vincentlynch-moonoi I would imagine that after their breakup four years after this film was made, both Martin and Lewis could look back on this film as being a bit of a premonition of things to come. Here, a singer (obviously Dean) with a stage act that is going flat hires a stooge (obviously Jerry) to spice up the act. But in a sense, it's a role reversal, because here Jerry is getting no attention, while Dean gets all the kudos in the press. Ironically, after the real Martin & Lewis breakup, it was Dean that was expected to flounder and disappear, while Jerry was expected to continue to rocket to success. How ironic that in this film Dean is told, "You're not a single, and you never will be!" While there's lots of classic Martin & Lewis here, this film does have a serious story line...2, in fact. Singer neglects and almost loses wife. Singer doesn't provide his stooge with the dignity he deserves and almost loses act. There's some good sentimentality here, and both Martin and Lewis probably do their best real acting to date.Dean has several good songs here -- "I'm Yours", "With My Eyes Wide Open I'm Dreaming", and "A Girl Named Mary And A Boy Named Bill". Plus there's a fun Dean & Jerry version of "Just One More Chance".Polly Bergen is very good as Dean's wife. We survive through Marion Marshall as Jerry's love interest...again. Eddie Mayehoff is really good as the agent. And it's interesting to see Frances Bavier (Aunt Bee on Andy Griffith's show a few years later) as Jerry's mother.This is one of the better Martin & Lewis films because -- like "That's My Boy", there's some drama mixed in with the comedy. Recommended, but their best films are yet to come.

drtoner123 I'm 25 years old and have always had a huge respect for Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin. I hope one day to shake the hand of Jerry Lewis. Thing is, I never really sat down through any of their full length films because I'm your typical new movie kinda guy. I like to see what's just coming out in theaters and these older movies, well I usually just think of them as having poor quality and over drawn out moments. I caught this film on HBO and was absolutely hooked. Everything was so beautiful, so perfect in this film. The acting is terrific. The only thing that could have made this film even better is if they showed a few more cars but hey, we can't have everything, and well, I'm just a major car guy. The movie was made in 1953, pardon me, released in 1953. My daily driver is a 1953 Chevrolet Bel Air. This movie has really fired me up to watch a lot of older films. Pretty soon I'm sure I'll be commenting on a few others. I'm filling up my DVR with everything 50's and back as we speak. Here's the thing, I love new movies and anytime I find a new release that is set back in the 50's, I'm a major sucker for it. With this, there is no error in these movies; no "hey did you see that? That was a 1980's van in the background!" Okay, yes it's a bit cheesy but this movie really gave me a lot of inspiration to watch more classics. I LOVE this film!

Clark Richards The film opens with Bill Miller (Dean Martin) in bed with his love interest (a magazine with his face on the cover), but it isn't long before Bill becomes too sexed up from his magazine cover that he telephones his girlfriend Mary Turner (Polly Bergen) who also happens to be getting restless and squirrelly in bed with her own magazine cover. No, not the magazine with Bill on the cover, you see Mary also has a magazine with her own face gracing the cover. This is either a quick and effective way by the director (Norman Taurog) in letting the audience understand that these two people are either very talented singers on their way to stardom, or that they're incredibly narcissistic self lovers that only use the sounds of each other's voices to finish off before going to sleep. The film leads me to believe it's both. So, as narcissism raises its pretty face at the opening of the film, we see these two characters on equal footing. Before the end of the film each character will strip away their narcissistic tendencies, hers through self-sacrifice by becoming a scrapbook queen, his by turning to the bottle and nearly destroying his burgeoning performing career along with any relationship he's had with anyone female or idiot.The wild card in all of this mix is that of Ted Rogers (Jerry Lewis). Ted is the man who not only holds the fate of Bill in his hands, but who also has the wherewithal to help save Bill and Mary's relationship when Bill becomes too ambitious with his own career. Ted is such a great guy that he can be seen writing the finishing touches of a birthday note to Mary that Bill was too shortsighted to complete. Ted is also the guy who has the inspiration to write a love song to Mary so that Bill can get in Mary's good graces when Bill selfishly blew off her birthday party. In fact, the only time when Mary truly hears any meaning behind the words, "I love you" is when they are uttered from the drunken lips of Ted while both Mary and Bill are undressing Ted for bed. Mary gives Ted a kiss on the cheek while Bill takes off Ted's shoes. This is the closest thing to an Ménage a Trois that 1950's American cinema could approach. I'm glad that's as far as it could go; I don't want to know anything about anyone's little 'Whozis'.Seeing that this is a 1950's comedy/drama, everything has a tidy and happy ending; even Ted manages to land a hot little number in disguise. Affectionately referred to as 'Freckle Head' (Marion Marshall) by Ted throughout the movie, Ted's love interest practically steals the screen from Mary. 'Freckle Head' becomes infatuated with Ted from the moment they share a balcony at one of Bill's shows. She then employs the look of love damn near every second of the movie she's in. Her comic facial gestures hold their own against those of the extremely 'hamorific' Lewis. Somehow the two have a mild chemistry together and seem to make a fairly good couple.Leo Lyman (Eddie Mayehoff) plays Bill's agent. He plays a sort of unsung silent hero throughout the movie. Silent because most of his screen time shows him clapping in the front row at his two prized clients or walking out of a scene looking dejected at how Bill has misbehaved. He's another character who wants to stand up for a principle and by the end of the movie he gets to…what else would you expect?Even to the most casual movie fan, "The Stooge" cannot simply play itself out solely as a typical 'cash in movie vehicle' that draws upon the innocent caricatures of Martin & Lewis, the film's storyline takes on the feel of an unintentional premonitory guide book replete with glaring sign posts, warning of the duo's dissolving partnership that was only five years away.But really, try not to think about that. Just let "The Stooge" roll over you, take one for the team. It really is their best film. I wouldn't ask you to do this for "At War With The Army"; only an enemy would ask you to do something like that.Clark Richards 8/10.

santsa70 I haven't seen this movie in years, but a flick like this one just cannot be forgotten! I am in my early twenties and for more than half my life, I have been a film buff of movies old and new. Martin and Lewis are one of my all time favorite comedy duos, and at one time, I was renting movies here and there so that I could see all of the films they made together, and ones the lively, virtuous humanitarian Lewis did during his solo career. When I saw this movie, it just blew me away. This film is the most dramatic film those boys ever made--and if you're thinking that that can't possibly be saying much since most of their movies were screwball comedies, I'm here to tell you you're mistaken. This movie is funny, but it's also very impassioned and heart-rendering, so you might do yourself a favor by keeping a box of tissues near you when viewing it.Both Martin and Lewis are great in these dramatic and comedic roles as a comedy team that splits up because Lewis' character is under-appreciated and emotional mistreated by Martin's character. In a oddly coincidental way, this movie seemed to foreshadow the boys' split up in '56, but of course, in the movie, there is a happy ending. And while everyone knows that both Dean and Jerry went on to have successful solo careers and reunited as friends years later, I think that it would have been great to have seen them do a couple more films together that were as unforgettable as this one.