Tag: Mel Brooks

Nov 01 2018

Episode 122 – Young Frankenstein

, with special guest:

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Young FrankensteinJust in time for the day after Halloween! We finish off our trip through the films that are arguably Mel Brooks’ best with Young Frankenstein! This satirical homage to the classic Universal horror movies (but especially Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein) may be one of Brooks’ least madcap films but it is still a comedic masterpiece. Gene Wilder heads up a stellar cast that really chews scenery in black and white!

Next up, we’ll follow Madeline Kahn to Clue!

Young Frankenstein (1974)
Young Frankenstein poster Rating: 8.0/10 (168,554 votes)
Director: Mel Brooks
Writer: Gene Wilder, Mel Brooks, Mary Shelley
Stars: Gene Wilder, Madeline Kahn, Marty Feldman
Runtime: 106 min
Rated: PG
Genre: Comedy
Released: 15 Dec 1974
Plot: An American grandson of the infamous scientist, struggling to prove that his grandfather was not as insane as people believe, is invited to Transylvania, where he discovers the process that reanimates a dead body.

Oct 15 2018

Episode 121 – Blazing Saddles

, with special guest:

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Blazing SaddlesOur Mel Brooks series continues with his parody of the Western Genre – Blazing Saddles! Alison Anderson joins us for her first viewing of a film that took on racism head on in the 1970’s. When it comes to addressing racism, the film still really does a good job. When it comes to…other things, it might not have fared so well. Still, for the most part it holds up fabulously and is still wickedly funny.

From here, we are going to watch one more Mel Brooks film – Young Frankenstein.

Blazing Saddles (1974)
Blazing Saddles poster Rating: 7.7/10 (152,019 votes)
Director: Mel Brooks
Writer: Mel Brooks, Norman Steinberg, Andrew Bergman
Stars: Cleavon Little, Gene Wilder, Slim Pickens
Runtime: 93 min
Rated: R
Genre: Comedy, Western
Released: 07 Feb 1974
Plot: In order to ruin a western town, a corrupt politician appoints a black Sheriff, who promptly becomes his most formidable adversary.

Sep 15 2018

Episode 120 – The Producers (2005)

, with special guest:

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The Producers (2005)Having just watched The Producers (1967) by Mel Brooks, we follow up by watching The Producers (2005) by Mel Brooks! This musical adaptation of the original film that was not quite a musical once again features “Springtime for Hitler” but it also has a whole lot of other songs along with Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick, who reprise their roles from the Broadway production. For this episode, Melissa is our noob who has never seen the film before and Barb Lind acts as our expert while Tim misses his first Reel Education podcast!

Next up, we will continue to delve into the Mel Brooks Filmography with Blazing Saddles!

The Producers (2005)
The Producers poster Rating: 6.3/10 (44,597 votes)
Director: Susan Stroman
Writer: Mel Brooks, Thomas Meehan
Stars: Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, Uma Thurman
Runtime: 134 min
Rated: PG-13
Genre: Comedy, Crime, Musical
Released: 25 Dec 2005
Plot: After putting together another Broadway flop, down-on-his-luck producer Max Bialystock teams up with timid accountant Leo Bloom in a get-rich-quick scheme to put on the world's worst show.

Sep 01 2018

Episode 119 – The Producers (1967)

, with special guest:

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | RSS

The ProducersThis week, we begin working through a series of films by Mel Brooks. We start with our look at his first film, a movie Roger Ebert called “one of the funniest films ever made,” The Producers (1967)! Barb Lind joins us to discuss this film that dares to take on Hitler with comedy. Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder are the stars in what would later become a broadway musical that was adapted into a different film! That we will watch next!

Next up: The Producers (2005)!

The Producers (1967)
The Producers poster Rating: 7.5/10 (59,366 votes)
Director: Mel Brooks
Writer: Mel Brooks
Stars: Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder, Dick Shawn
Runtime: 88 min
Rated: PG
Genre: Comedy, Music
Released: 10 Nov 1968
Plot: A stage-play producer devises a plan to make money by producing a sure-fire flop.