Rhythm and Weep

This latter-day Curly short showcases mostly dancing routines and not very much slapstick. Curly is visibly wooden and sickly due to his declining health. He does get a pie in the face and takes a few hits, but that's about it. The closing sequence where the Stooges perform an army physical skit is decent, though.

"Rhythm and Weep" is one of the dozen or so Stooge entries from 1945-46 that shows Curly was not a well man. His actions are noticeably slower, as well as his speech. With this said, however, he looks and sounds better in this film than in others made during this time ("Monkey Businessmen" and "Three Loan Wolves" are examples of this).

This film is a sort-of reworking of "Gents Without Cents" from 1944. Dejected at being thrown out as performers from a theater, the boys decide to commit suicide. On top of a building they meet three beautiful dancers, who also want to off themselves for not finding work. Before they can jump, they meet a millionaire musical producer (Jack Norton) who will bankroll them into his newest production.

The film limps along with protracted musical numbers with the girls. The only highlights of the film are the Army service exam and Larry's classic line, "This I like! And I get paid for it, too!" It's also interesting to see character actor Jack Norton in a role where he doesn't play a drunk! This aside, however, the short is only memorable for being one of Curly's last performances. 5 out of 10.

Okay, with 7 other reviews, why add another one. Because for this Stooge fan, a word I never remotely associated with their work popped into my head while watching Rhythm. In my little book, this is indeed a 'charming' entry—from the wink-and-nod playing to the camera to the absolutely beautiful three girl dancers. But I especially like that sequence on the ledge where the three boys and three girls sweetly find each other more enticing than a leap off the edge, and then celebrate with a charming little dance.

Also, the typical Stooge slapstick is nicely integrated into the girls' dance numbers, especially the hep-cat number. I suspect there's more music and less knock-about because of Curly's declining health. But whatever the reason, the writers and casting director manage to compensate in charmingly unexpected fashion.

"Rhythm and Weep" begins with the Stooges being thrown out of a theatre for having the worst act on the circuit, while the theatre manager suggests they commit suicide...so they agree! Funny stuff, huh? They decide to jump off the ledge of a building. But there encounter three beautiful dancers who are also planning on killing themselves. A laff riot so far! Also on the roof is a man who claims to be a filthy rich Broadway producer who can't find a cast, which leads to their salvation. But anyone who can't figure out the punchline the first time the "producer" laughs maniacally should watch Westerns instead. This short shows Curly at his sickest; his timing is gone, and he is virtually incapable of performing the slightest comedy shtick. As a result, most of what would have been Curly business is shifted to Larry. The three dancers are fine, despite the club-footed choreography, but the short over-all has the appalling stink of one of those "Lets-Put-On-A-Show" wartime "Our Gang" comedies. If you love the Stooges, avoid this one like the plague.

This is a fair short, with Curly Howard having a good week, despite his health problems during this time. The highlight of this is Ruth White in her first feature. Her dancing is good and she proved to be a good asset to three stooges shorts. Ruth got to work with Curly , Shemp and Joe Besser. She is in the best short that Joe did with the Stooges " A Merry Mixup". Ruth became a well respected character actress on Broadway before her untimely death of cancer in 1969. Ruth was quite a talent and she shined brightly in the Stooges shorts she did with the boys ( given the material she had to work with ) And she went on to display her talents in films as well.