Review of The Stooge (1951) by Allan C — 14 Oct 2017
This was Jerry Lewis' favorite of his Martin and Lewis films. I'm guessing this is because this film had the type of maudlin sentimentality that Jerry would often include in the films he would go on to write, produce, and direct.
The story has singer Dean Martin as a singer who during one performance has a hilarious back-and-forth bander with audience member Jerry. The two then scheme to plant Jerry in the audience for future performances to recreate the gag.
Jerry becomes the real star of the show, but gets no billing or equal pay, and generally is exploited by Dean, to which Dean's wife, Polly Bergen, eventually confronts him over. It's a pretty lightweight drama and the sappiness works to a point, mostly thanks to Jerry's very sympathetic performance, but this isn't your usual wacky Martin & Lewis outing and the mix of comedy and drama doesn't quite mesh.
Still, it is worth watching for fans of the comic duo and for fans of Jerry in particular.
This review of The Stooge (1951) was written by Allan C on 14 Oct 2017.
The Stooge has generally received positive reviews.
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