The Films
The collection includes nine films, all of which I enjoy, but some more than others. No film in the set is bad, but there are several that stand out as true classics of comedy. As you open up the container with the nine discs, you’ll discover them in the following order:
The Twelve Chairs – My favorite Brooks film. Set in 1927 Russia, Twelve Chairs has Brooks, Ron Moody, Frank Langella, and Dom DeLuise all chasing after a set of twelve dining chairs. Why? Because one of them is said to have a fortune of jewels sewn inside the seat cushion. I thought the story was excellent, the characters interesting, and the comedy — with Dom at his best — to be unforgettable.
Blazing Saddles – The film was made to mock all westerns to that point. I never really saw it as that as much as I did a great comedy with many memorable lines and hilarious characters including Gene Wilders’ Jim and Cleavon Little as Bart. Madeline Khan and Harvey Korman star with Mel Brooks as well, as they often did in Brooks’ films.
Young Frankenstein – Another Brooks film where the timing of the use of foul language leads to a timelessly funny line. The scene I’m talking about has Gene Wilder’s character telling his assistants not to open the door no matter what he says or does. His goal is to talk with his Frankenstein creation to try to tame and civilize him but as soon as the door closes he’s terrified. “Open the g*($*amn door!” cracks me up to this day.
Silent Movie – The award winning film stars Brooks, Marty Feldman, and DeLuise. I actually hadn’t seen this one before getting this box set in for review but I like it pretty well. It’s not among my favorites, but I enjoy it.
High Anxiety – Mel Brooks wanted to spoof the classic thriller/suspense films of his friend Alfred Hitchcock and the result was High Anxiety. In it, Brooks stars as an award winning psychiatrist who has an irrational fear of heights. After accepting a new position as the head of a psych ward (the one for the very, very nervous), Brooks realizes that something is amiss. The previous head of the ward had died under mysterious circumstances and the more Brooks learns, the more he grows concerned about Nurse Diesel and Harvey Korman’s character, Dr. Charles Montague. High Anxiety may not have a lot of laugh out loud humor, but you’ll definitely chuckle a lot.
The History of the World Part 1 – I hadn’t seen this one in probably a decade before watching it again for this review. Mel Brooks, Madeline Khan, and Dom DeLuise all reunite along with Gregory Hines in this riot that takes us through the history of the world, starting with Moses and the 15, er, 10 Commandments. Mel’s most famous musical composition, The Inquisition, is also a part of this classic.
To Be Or Not To Be – Co-starring with his wife Anne Bashcroft and Charles Durning, To Be Or Not To Be makes fun of the Nazis in a time when the subject was still a very sticky one for Hollywood producers. As much as musical as a comedy, To Be Or Not To Be isn’t one of my favorites, but it’s still a hoot.
Spaceballs – Bill Pullman and John Candy make for a hilarious duo that are meant to spoof Han Solo and Chewbacca. Together the pair must rescue Princess Vespa and save her planet from the plans of Rick Moranis’ Darth Vader like character, Dark Helmet. My favorite line? “Hooooly Sh%@!” as Barf (John Candy) says when Vespa shoots down some bad guys. This is my second favorite Brooks’ film of all, behind The Twelve Chairs.
Robin Hood: Men In Tights – When I first saw this as a kid in theaters, I hadn’t seen any of Mel’s previous work. Cary Elwes, Richard Lewis, Roger Rees, Dave Chappelle, Dom DeLuise, and Mel Brooks all star in this hilarious remake of the legend of Robin Hood.
No complaints on the film selection — now how about those extra features?
The Extras
Lets breakdown the extra features now.
The Twelve Chairs – Unfortunately there are no extra features for The Twelve Chairs. The only thing you get is trailers for some of the other Brooks films in the set.
Blazing Saddles:
-Audio Commentary with Mel Brooks
-Back In the Saddle (28m, SD) – A look back with cast and crew of Blazing Saddles.
-Black Bart: TV Pilot (24m, SD) – The 1975 pilot episode of the proposed TV series spinoff.
-Intimate Portrait: Madeline Kahn (3m40s, SD) – Sentimental tribute to the comedic actress with Mel and Dom.
-Deleted Scenes (9m40s, SD) – A variety of alternate/deleted scenes.
