Must See Movie...

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

The humour of this film is way beyond what you'd think was possible for the 70's. Even in the modern age if this film was produced now it'd still be considered a work of genius

RELEASED IN 1974 and directed by Mel Brooks, "Blazing Saddles" is a Western parody starring Cleavon Little and Gene Wilder as the newly appointed black sheriff of Rock Ridge and his deputy, the Waco Kid. Rather than chasing away the inhabitants they corral them against the corrupt politicians who threaten their town. Mel Brooks plays the Governor (as well as an Indian Chief) and Harvey Korman the conniving State Attorney General. Slim Pickens and a gazillion others guest star. Little got the lead role of Sheriff Bart over Richard Pryor, who co-wrote the screenplay and was intended for the part himself. Producers, however, were reluctant due to Pryor's racy repute and so opted for the safer choice of Little, who's great in the role.Pansy, over-sensitive liberals rail against the movie due to its political incorrectness, but that's like complaining that water is wet. The humor is intentionally offensive, stupid, juvenile, crude, vulgar and silly. Some of it's funny while some of it falls flat or is too dumb or dated for modern viewers; it just depends on the person watching. I laughed enough and enjoyed the classic cast to give the flick a marginal 'thumbs up.' Some say a movie like this would never be made by Hollywood today. Really? I guess they've never seen "Django Unchained" (2012) or "The Hateful Eight" (2015). On the female front, ravishing honey-voiced Robyn Hilton has a too-brief part as the governor's "secretary" and Madeline Kahn, in her prime at 31, has a more significant role as a Marlene Dietrich-like saloon entertainer. More shoulda been done with both of 'em. THE FILM RUNS 93 minutes and was shot at Burbank Studios, Santa Clarita & Vasquez Rocks, California. GRADE: B-

In Blazing Saddles, Mel Brooks touches on the inherent theme of racism in Hollywood in the classic movies of the Wild West in a way that is both hilarious and clever. Although shown over 40 years ago, it is still a timeless classic. Cleavon Little enters as a black railroad worker named Bart, who escapes death at the hangman's noose only to find himself thrust into a conflict between Attorney General Hedley Lamarr (Harvey Korman) and the Wild West town of Rock Ridge. Wanting to drive out the residents so he can build a railroad through the land he makes Bart the sheriff of Rock Ridge, hoping to create chaos and anarchy through the townspeople's inherent racism. This attitude towards Bart is taken to the extremes, at one point having him dress up as a member of the KKK to avoid detection, but Brooks carefully navigates this to create a masterpiece of comedy. Bart arrives in the town of Rock Ridge as the new sheriff but instead of being greeted with open arms by the residents he is instead faced with a seemingly impenetrable wall of hostility and racism. However, along with alcoholic gunslinger Jim, he saves the town from a terrorizing band of outlaws and so wins their trust. Together they create a hero and sidekick that is so obviously clichéd that it instead becomes genius. The jokes in the movie are corny and silly, the bad guys are unbelievably stupid, and a blonde German bombshell, Lili von Shtupp (Madeline Kahn) who is hired by Lamarr to seduce Bart is probably the silliest, most ridiculous character I have ever seen. However, this does not detract from the film but rather adds to it. This eccentric group of characters combined with the take on Wild West racism throughout could have made this film bad, not funny, and potentially extremely offensive. But it isn't. The film works because it finds the thin line between funny and offensive and treads it perfectly, each character finds their stereotype and exploits it to the maximum but with full awareness of where they are in the plot. Although on the surface the film can seem messy and sloppily told, look deeper and you will see how carefully the film has been put together. Each new joke and scene is daring and bold, taking your expectations of the film and shattering them. With any comedy, however, there are the bad jokes, not a single film in existence is perfect and comedies are often the most imperfect of all, as the job of keeping us laughing throughout is incredibly challenging. But Blazing Saddles knows this, and instead of refining the film to create a "perfect" comedy, it knows the truth, that being the audience certainly won't laugh at everything so it throws enough curve balls that if you are guaranteed to find yourself enjoying it at the very least. Blazing Saddles has stood the test of time as it is a rare example of originality in an industry dominated by sequels and clichés, it finds every cliché known to man and turns them into a movie that while crude and slightly shocking at times, is a movie for which the saying "a must see classic" is wholly deserved.

I was mentioning this movie a while back to a co-worker, and she said, "Oh, that movie is terrible, it's so racist..." She didn't get it. There is a lot of politically incorrect language, a lot of use of the "N" word. But you have to pay attention to the context. All the racial slurs are done in such a way that the object of ridicule is the racist whites, not African Americans. In that sense, it's just brilliant. In one scene, when the black sheriff greets an old white woman on the street, she responds with "Outta my way, n****r! Later, after he has proved his worthiness as sheriff, she brings him a pie she baked for him as a token of appreciation "for saving our town from that horrible "Mongo..." Then, before departing, she says, "Oh, and, sorry about the "outta my way n****er..." Some 40+ years later, whenever I hear that line, I find myself rolling on the floor laughing... Pure genius!