this stooge short when I was like 13 or 14 on TBS and that was the only time that I've ever seen this short on television and unfortunately they didn't play this short on Family Channel or AMC but to say the least, I have this short on tape.

The boys are discharged from the army and their father tells the boys that they'll be working on a farm and they buy the farm for $1000 and their car (which is a piece of junk) and the same thing goes to the farm and the only livestock they got is a bird and a ostrich, there's a funny scene when Curly steps on a loose board and it hits Moe right in the face, later on the guy they bought the farm is stopped by the police to tell them that a bunch of Japs escaped from a relocation center and after the cop is done talking to him, the car wouldn't start and he actually mutters 'b@$!ard' (a cuss word on a 1940's stooge short).

Then the stooges witness an ostrich eating blasting powder and Curly tears up the feathers and starts a fan dance and later on they start cleaning out the pumpkins and the Japs show and they put their heads inside of a pumpkin, SICK!! And the stooges blow up the Japanese with the ostrichs egg which had blasting powder in it.

I don't understand that why people come down really hard on this short, I actually think that this is one of the best stooge shorts of all time, I also can't believe that one viewer stated that he likes the awful Joe Besser short Sweet and Hot (which I believe was their worst short) better than this stooge classic.

I give this short 9/10.

The Three Stooges has always been some of the many actors that I have loved. I love just about every one of the shorts that they have made. I love all six of the Stooges (Curly, Shemp, Moe, Larry, Joe, and Curly Joe)! All of the shorts are hilarious and also star many other great actors and actresses which a lot of them was in many of the shorts! In My opinion The Three Stooges is some of the greatest actors ever and is the all time funniest comedy team!

I have always liked this Three Stooges short. Its cool, its funny, and its really a different one! One thing Larry is quite different in this one. The dance that Curly does after he plucks the ostrich is hilarious! Also another funny scene is when he goes after the duck. The pumpkin scenes are also great! This is a great Three Stooges short!

Moe, Larry and Curly are supposed to go in the army but they return after two days. Their father makes them work on a farm. We also learn that some Japanese guys have escaped and of course they are near the farm.

The Three Stooges have made another fine piece of comedy with this short. Especially Curly has some great moments. Terrific.

Obviously this is a difficult flick to watch because of the treatment that Japanese-Americans receive at the hands of the writers. That said, it can serve as an historical document, showing just how Americans felt about the Japanese after Pearl Harbor. It's easy now to see--with 21st century eyes--how wrong and unjust the relocation camps were; back then, however, much of the country did not have such clarity.

But even without the racist content, this flick isn't that good anyway. The story meanders--the stooges get kicked out their home by their parents, they buy a house, and then they carve some pumpkins. We see a few assorted gags here and there, but nothing much memorable.

I did detect the first signs of Curly's failing health in this short. His energy is high, but I could hear a few lines in which his voice faltered just a bit and wasn't as strong and precise as normal. (Of course, he may have just been tired.)