-Trailer (2m14s, SD)
Young Frankenstein:
-Audio Commentary with Mel Brooks
-Inside the Lab: Secret Formulas in the Making of Young Frankenstein (HD) – Picture In Picture Making of, very cool.
-Deleted Scenes in SD and HD – (7 scenes in SD for 16.5m, 17 in HD for 25m)
-It’s Alive – Creating A Monster Classic
-Making FrankenSense of Young Frankenstein
-Transylvanian Lullaby: The Music of John Morris
-The Franken-Track: A Monstrous Conglomeration of Trivia
-Blucher Button
-Outtakes
-Isolated Score
-Mexican Interviews
-TV Spots
-Production Photos
-Trailers
Silent Movie:
-Silent Laughter: The Reel Inspirations of Silent Movie (24m, HD) – Clips of the film are shown as Mel Brooks remembers making Silent Movie.
-Speak Up! Historical Hollywood Trivia Track
-Trailers/Mel Brooks Trailers
High Anxiety:
-Hitchcock And Mel: Spoofing the Master of Suspense: (30m, HD) – Clips, recent interviews, Hitchcock biography, photos of Mel and Al.
-Am I Very, Very Nervous Test – Interactive questions while you watch the film, meant to tell you if you’re crazy or not — good for some humor. You cannot fast forward or skip chapters while this is enabled, by the way.
-Don’t Get Anxious! The Trivia of Hitchcock – Cool pop-up trivia.
-Isolated DTS Track
-Trailer/Mel Brooks trailers
History of the World Part 1:
-Musical Mel: Inventing “The Inquisition” (10m40s, HD) – Brooks and composer John Morris talk about Mel’s song writing ability and what went into making the song for this movie.
-Making History: Mel Brooks on Creating the World (10m, HD) – Mel Brooks and crew talk about making of, clips of the film shown.
-The Real History of the World Trivia Track
-Isolated Score
-Trailer/Mel Brooks Trailers
To Be Or Not To Be:
-Brooks & Bancroft: A Perfect Pair (15m, HD) – Stars from film talk about him and his wife working together during filming.
-How Serious Can Mel Brooks Really Get? (2m45s, SD) – Vintage promo material discussing the film.
-Profiles – Brooks/Bancroft/Charles Durning (2m, SD per profile) – The same vintage promo material source profiles the three stars.
-To Be Or Not To Be: That Is the Trivia!
-Isolated Score
-Trailers/Mel Brooks Trailers
Spaceballs:
-Audio Commentary with Mel Brooks
-Spaceballs: The Documentary (30m, SD) – Mel Brooks and cast members talk about the film.
-In Conversation: Mel Brooks & Thomas Meehan (20m, SD) – These two gentlemen talk about how the film and its name came about; very interesting.
-John Candy: Comic Spirit (10m, SD) – A tribute to the comedian with co-stars talking about him.
-Watch the Movie In Ludicrous Speed – The entire film is twenty-nine seconds.
-Still Galleries
-Trailers
-Film Flubs – Six consistency errors in the film are shown, each about thirty-seconds. No Play All option unfortunately.
-Storyboards-to-Film Comparison
Robin Hood: Men In Tights:
-Funny Men In Tights: Three Generations of Comedy
-HBO Special – Robin Hood: Men In Tights – The Legend Had It Coming
-Laser Disc audio commentary with Mel Brooks
-Isolated Score
Other Thoughts
One thing about all of these discs that I thought was excellent is that there aren’t any trailers or material that isn’t directly related to Mel Brooks. In other words, you won’t see trailers for any other Fox productions, which is awesome, and how it should be. Additionally, I thought the packaging of this set was great. The book and the box that contains the discs comes in a sturdy, nice looking box. You can remove either the book or the discs box separately. The box with the discs is full color and opens like a book. Each page includes one or two discs, including a short, but interesting synopsis of the film or its significance.
As for the book, it’s a fun read. The 120 page hard cover, full color book is all about Mel and his life, and it’s certainly worth a read. You won’t find this book anywhere else, and it’s a perfect compliment to this fantastic set.
Finally, in terms of presentation quality for these films — I have no significant complaints. Some films do look better than others, but no film looks or sounds bad. Young Frankenstein and The Twelve Chairs have a decent amount of grain, but I have to admit it’s hard to find fault with that. Bottomline, I don’t think any Mel Brooks fan is going to be disappointed with how any of these films look or sound.
Let’s get to the summary…
