The Three Stooges Condemned By Catholic League President Bill Donohue

"The Three Stooges" opens around the country today (April 13th), but there is one group that has already deemed the film a stinker.

The Catholic League's President, Bill Donohue, has put out a statement condemning the movie for its disrespectful portrayal of Catholics, specifically nuns. Donohue claims that the movie is more evidence of the increasing hostility towards religion and Catholics in Hollywood:

In the 1950s, Hollywood generally avoided crude fare and was respectful of religion. Today it specializes in crudity and trashes Christianity, especially Catholicism. Enter the “The Three Stooges.” This movie is not just another remake: it is a cultural marker of sociological significance, and what it says about the way we’ve changed is not encouraging.

The film pushes the envelope with its portrayals of two unusual nuns portrayed by the bombshell Kate Upton, and "Curb Your Enthusiasm" creator Larry David. Both are potential causes for offense for different reasons as MovieFone reports:

In "Stooges," David portrays Sister Mary-Mengele. The name is a nod to the late Nazi Josef Mengele, an SS Officer who decided prisoners' fates at Auschwitz. As for Upton, it's not so much her character's name -- Sister Bernice -- as it is her attire. During one scene, the SI swimsuit model dons a very revealing bikini along with a large rosary around her neck.

Larry David probably didn't help the situation when he said his dressing as a nun made him understand why they are so mean. David explained:

"You know, the outfits might have something to do with that. Forget about the fact that they never have sex. If you gave me a choice of no sex or having to wear that outfit the rest of my life, I would definitely take the no sex... No wonder they're so crazy.”

WATCH: Larry David On Conan

While The Catholic League has not officially called for a boycott of the movie, they did leave the name and email for the person in charge of communications for Fox, the company that was responsible for the movie -- presumably so that people could register their complaints.

"The Three Stooges," starring Sean Hayes, Chris Diamantopoulos and Will Sasso, hits theaters this weekend.

See Other Causes Of The Catholic League's Bill Donohue

Comments

[Dr Juan]

12:14 AM on 11/06/2012

FYI - here is what a real nun looks like who actually became a Saint - including appearance over 200 years after her death:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTFuwzdHRYQ

[jonas ndluli]

01:21 PM on 05/06/2012

Re 'B' comment: Catholics have been burning, torturing and killing others for non-compliance to their religion for about 1000 years...
Wow, you atheists really live the Old Testament concept of "the sins of the father are visited on the sons...'.

I'm curious, do your comments indicate a hate towards anyone/everyone who has a faith, or is your statement simply based on ignorance...?

[Bobisyouruncle]

07:05 PM on 05/05/2012

"In the 1950s, Hollywood generally avoided crude fare and was respectful of religion."
The fact is in the 50's that Hollywood was overseen by a board of Catholic priests that censored movie content. Now... that Hollywood is free of this tyranny they can make fun of Catholics. So what??? Catholics have been burning, torturing and killing others for non-compliance to their religion for about 1000 years. It doesn't seem like a scantly clad nun is much of a comeback.

[Rod Collins]

12:15 PM on 08/04/2012

"Catholics have been burning, torturing and killing others for non-compliance to their religion for about 1000 years. "

Gosh, Bob, where is his happening? The last heretic-burning I heard of was of a Baptist in 1612, and it wasn't the Catholic Church that did it.

As you are so clearly well informed! could you bring me up to date, please?

[Jujubeen]

03:56 AM on 05/04/2012

How would you atheists like it if I made a movie and portrayed you all as power hungry goose stepping fascists who kill anyone who doesn't follow their ideology. (Nazis, Fascists in Italy, Militarists in Japan) What if I showed as people who have absolutely no kinds of morals who get drunk 24/7 screw anything that has legs, get high as soon as the sun comes up. I don't think you'd like that image although I know some of you might because you live this way. But the majority of you would not. Therefore why should Catholics like it when their nuns are portrayed as sex objects? They don't like it and they have a right to complain.

[Bobisyouruncle]

07:13 PM on 05/05/2012

That is normally how Christian America portrays atheists. We have been taking it for a long, long time. Don't get your panties in a wad over this. If the priest sexual abuse scandal didn't faze you but only caused a speed bump then why would you get hyper of this?

[Rod Collins]

12:18 PM on 08/04/2012

"That is normally how Christian America portrays atheists. "

In that case, Bob, it should be easy to come up with a multiplicity of examples.

Please go right ahead - I am agog!

[yevsek hunter]

03:42 AM on 05/04/2012

Hollywood is a prominent part of the "End Times Anti-Christ" prophesied by the apostle John. Hollywood's anti-Christian propaganda is insidious because it pretends to be "all in fun", but as the old saying goes: "The truth is often spoke in jest". Many of the people in Hollywood producing this hateful "entertainment", like Larry David, are not from a Christian background, and on 12/20/04 Michael Medved, a movie critic and popular radio talk show personality, said of them: "...they hate Christians...they do!" So it is only going to get worst.

[Bob Kresse]

04:36 PM on 05/01/2012

Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk

[blizzard man robot voice]

06:27 PM on 04/30/2012

They have a right to complain because it is offensive to their religion.

[Bobisyouruncle]

07:14 PM on 05/05/2012

Yes... everyone has a right to complain including complaining against their complaints.

