Uncivil War Birds

This short is an oddity in that it hardly has any stooge dialogue or slapstick! The verbal exchanges are limited in that they simply advance the plot; we have no wisecracks, visual jokes, or typical dumbness associated with the boys. And you can count on one hand the amount of slapstick gags.

Many talk about how Curly was in failing health in this short, but surprisingly he has a lot of energy. Outside of the fact that his voice is lower than normal, he engages in typical Curly antics which show him to be full of vim and verve. Too bad they didn't give him much to do.

This short has the most bizarre scene I think I've ever seen in all the shorts. The three are made up in blackface and are in a huddle; Larry says, "If we-all can get that map back to headquarters, we-all can win this war!" Curly responds, "Yeah, and then we-all can get married!" Moe rolls eyes and chirps, "Brothers, you just ejaculated a mouthful!" (While that verb does have the appropriate meaning--to espouse--even in 1946, the stooges surely were giggling under their makeup.)

After Curly Howard's stroke, not all of his performances with The Three Stooges were inferior from his peak years. The comic displayed a return to his effervescent self in several Stooges post-stroke films. Most notable was March 1946's "Uncivil War Birds," directed by Jules White, which saw Curly on opposing sides to his friends Moe and Larry during the American Civil War. One possible reason for Curly's spark is the Columbia Pictures short opened with the beauty buxom Eleanor Counts, who played his fiancee while he appeared as a Southern gentlemen.

Scriptwriter Clyde Bruckman, who was famous for copying other comics' earlier movies and reworking them in the Stooges style, borrowed scenes from Buster Keaton's 1939 'Mooching Through Georgia" to create "Uncivil War Birds" on the vein of the Stooges' 1935 classic "Uncivil Warriors." In the updated Civil War comedy, the Stooges enlist in the Army upon the outbreak of the conflict. Troubles arise when Curly mistakenly volunteers for the Confederacy while Moe and Larry are wearing Union uniforms. Throughout the film the three friends try to get on the same page, only to be flustered by the continuous flow of Union and Rebel forces going back and forth. In one scene, when they do wear the same Confederate uniforms, they find themselves inside the Union Army headquarters, where they pretend to be a minstrel musical group with blackfaces to get out of their jam. Many television broadcasts have edited out the politically-incorrect skit, which was one of the highlights of "Uncivil War Birds." Al Rosen, who made his mark later on NBC-TV's 'Cheers' as 'Big Al,' is one of the Union soldiers in "Uncivil War Birds." Joe Palma, who later was the 'Fake Shemp' in four Stooges episodes when Shemp passed away, plays both a Union soldier and a Union officer. And Eleanor Counts, Curly's fiancee, lived less than five years after her appearance, dying of an overdose of sleeping pills in 1950. "Uncivil War Birds" also was one of the last skits showing Curly's trademark spins on the floor as he rotates himself several times laying on his side. The short contains 'Dixie' in the opening credits, a departure from their standard 'Three Blind Mice' musical soundtrack.

I remember that in my teens that this was one of my favorite shorts but when I watched this short again recently, I thought that the short was good but not a classic, it does have its highs and lows, the highs was Curly seemed to be in decent health in this short and the ending was a hoot, the lows was Moe's wraths were pretty limited (cause half the times Moe would just not do anything to Larry and Curly) and the plot was pretty weak, overall it's one of the better shorts from Curly's decline period but it falls short of most of the early 1940's stooge shorts. 7/10 (would've been 5/10 if this was a Shemp short).

Uncivil War Birds (1946)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Decent short has Moe, Larry and Curly getting engaged but before they can plan the wedding the Civil War breaks out. Moe and Larry sign up to fight for the North but Curly signs for the South. Moe and Curly decide to switch sides but they must try and avoid other soldiers who have taken over the city.

UNCIVIL WAR BIRDS isn't the greatest Stooges short out there but there are enough laughs to make it worth sitting through if you're a fan of the series. If you're new to The Three Stooges then this isn't the place to start. With that said, this short has a few very funny moments thanks in large part to Curly and his comic timing. There are some great moments where his dumbness leaves everyone around him going nuts. The scene with the firing squad is a perfect example. The material itself isn't the greatest and while there aren't any huge laughs there's still enough to make this worth sitting through.

This short is very controversial because many people really like it and many people hate it. I for one really like it. I liked this one because they tried something new, and there was some great visual humor and gags. Curly turned in a great performance despite illness. Moe and Larry also do a great job in this short. I also think the supporting cast did a great job too.



Grade: A-