HOI POLLOI

A popular short among fans, but one that falls a bit flat to me.
It seems to me that Hoi Polloi was created with the finale in mind, but no first and second act to proceed it. The short feels like it's rushing to get to the payoff, and very little in the first half of the short is expanded upon enough to actually be funny. The Stooges are the subject to a gentlemen crash course and don't even seem to try and pass, sending Professor Nichols into a hissy fit. This goes on for several minutes until its 10 minute finale with the Stooges at a party.
This party is the highlight of the short, with quite a few rich gags that get a lot of belly laughs. The scene where Curly has a spring attached to his pants is an unquestionable classic. These gags are more detailed, and it's obvious that more effort went into this sequence than the rest of the short.
It ends on a foul note where all of the party guests do their best (not very good) Three Stooges imitations. After a false start, a great climax, and a weak ending, I'm left with the taste of an uneven short on my tongue.
Final Shemp's Final Word: 2 1/2 Pokes

There's a REASON why this short is rated the highest of all 190 on threestooges.net. (3.94/4 average as of now) This is a classic. It my second favorite Curly short, but probably overall the best. This is the true classic of 1935 that no one can argue with. BEERS was excellent, but this is just a pure classic, with not a dull moment. When I pick personal favorites (this is in my 10 favorite) I have to go with what makes me laugh most, and this one does a darn good job of it. But when I look at this short and try to rate it based on the universal appeal and pace, it's the boys' second best (the best is BRIDELESS GROOM, hands down). I guess any Stooge fan, even casual, has seen this priceless classic, but if you're totally new to the Stooges, start off with this short and you will be hooked. Then again, although many of their shorts are hysterical, you won't find too many as good as this. 4 pokes Rating: 9.5/10

Footnote for the curious: "hoi polloi" is a Greek phrase that literally means "the masses" -- by extension, a snobbish expression for people of lower social status. The Stooges are thus turning the tables on their rich hosts by referring to them as "hoi polloi" at the end. One of their best, by any standard.

A critic of the violence of the Three Stooges would have a lot of material here since Moe dished out a lot of punishment to Curly needlessly, but aside from that it may say that he who wishes to sample what a true successful Three Stooges film is would have a good pick in Hoi Polloi. A good plot, build and finish with a lot of stooge gags and activity.

I love the part where the professor gives the Stooges their reading lesson. When Curly spells "cat" as "K-I-T-T-Y, pussy," the professor reacts by tearing out his hair! I notice that the footage with the dance instructor was later reused for "In The Sweet Pie & Pie." In the end, I love how contagious the boys' antics get--now the other guests are shouting "Spread out!" & slapping each other around!

One of the Stooges' best in terms of production design and editing. Each scene flows perfectly and the gags based on humiliation/discomfiture build nicely in the party sequence, where so much is riding on the Stooges not appearing as a disgrace. This film sets the bar as far as the Stooges vs. High Society goes and is really a watershed for many of their familiar gags. In fact, it might appear funnier today had not so many of the gags, as well as the storyline, been reused so often over the years. At this point the Stooges' characters were solidly defined to permit the use of irony and counterpoint in their films, a key element of this short. Generically, it's a "comedy of embarrassment" but always embarrassment deferred. Larry's pursuit of his runaway shoe [a conflation of 2 separate gags from Harold Lloyd's MOVIE CRAZY] is a definite highlight. "Are you dancing?" "Are you asking?" "Yes, I'm asking!" "Then I'm dancing." Moe's line, after he's slapped Curly and Larry, "That's in case you do and I'm not around" effectively sums up Stoogian vigilance for all time, and his [offscreen] punishment and usurpation of Curly's dinner jacket an interesting variation on standard slapstick. The film also benefits from a large supporting cast of familiar 2-reeler faces which really adds emphasis to the party scenes as well as the irony of the film's title ["Hoi Polloi" being Greek for "the masses" or "the rabble"]. Harry Holman [not Holmes], a familiar face from Frank Capra's films [e.g. IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT, MEET JOHN DOE, IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE] provides a good contrast with the Stooges as Prof. Rich, and Kitty McHugh as the awful hornrimmed dame enamored of Curly is a worthy Stoogian adversary.

I consider the Stooges to be the 20th century's finest practitioners of the art of low comedy, an honored tradition dating back to Shakespeare and Aristophanes, and HOI POLLOI as one of the 25 greatest film comedies ever. And it's not even my personal favorite Stooge movie - but this is a timeless classic and a true representation of what the Stooges were all about. I can easily picture the boys performing this 3000 years ago in an ampitheatre, or 3000 years from now on a holoscreen, and always getting big laughs and universal recognition. The fade-out scene ranks with the most satisfying clinchers in comedy, ever!