It's Alive!

by Damian M. Moorman, Dayton2Vegas.com

"Young Frankenstein" is a Mel Brooks classic about Dr. Frankenstein's (pronounced Fronk-en-steen) grandson inheriting his granddad's castle and repeating the infamous experiments after years of living down the family reputation[1]. It's a shame that so many young people now-a-days haven't seen this film. It's regarded by many top critics as one of the best movies in its genre, Classic Comedy. "Young Frankenstein" made it onto Bravo's 100 Funniest Movies, Total Film Magazine's 50 Greatest Comedies of All Time, IMDb's Top 250 Movies, and Rotten Tomatoes' Class A Comedies List[2].

The highest acclaim for "Young Frankenstein" just might've been when it was chosen as the 13th best comedy in 100 years of Film, according to the American Film Institute (AFI). It was also nominated as one of the 100 Greatest Movies of All Time by the AFI[3].

"Young Frankenstein" was nominated for two Academy Awards (Best Sound and Best Writing)[4]. The haunting music throughout the film perfectly matches the gloomy black-and-white appearance. The cast of Young Frankenstein is amazing. Oscar award-winning writer Mel Brooks co-wrote and directed this comedic masterpiece[5].

Brooks' film is a loving parody of the three Frankenstein movies; Frankenstein (1931), Bride of Frankenstein (1935), and Son of Frankenstein (1939). Brooks does however manage to take shots at a few other films in the horror genre such as Dracula (1931), The Wolf Man (1931), and Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954). The film was shot in the same castle and with the same props as the original 1931 German movie Frankenstein.

Gene Wilder stars in the film as Dr. Fredrick Frankenstein. Wilder also co-wrote the movie and first gave the idea to Brooks on the set of their previous comedic work Blazing Saddles. Wilder has received two Academy Award nominations, including one for his writing on "Young Frankenstein"[6].

"Igor" is played by Marty Feldman, who won the Golden Scroll from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror Films for Best Supporting Actor[7]. Brooks said there wasn't one other person that could've played this role better than Feldman, mainly because of his uncanny timing and physical comedy.

The monster is "brought to life" by Peter Boyle, best known for his Emmy-nominated role as the grandfather from "Everybody Loves Raymond." Boyle was definitely one of the best parts of this film because he demonstrated the unruly side of a monster while showing the innocent and helpless side of his character.

Madeline Kahn, who has been nominated twice for the Best Actress in a Supporting Role Oscar, plays "Elizabeth" and Academy-award winner Cloris Leachman is also great as the crazy "Frau Blucher[8]." Two-time Oscar award-winning Gene Hackman plays a small part as a blind hermit which provides a lot of laughs when he's confronted by the monster[9]. Hackman's character manages to spill hot soup on the monster's crotch and light his hand on fire all in a matter of minutes.

The cinematography by Gerald Hirschfeld is also a key part to this film as it stays true to the horror genre of the original 1931 film with its black-and-white appearance. Making Sense of Movies, a great book about what goes on behind the scene in film, discusses the impact not only of choosing to shoot in black-and-white, but the ability to stress shadows and the effect of low-angle camera shots to make the monster appear even larger and scarier. Many of these tactics were used to "sell" the idea that the monster was larger than life.

"Young Frankenstein" was released on December 15, 1974, and is still impacting the film industry today[10]. In January of this year 2007, it was announced that "Young Frankenstein" was going to be made into a Broadway Play. I'm sure that the monster performing the "Ritz" act will be among the highlights!

While I was researching the movie I found an interesting story. When the rock band Aerosmith was recording their album, "Toys in the Attic," they took a break to watch "Young Frankenstein." After watching the scene where Marty Feldman's character, "Igor", implores Wilder's character to walk correctly, Aerosmith decided to use that idea and the key phrase spoken by Igor in their number one hit song, "Walk this Way[11]."

I remember watching this film for the first time when I was only twelve years old. I honestly laughed from almost start to finish. Unlike more recent comedies, "Young Frankenstein" managed to be extremely funny without using vulgar language. "Young Frankenstein" is rated PG and still manages to appeal to the more mature crowd. This is all proof of how creative and intelligent Brooks and Wilder truly are.

Another very big reason you should watch this film is that Brooks believes that it is his best work of his career[12]. How important is that? Brooks wrote and directed a number of great comedies from the late 1960s up until the 1980s that all did very well at the box office. The "Producers" (1968), "Blazing Saddles" (1974), and "Spaceballs" (1987) are just a few of his hit movies he places below "Young Frankenstein" as his favorite film. I do not disagree with his opinion, as "Young Frankenstein" is also my favorite of his movies and definitely worth watching. The movie holds true to its tagline as "The scariest comedy of all time[13]!"

References
[1, 3] American Film Institute (AFI) http://www.afi.com/tvevents/100years/100yearslist.aspx May 25, 2007.
[2, 9, 11, 13] Rotten Tomatoes. http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/young_frankenstein/ May 25, 2007.
[4, 5, 7, 8, 10] IMDb. Internet Movie Database http://imdb.com/title/tt0072431/ May 26, 2007.
[6, 12] Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Young_Frankenstein May 27, 2007.

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