Review of Young Frankenstein (1974) Movie
In celebration of Halloween on Thursday, I’m going to review Mel Brooks’s Young Frankenstein. For those of you who are familiar with Mel Brooks, those four words pretty much tell you all that you need to know. It’s Mel Brooks putting his classic touch on the Frankenstein story. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Mel Brooks, I’m sorry for your difficult childhood, and please go watch Spaceballs immediately. The humor is crude, the acting is over the top, the lines are ridiculous – in other words pretty much everything you could ever want in a movie.
If you’re still not sure if this movie is one you’d enjoy, let me give you a hint: my female relatives are reading this and wondering where they went wrong with me, while my male relatives are reading this and thinking “man, it’s been a while, I need to watch it again!” It is certainly the type of movie that you need to be in the mood for – slapstick comedies don’t always fit the bill for an evening in, but it is really funny and showcases some greats: Gene Wilder, Peter Boyle, Marty Feldman, Teri Garr, Madeline Khan, and even Gene Hackman has a small bit.
My plans for Halloween are set: dress my baby up as Luke Skywalker, eat candy corn, and watch Young Frankenstein. I’m also wishing I could sedate our dog for the evening, as an anxious terrier plus trick-or-treating kids ringing the doorbell every five minutes is not a happy combination, but that’s neither here nor there.
Side note: It’s rated PG, which by today’s standards is probably technically accurate, but I’d call it more PG-13 lite. Apart from the rauncy bits, there are some parts that might be scary for younger children, so I’d definitely make sure you are very familiar with the movie before deciding whether or not to let your kids watch it.
Get it: Amazon, Barnes & Noble
What’s your favorite Mel Brooks movie? Can’t stand him? Anyone want to watch my dog on Oct. 31?
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