"Musty Musketeers" combines new footage with the 1948 Stooge film "Fiddlers Three." With this remake, a few elements of the storyline are smoothed out, and an entertaining sword fight replaces some of the original film.
The Stooges are living in Cole-Slawvania, around the time of King Arthur. They want to marry their sweethearts, but cannot wed until Princess Alicia, daughter of King Cole (Vernon Dent) marries first. The Stooges stumble onto a plot by the evil Mergatroid (Phil Van Zandt) to marry the princess and take over the kingdom.
In this hybrid remake, the Stooges are not court jesters, as they were in "Fiddlers Three." As such, the songs they sing at the beginning of the original film are sadly edited out. In their place, however, is more story exhibition showing the Stooges and their fiancées. A fun sword fight makes up the extra new footage, and seeing Shemp bite Mergatroid's nose is hilarious!
It is often amazing to see how smoothly the new footage of the Stooges was placed into earlier films. Director Jules White deserves much credit for this. Sets were meticulously redone, sometimes five to seven years after the original sets were constructed. Wardrobe is to be credited as well; the Stooges and Phil Van Zandt appear to wear the same costumes in the new footage as they did six years earlier. The Stooges should be credited as well; except for a little extra baggage under Moe's eyes, the Stooges don't appear to have aged at all!
The seamless addition of new footage into the old, along with the fun sword fight, makes "Musty Musketeers" one of the better hybrid remakes. Although "Fiddlers Three" is available on DVD, "Musty Musketeers" is not. See it if you get the chance, though. 7 out of 10.
The Stooges are living in Cole-Slawvania, around the time of King Arthur. They want to marry their sweethearts, but cannot wed until Princess Alicia, daughter of King Cole (Vernon Dent) marries first. The Stooges stumble onto a plot by the evil Mergatroid (Phil Van Zandt) to marry the princess and take over the kingdom.
In this hybrid remake, the Stooges are not court jesters, as they were in "Fiddlers Three." As such, the songs they sing at the beginning of the original film are sadly edited out. In their place, however, is more story exhibition showing the Stooges and their fiancées. A fun sword fight makes up the extra new footage, and seeing Shemp bite Mergatroid's nose is hilarious!
It is often amazing to see how smoothly the new footage of the Stooges was placed into earlier films. Director Jules White deserves much credit for this. Sets were meticulously redone, sometimes five to seven years after the original sets were constructed. Wardrobe is to be credited as well; the Stooges and Phil Van Zandt appear to wear the same costumes in the new footage as they did six years earlier. The Stooges should be credited as well; except for a little extra baggage under Moe's eyes, the Stooges don't appear to have aged at all!
The seamless addition of new footage into the old, along with the fun sword fight, makes "Musty Musketeers" one of the better hybrid remakes. Although "Fiddlers Three" is available on DVD, "Musty Musketeers" is not. See it if you get the chance, though. 7 out of 10.