Young Frankenstein (1974)

Running Time: 1hr 46min

Release Date: December 15, 1974

Written by: Gene Wilder, Mel Brooks

Directed by: Mel Brooks

Review by: Ash

I typically don't go to movie theaters as a rule.  Why pay $15 for one movie ticket then pay way too much for the food there when the movie you are about to see might be horrible? So it means something when I actually throw down that ungodly amount for a ticket to see something on the big screen. This time it was for Young Frankenstein.

Once I got to the theater I wondered how many folks would go to see a film that was made over 40 years ago. I was pleasantly surprised to find it was more than I expected, by the time the movie was about to start the theater was about 1/4th full (way more people than at the Blair Witch opening I went to a week or so ago). The best thing was that it wasn't just old people. There was a mix of all ages in the audience, from 16-70 years old and everything in between.

Because this was a special event we were treated to nifty facts and trivia about the movie and also some behind the scenes pictures. 

The cherry on top was an intro with director Mel Brooks streamed live from the 20th Century Fox Studio where they were holding the main screening of the movie. He talked about the experience of working on this movie with so many talented people, showed off a beautiful mural on the studio back lot of the lab scene and even showed off Mel Brooks Boulevard. It was good to see that even at 90 Mel's still got it, he was cracking jokes that even had the young kids in the audience busting a gut laughing.

Once he had finished the show started so without further ado, on with the review...

Ever since I was a young child I have been a fan of horror movies and I was able to get a good solid foundation with the classics with the Universal monster movies: Dracula, The Wolf Man, The Mummy, etc.  But out of them all my favorites were James Whale's Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein. So when I first saw Young Frankenstein I fell right in love with it.

Young Frankenstein was written by Gene Wilder and directed by Mel brooks (the king of movie parodies). It tells the story of Frederick Frankenstein (pronounced fronk-in-steen)(Gene Wilder), who is the grandson of Victor Frankenstein. Frederick has done all he could to put the facts of his family's sordid past behind him and make a name for himself as a legitimate doctor. He inherits the old family castle from his great grandfather, bids farewell to his untouchably pristine fiancée, Elizabeth (Madeline Khan), and heads to Transylvania (by train) to take possession of his inheritance. Once there he meets a long list of zany characters like Igor (Marty Feldman), his beautiful and very buxom lab assistant, Inga (Terri Garr), the horse-startling caretaker, Frau Blücher (Cloris Leachman), and the wooden-handed inspector, Kemp (Kenneth Mars).

This movie is as close to spoof perfection as it gets. There are so many jokes stacked one on top of the other. Some of the jokes are obvious and others a bit more subtle. Even tonight after seeing the movie countless times I noticed something new (ex: over the third switch are the words "the works").

The performances are right on the money, the casting to me was without flaws (even down to Gene Hackman as the old blind man). Their chemistry and comedic timing are just as perfect. However, Marty Feldman’s performance as Igor really took the prize.

As far as the visual style, the movie was filmed in black and white which at the time studios did not want to do because by 1974 black and white had been phased out and seen as outdated. Thank goodness they went with that style because it really gave it that authentic feel like it was filmed in the 1930s. While I am on the subject of visuals, the sets are amazing. They are huge and beautifully backlit to really give them the scope and grandeur that the James Whale classics had. Also the level of detail to the set dressings in the lab has to be mentioned, they actually went to the man who owned the lab equipment from the Frankenstein movie and bought them to use in the film which was a beautiful touch.

So I guess here is the part where I have to bitch about something in regards to the movie. All I can come up with is how much it sucks that Gene Wilder has passed away. He left such a long lasting impression on comedy and with this movie, horror comedies.

So what did I feel once the movie was over about the whole experience? Was it worth the $15?

Well, let me put it this way. Everyone there was a true fan of the movie, we were all laughing together and quoting the same hilarious lines. Then when the credits were rolling no one left the theater, everyone waited till the lights came up. Then something happened I have only been through a few times in my life, everyone in the audience in our po-dunk theater applauded.

The whole thing was an amazing experience. It truly is something special when a movie can touch so many people so deeply. Being able to see one of my favorite comedies of all time on the big screen alongside other fans and sharing in the experience...  That was $15 well spent.

Final Verdict - Five syringes full of sedagive (out of 5)