Review of The Stoolie

I'm embarrassed to admit it, but I had to check to see if Jackie Mason was still alive after watching this forty year old flick. I remember him from a host of variety shows back in the day and can still recall his nebbish-like staccato delivery, the kind he employs in the picture to varying degrees of effectiveness. Mason portrays the kind of character you can believe would get involved in the kind of predicaments he winds up in here, involving losers, con-men, a washed up detective and a homely sort of kindly soul in which he finds a kindred spirit. The film's pacing won't be for everyone, it's rather slow and almost tedious at times, but Mason pulls it off with his own unique style. Marcia Jane Kurtz, Mason's dubious love interest in the picture, finds a way to make the quirky couple believable, even if he is a total schmuck on the run from the law. Along the way, the comic gets in a few prolific lines that epitomize his character, my favorite one occurring when girlfriend Sheila apologizes for an inadvertent slight - "Oh no, no, you didn't insult me, I've been insulted by experts". True to form, Mason never even cracks a smile.