Mel Brooks' Meta Classic is the template for Western comedies

With over 100 years of gritty and dramatic approaches to the era, the American Old West is one of the most explored in films, and Mel Brooks' Blazing saddles Remains one of the most unique 50 years later. At the time, Brooks was a rising name in the world of film, originally making a name for himself in the world of television by co-creating. Get smart And musically Shinbone Alley. While he would go on to be better known for his various parodies, Blazing saddles Proved to be a much better focus on genre satire than anything else.

Blazing saddles Focuses on Cleavon Little's Bart, a black railroad worker who finds himself appointed sheriff of the small town of Rock Ridge as part of a corrupt politician's plot to claim ownership of the town before it becomes worth millions. As he adjusts to the closed-mindedness of the isolated town, Bart befriends Gene Wilder's Jim, the local drunk who is actually a former legendary gunslinger known as the Waco Kid, and begins to earn the respect of Rock Ridge and stop him. The respect. Political plans.

Blazing Saddles' story moves at an expert pace

Brooks effectively with the story while delivering on the comedy

The world of comedy can be just as focused on delivering a meaningful story as it is on making audiences laugh, although there are many movies that have focused too much on one or the other that they fail to deliver. with Blazing saddlesBrooks and his writing team of Norman Steinberg, Andrew Bergman, iconic comedian Richard Pryor and Alan Uger find an effective balance in their overall pacing of Bart and Jim's story with their jokes.

The opening of the movie lays the groundwork for Bart's behavior as a trickster and getting out of sticky situations with clever schemes, even as it all-too-directly establishes its late 1800s setting with satirical racist jokes. The introduction of Jim and the evolution of his character progresses similarly at a smooth pace as we learn why he turned to alcoholism and see him come to terms with his past thanks to his friendship with Bart.

Wow Blazing saddles' History begins to crumble a little is the lack of any kind of evolution for its characters beyond Bart and Jim. Harvey Korman's Hedley Lamarr is a pretty routine villain, while Madeline Kahn's Lili Von Shtupp shows inklings of change in turning against Lamarr after being hired to seduce Bart, though even this is still largely played for laughs due to her sexual encounter with Bart. Her appearance singing in a World War II parody play in the film's chaotic finale is even further proof of how little her connection with Bart ultimately matters.

The movie's jokes are still largely hilarious (but don't all age well)

Brooks & Co.'s attempts at self-aware satire work in parts, but not in others

While it may have established Brooks' later penchant for humorous approaches to iconic genres and stories, Blazing saddles Still remains one of the filmmaker's riskiest movies to date with its handling of its period setting. The American West was not only a cruel era, but also one of the least tolerant of anyone not white, with many still holding on to racist Civil War beliefs, and the general idea of ​​western expansion putting them in conflict with various Native Americans Tribes.

Brooks and his team certainly do not shy away from this unfortunate truth Blazing saddlesWith the n-word often uttered when referring to Bart, as well as derivative slurs to seemingly gay men from that era and beyond, as the meta finale jumps into the present day. Brooks' cameo as a Native American chief was directly discovered 50 years later; This is a very small part that could have been given to an authentic actor, rather than the co-writer/director, who redfaced it.

That goes without saying Blazing saddlesJokes don't stand the test of time. Bart and Jimmy's antics are often lighthearted, but effectively blunt. Some of the aforementioned racial slurs are cut short due to environmental or situational interruptions, namely when Bart rides into town and the local old man fails to warn the townsfolk due to a church bell ringing. The overall slapstick is also pretty grounded rather than cartoonish, whether it's Lamar hitting his head on a window several times while shouting at the waistlines, or any of Wilder's physical comedy.

The ending feels too unsatisfying because of how chaotic it gets

With its self-referential and satirical tone, Blazing saddles Often goes for meta jokes throughout its runtime, which is effective in parts. Bart's mention of Jesse Owens as he prepares to run away is funny due to its anachronistic nature, Little's frequent fourth-wall breaking nicely nods to us not taking anything too seriously in the movie, and the spoof of everything from Cabaret to The Twilight Zone are intelligent references for those who choose them.

But while it's often refreshing, especially for '70s-era filmmaking, Blazing saddles' Meta humor is a bit too scattered as it progresses, with its ending being the most egregious example of such. In the middle of the chaotic fight between Rock Ridge and Lamarr's mercenaries, the setting suddenly shifts to show everything happening on Warner Bros.' Backlot, then leading to a clash between different Fox productions, and jokes that the cast can get away with anything as they work for Brooks.

This kind of ending would even be replicated a year later with Monty Python and the Holy Grail's surprise ending as the Arthurian knights are arrested by modern police. Unlike the 1975 classic, Brooks and co. Try a more definitive ending for Blazing saddles' cast of characters by eventually putting them back into the Western world we've watched up to this point. But even for a comedy that doesn't take itself too seriously, it ultimately feels too out-of-place and takes away from the actual fitting conclusion that Bart and Jimmy get.

Blazing saddles Returning to theaters for a 50th anniversary re-release on September 18.