Posts by Gino Sassani

Mel Brooks has often been called the Master of Comedy. The moniker might be a bit too grandiose, but he was certainly the master of the parody. In recent years that has become more evident than ever. Too often I've been forced to sit through something called a comedy. Not only can I do so without ever actually laughing, but there are far too many titles of late that don't even give me the chance to crack a smile. It's not that I've seen so much that it's hard to find anything original. I can still laugh like crazy when I watch a Sanford and Son episode I've seen at least 50 times or an Abbott & Costello routine that was old before they even got their hands on the material. There is a famous quote that states, "Dying is easy. Comedy is hard." Then why does Mel Brooks make it look so dang easy?

While we're on the subject of masters, you really can't avoid the Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock. Perhaps no one understood his audience more than Hitch did. He's influenced a great many of today's filmmaking geniuses. He's been admired by almost anyone who has ever really studied film. Mel Brooks can be counted among his students. On more than one occasion I have seen an interview where Brooks can't say enough flattering things about Alfred Hitchcock. It would have only been a matter of time before Brooks turned his creative mind to one of his own idols. The result is enough to give anyone High Anxiety.

"Even in the most primitive man, the need to create was part of his nature. This need, this talent, clearly separated early man from animals who would never know this gift. And here, in a cave somewhere in the North American Continent, about two million years ago, the first artist was born. And, of course, with the birth of the artist came the inevitable afterbirth ... the critic."

That's me. Afterbirth here. Brooks always did love to poke fun at the critics. And why not? Unfortunately, this was not one of his better films and likely received a lot of poking from the brethren. It was one of his worst films at the box office, pulling in only $31 million. Compared to many of his hits, it must have been a disappointing take for Mel at the time. Now out, along with some other of his films, on Blu-ray, this rather forgettable film looks even more dated and overindulgent than ever. Certainly, there are some classic moments. Mel, is, after all, Mel. But he never could string enough of them together to meet expectations. Too bad, really. It was a grand idea.