Dad's Movie Lists
 

Blazing Saddles (1974), Director: Mel Brooks, rated R racial language, sexual innuendo

Mel Brooks' comic saga of cowboys and imbeciles.

Film ClipStarring: Clevon Little, Gene Wilder, Slim Pickens, David Huddleston, Harvey Korman, Madeline Kahn, Mel Brooks, Alex Karras, Claude E. Starrett Jr., Carol Arthur

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★★ - perfect

"Where the white women at?" - Sheriff Bart

Why watch this? ... because this hilarious comedy could not be made today.

Plot Summary: In order to drive away the townspeople of Rock Ridge and acquire their land, a corrupt politician appoints a Black man, Bart, as their new sheriff, expecting him to be run out of town. However, the new sheriff, aided by a skilled but troubled gunslinger, The Waco Kid, defies expectations and rallies the reluctant citizens to defend their home. Together, they face down a variety of absurd and dangerous obstacles, ultimately exposing the villain's scheme.

Dad's Preview: How do you talk about racism in 1974 - make a comedy about it, of course! Then you set it in the most racist chapter of American history - the Old West. Thank you Mel Brooks. Oh, it's funny, like off the charts funny. It also would never have happened this way in real life. That absurdity makes the whole thing even more humorous. The white townsfolk serve as the film's "comic relief", turning the typical Western trope on its head. Little and Wilder are wisely allowed to steal the show. Madeline Kahn is at her loveable, sleazy best. Warning - the "N" word is used a lot.


Crossbow Productions; Warner Bros.

Back