[dpiston]

03:53 PM on 04/30/2012

Don't these people ever stop whining? What a bunch of crybabies

[blizzard man robot voice]

06:32 PM on 04/30/2012

Except they aren't whining. They are stating that they are offended by the mockery of their religion. The filmmakers used their 1st Amendment rights to have Larry David and the swimsuit model play nuns in a manner deemed offensive by Catholics. These people do have the right to express their feelings using the same 1st Amendment rights as the filmmakers did.

[VinZenTexaN]

03:22 PM on 04/28/2012

“The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.”
― Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion

[blizzard man robot voice]

06:37 PM on 04/30/2012

This has nothing to do with the article.

[beautabou]

12:04 AM on 04/28/2012

God, Jesus and the Blessed Virgin Mary are NOT religion but spiritual beings. Religion is man made. www.ask.com: what does it say in the bible... etc

The Anti-Christ comes in one form of 'decline of morals'... and relating any sort of sexual behavior to the church directly; it's negativity in a bottomed out society; lost morals... and you lose those, your in trouble. do you understand me? like wearing pajamas out in public... those are your morals dropping down. Remember when you'd be embarrassed to even be in the backyard in jammies for fear the neighbors would see you???? I'm telling you, whoever reads this... think about it. Doing things now that at one time didn't bother you.

Save yourself. try to help others too. An actor in a nun costume means nothing to a practicing Catholic such as myself... but to someone else who doesn't have my background... I will pray for you. Don't let H'wood who is really out to make a buck especially in these hards times........... you remember that and form your own opinions. Trust in God and prayer.

In His name, amen.

[Bobisyouruncle]

07:18 PM on 05/05/2012

I think the morals of your Church dropped to the bottom when your priests decided to sexually abuse children. Don't try blaming Hollywood or Anti-Christs. Take responsibility. The Catholic Church is no moral high ground for sure.

[keven381]

09:51 PM on 04/27/2012

Christianity is full of hypocrites leaving the religion wide open for critisim and ridicule. The good Christians need to speak up so the hypocrittes are harder to hear.

[blizzard man robot voice]

06:38 PM on 04/30/2012

Well here I am. Your statement has nothing to do with the article. The Catholic group has the right to be offended because the film is offensive to them. Heck, I'm not Catholic and it's offensive to me. I tend to care for other people's feelings and not just my own.

[iLdoRight]

08:29 PM on 04/25/2012

Proverbs 6:25, "Lust not after her beauty in thine heart"

Matthew 5:28, "I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart."

Matthew 6:13, "Lead us not into temptation", Please !

[Dr Mephisto]

02:14 PM on 04/26/2012

You do realize these passages are the musings of illiterate Middle Eastern Bedouin savages, from centuries past, right? Oh silly me, of course you do but could care less. How sad

[CynthiaGee]

03:44 PM on 04/26/2012

Illiterate??? Bedouin?????
LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ah well, at least he got the Middle Eastern part right. Now, "Doctor", go back and educate yourself before you embarrass yourself further.
And, DO learn proper punctuation!

[LillyLyn]

05:11 PM on 04/26/2012

Really? Regardless of what century you think these passages are from, don't you think that these are good values to have?!?!

[Jeffin90019]

04:57 PM on 04/25/2012

The Catholic hierarchy has done that all by themselves. Now pass the pope another altar boy.

[Red Leaves]

12:42 PM on 04/20/2012

You can always tell who the fanatics are: people who have absolutely no sense of humor about their beliefs, and can never, ever take a joke at their expense.

[jonas ndluli]

10:37 PM on 04/20/2012

"You can always tell who the fanatics are..."

I know, that's exactly what I said the other day, when I watched Bragg V's Dawkins.
Dorky-Dawkins totally lost the plot and his cool....

[Dr Mephisto]

02:19 PM on 04/26/2012

Sounds more like Dawkins exhibited frustration. How the heck does that equate with fanaticism??

[Bobisyouruncle]

07:31 PM on 05/05/2012

Everyone has an off day. Doesn't make God any more real.

[blizzard man robot voice]

06:46 PM on 04/30/2012

Someone stating they are offended because they feel their religion was being mocked does not make them a fanatic. If someone burns the American flag and I write an Op/Ed about how it offends me doesn't make me a fanatic. People do have the right to state what offends them. It is not fanatic to protest.

[gilcasanova]

12:24 PM on 04/20/2012

Catholicism have already been trashing cristianity for centuries with their stupid trinity...

[jonas ndluli]

10:40 PM on 04/20/2012

"Catholicism have already..."

Well we call it freedom of choice. A choice to believe in a religion (or not). A freedom that's up there with all the other freedoms YOU enjoy.
Maybe 'tolerance' is a word you can add to your vocabulary, sometime ...?

[Jeffin90019]

04:57 PM on 04/25/2012

You are correct. I have learned to tolerate religion. Like any disease, there is only so much man can do to stop its vile spread.

[Bob Kresse]

04:41 PM on 05/01/2012

You HAVE freedom of choice in SPITE of the church not because of it. Remeber the middle ages?

[Jujubeen]

03:43 AM on 05/04/2012

The Trinity is accepted by all mainstream Christian churches not just the Catholic church. The Trinity as an idea came into being when the Council of Nicea came together to decide the fundamental tenents of Christianity as well as decide what would be part of the Bible and what would not be part of the Bible. During the council and through the reading of the scriptures they all came to agreement that God had revealed himself to man in three forms, The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit all of which come together to make up the entity Christians call God. So I don't care if you think the Trinity is stupid, you're entitled to your opinion but its not a Catholic idea its a Christian one.