Horses' Collars: The Stooges in the Old West

If you've ever had a long day and just need to watch three grown men get slapped around for twenty minutes, Horses' Collars is your best friend. It’s not high art, and it isn't trying to be. If you hate slapstick or the sound of someone yelling "nyuk-nyuk-nyuk," stay far away.

The whole thing feels like a fever dream of Western tropes tossed into a blender. Moe, Larry, and Curly show up as detectives because, sure, why not? They spend most of their time trying to pickpocket a villain who honestly looks like he’s bored out of his mind.

There's this one moment where Curly spots a mouse and just loses his entire personality. It’s the kind of bit they did a million times, but it still works because of how frantic his eyes get. He starts swinging at everything in sight, and suddenly all the bad guys are on the floor. It’s barely a plot, but who cares?

The pacing is so fast you barely have time to notice that the background sets are just painted wood. It reminded me a bit of the frantic energy in Honest Injun, though this one leans way harder into the physical gags. You can almost see the wires on some of the props if you look close enough.

I noticed that the saloon scenes have this weird, empty feeling. It’s like the production ran out of money for extras, so it's just the main cast shuffling around in circles. It’s charming in a cheap sort of way.

The scene where they try to break into the safe goes on for about thirty seconds too long. You can feel the timing slipping, but then Larry makes some weird noise and you just move on. It’s not the most polished thing they ever did, but it’s got that specific Stooge rhythm that keeps you watching anyway. 🤠

Honestly, watching them try to be serious "detectives" while wearing cowboy hats is the highlight. It’s pure, distilled silliness. Don't look for a story here, just enjoy the eye-pokes.