So I've had Blazing Saddles at my house for probably a month and half - that tells you how excited I was to watch this movie - the only reason I had it was because Chris hijacked my Netflix account again. So tonight I bit the bullet.
About 30 minutes in, all I could think was...."Is this supposed to be funny? ...and if so, why?"
Then 35 minutes in I thought..."what on Earth is going on with Gene Wilder's hair?" LOL
The first half I really didn't care for at all - the second half was better and I did laugh out loud a few times, but this is really, really not my cup of tea. I just....don't get it. Why is it so funny? The scene where the men are sitting around the fire eating beans? I wanted to throw up! I have had a bad taste in my mouth since seeing Gene Wilder in Willy Wonka but I did like him more in this movie. Chris and I decided that what makes him creepy is that he talks so quietly all the time...and slowly....but it also makes him kinda cool? Haha :)
Is this the first movie where someone said "Excuse me while I whip this out?" Classic Marlie and Melissa quote that I never knew came from this movie.
Blazing Saddles was nominated for 3 Academy Awards - Best Film Editing, Best Music and Best Supporting Actress...ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Was no one else acting that year? Unbelievable.
Hilarious for better or worse! I think what makes it a classic is the shock value of the dialogue throughout the movie. This movie could never be made now, so I don't think we have to worry about a remake.
ReplyDeleteYah, the language for sure would not fly!
ReplyDeleteWell...it can be really hard sometimes to explain WHY you like a movie or especially why you think it's funny, but I'll at least try to tell you why I loved this movie.
ReplyDelete#1 Gene Wilder. So freakin' charming all the way through. Love his scenes and the way he plays his character.
#2 Harvey Korman, come on you have to admit he's really great in this. I have a soft spot for him from the Carol Burnett Show of course, but I love every time hes on screen.
The thing is, like Derek said, no way this movie could be made now, and I love the risks it takes with its jokes and humor. Mel Brooks stereotypes anything and everything and it almost makes you realize how ridiculous people are in how they generalize other people...even though I'm not sure if Mel Brooks intended that or not...though he may have.
I'm also not a big fan of the "eating beans around the fire" scene but there are a lot of other scenes you can turn your focus on.
I had the exact same reaction when I sat down to watch it, "Um, this is supposed to be funny? Really?!" I just didn't get it and I think it was a case of watching it many, many years out of context? I dunno. I was not a fan. The only Mel Brooks movies that I find even remotely funny are Robin Hood Men in Tights and History of the World Part One (he has a song about the Inquisition that is annoyingly catchy....dammit! now its stuck in my head!)
ReplyDeleteThis is a guy movie. That should really just be the only explanation needed for this movie. LOL It was making fun of Western movie stereotypes. I agree with Melissa that Mel Brooks uses the stereotypes as social commententary. I'm sure he does it on purpose. The un-PC language is shock value humor, I believe. Just like he did in The Producers with "Springtime for Hitler". Same kind of humor used on All in the Family to focus on bigotry. Defending the Jews is usually a big theme in his films. In this one, he was focusing on African Americans, rarely ever seen in Westerns prior to the 1970's.
ReplyDeleteLoved Madeline Kahn doing Marlene Dietrich in this. (Dietrich and Jimmy Stewart in Destry Rides Again!) She was always good and yes, Melissa, Harvey Korman!