Topic: Blazing Saddles @ 50 years old.. and other Mel Brooks productions if you got 'em

[CHOPPER]

Blazing Saddles, BBC 4 10:15pm tonight.

And later on, there will be a number 6 dance.

[CHOPPER]

Last call for Rockridge!

[TipTopKop]

--See this hand?

-Steady as a rock.

--Yeah well, I shoot with this one (produces his other manically shaking hand)

[Brian Blessed]

It’s a great film, and I’m going to go against the grain and say it could be made today, provided you have the brilliance of Mel Brooks behind it, as it’s clearly taking the piss out of idiot racists.

If we are going to re-examine, things like Revenge of the Nerds and Porkys are problems, not Blazing Saddles.

[Stubbins]

Just bookmarked High Anxiety and Silent Movie on BeeTV will watch them sometime over the weekend

These two came out in quick succession and I'm sure I saw them as a 'double bill' at the cinema in the late 70s. Got your money's worth in those days with a double bill feature.

I read once that Young Frankenstein was way behind the shooting schedule right from the off, because Gene Wilder & Marty Feldman were two of the biggest 'corpsers' in the film industry. They just had to exchange a look to set them off laughing. There's so many out-takes and bloopers available on Youtube that you wonder how they ever finished it.

[CHOPPER]

It’s a great film, and I’m going to go against the grain and say it could be made today, provided you have the brilliance of Mel Brooks behind it, as it’s clearly taking the piss out of idiot racists.

If we are going to re-examine, things like Revenge of the Nerds and Porkys are problems, not Blazing Saddles.

I’m shocked this thread has made 2 pages considering the film quotes and the way this place is, let alone a remake!

[classycarra]

It’s a great film, and I’m going to go against the grain and say it could be made today, provided you have the brilliance of Mel Brooks behind it, as it’s clearly taking the piss out of idiot racists.

If we are going to re-examine, things like Revenge of the Nerds and Porkys are problems, not Blazing Saddles.

don't doubt there's smart and funny enough people to come up with the ideas and have the desire to get it out there. but i'm not sure i share your optimism in terms of some sections of audiences.

young people (talking gen z here) seem to be a lot more reactionary and absolutist in a lot of things, and many seem to be really prescriptive about the arts - 'should have done this' , 'shouldn't have done that type' stuff.

[rob1966]

don't doubt there's smart and funny enough people to come up with the ideas and have the desire to get it out there. but i'm not sure i share your optimism in terms of some sections of audiences.

young people (talking gen z here) seem to be a lot more reactionary and absolutist in a lot of things, and many seem to be really prescriptive about the arts - 'should have done this' , 'shouldn't have done that type' stuff.

There's an American comedian I've seen on reels, Brad Williams - his bio is comedian, part time dwarf. In one reel, he's talking about a woman coming up to him after a show, offended that he uses the word midget. He is apologetic at first, asking does she have a kid with the same condition as him? No. Does she have a family member? No. he then tells her to fuck off, getting offended on other peoples behalf.

You can imagine the uproar when Higgins from Magnum is getting ready for the Sheriffs arrival, the fella keeps shouting what they think is "the sheriffs a near" because of the church bell, then he  does his speech, looks up and says "we welcome our new...... n*****r"

[Buck Pete]

The bit in High Anxiety that cracks me up is when Mel Brook's character specifically and categorically instructs Harvey Korman's Dr. character not to reveal anything about his condition.

Dr Montague (Korman) swears to god on his patient confidentiality etc

2-seconds later you see Harvey's head pop around the door and announce to the whole waiting room "Hey guys! Guess who's got high anxiety!"

[Trada]

It’s a great film, and I’m going to go against the grain and say it could be made today, provided you have the brilliance of Mel Brooks behind it, as it’s clearly taking the piss out of idiot racists.

If we are going to re-examine, things like Revenge of the Nerds and Porkys are problems, not Blazing Saddles.

I think it could be made today, you only have to look at films like Jo Jo Rabbit and BlacKkKlansman and both went on to win Oscars

[slotmachine]

I loved Porky's and Revenge of the Nerds, Screwballs as well!!!! I was around 11 or 12 at the time and i remember everyone in school watched it. Its fucking mental thinking back the stuff like this and the horror films we were allowed to watch. I dont think them films were particularly bad they were essentially about teenagers on heat messing round and chasing each other. They are basically like the Inbetweeners with more nudity if you could compare them to something of the modern day.

[Brian Blessed]

Mostly, but nerds does have the rape at the end there. But it’s okay in the film because she enjoyed it 

[slotmachine]

Mostly, but nerds does have the rape at the end there. But it’s okay in the film because she enjoyed it 

Does it mate? Fucking hell dont remember that. Thank god. Has i said our parents were fucking mental in the 80's.

[Brian Blessed]

Does it mate? Fucking hell dont remember that. Thank god. Has i said our parents were fucking mental in the 80's.

No, it doesn’t! And I’m not surprised you don’t remember, the film plays it like a good thing because the nerd gets the pretty woman. I think I was around the same age as you when I saw it, and I didn’t realise the implication at the time. I may have only realised when it was pointed out, I can’t remember.

[Statto Red]

It's available on the iplayer, but only for another 19 days.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000x8pm/blazing-saddles

[Terry de Niro]

It's available on the iplayer, but only for another 19 days.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000x8pm/blazing-saddles

In full or edited for the PC Brigade?

[classycarra]

In full or edited for the PC Brigade?

didn't seem at all edited when i watched it on there the other day

[Riquende]

In full or edited for the PC Brigade?

I'm a fully paid up member of the PC brigade and have no problem with it, what would need to be edited?

[CHOPPER]

I'm a fully paid up member of the PC brigade and have no problem with it, what would need to be edited?

We'll take the chinks and the niggers, but we won't take the Irish.

[Riquende]

We'll take the chinks and the niggers, but we won't take the Irish.

It's a film about racism, why wouldn't it be using derogatory racist terms for ethnic/national groups? That character is one of the town leaders who at the start of the movie had been depicted as entirely racist towards Bart, and whilst the townfolk had been undergoing an evolution across the movie away from that it, the attitudes and language don't drop away overnight. Besides, he doesn't get his way and immediately changes his mind.

Context is key, they are using these words in the movie for effect. There is a level of skill and comic artistry involved in being able to 'get away with it, it's a world away from simply using using such words in some Bernard Manning-style stand up routine.

[Terry de Niro]

Context is key, they are using these words in the movie for effect. There is a level of skill and comic artistry involved in being able to 'get away with it, it's a world away from simply using using such words in some Bernard Manning-style stand up routine.

Agree with all that, but the words that they use in the film are generally words most of us wouldn't use in any context.

[Statto Red]

In full or edited for the PC Brigade?

In full, just started watching it & couple of n words already.

[Terry de Niro]

In full, just started watching it & couple of n words already.