Young Frankenstein

Starring: Gene Wilder, Peter Boyle, Marty Feldman, Cloris Leachman, Teri Garr, Madeline Kahn, Kenneth Mars, Gene Hackman
Directed by: Mel Brooks
Rating: PG
Genre: Comedy
1974

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Frederick Frankenstein (Gene Wilder) has attempted to escape his family legacy. However, a series of events leads Frederick to his father's laboratory where he begins work on creating another monster.

Review:

Tim: Mel Brooks does some clever and witty twists on the old Frankenstein tale, but while it is interesting, the laughs don't come nearly enough to call this one of Brooks' best. I know most critics will disagree with me.

The combination of director Mel Brooks and Gene Wilder is a fabulous one, and is always worth seeing. They combine for quite a few funny moments here. I personally loved the fireplace scene, and "It's pronounced I-gore" is hilarious. There are a number of other scenes that are worth watching, even if the film as a whole has a few weaknesses.

Wilder is good as always. While he's definitely been funnier, he's also had better material to work with. Still, you should really enjoy him in the role.

Part of the problem with this movie is that there didn't seem to be enough material to spoof or of which to make fun. In films like Blazing Saddles, you had an entire genre of material, and the same in Spaceballs (Westerns, and Sci-fi, respectively, if you're clueless). Here, you really only have one story, and not too many jokes. I know this is not so much a spoof as a comedic interpretation of the Frankenstein tale, but it could have been funnier if it expanded its scope just a bit.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Blazing Saddles, Spaceballs