Young Frankenstein:
Parody king Mel Brooks does it again in his wacky 1974 comedy Young Frankenstein. Brooks is a master at making parodies, but this one has one unique quality to it that sets it apart from all others. Parodies are meant to copy and make fun of other works- in this case, Frankenstein- but rarely do they directly speak of events which took place in the original. Young Frankenstein puts a new spin on this by playing the role of a parody as well as a sequel; the plot takes place many decades after the original Frankenstein and has many instances of characters talking about events that took place in the original. For instance, the film’s protagonist, Frederick Frankenstein is the grandson of Victor Frankenstein, and the shame he has because of his grandfather’s actions leads him to constantly insist that is name is pronounced Fronkensteen. Many of the villagers also talk about the madness of Victor Frankenstein and show great fear that Frederick is going to continue his grandfather’s work.
One of the best things about the film is the excellent job that Marty Feldman did at performing the role of Frederick’s goofy assistant, Igor (or Eye-gor, as he likes to be called). As the grandson of the creepy hunchback Igor who aided the original Dr. Frankenstein, one wouldn’t think Igor would be a very loveable character, but his wacky antics are what really give life to the film. During production, Feldman even threw in a couple of gags that weren’t originally in the script (I will not say what they were because I do not want to spoil it); this really shows that Feldman was the perfect man for the role: just like his character, he was sprinkling in little bits of humor at points that were otherwise unexciting.
The visual and sound quality of the film may seem a bit lazy for a film made in the 70s, but that is only because it is trying to properly spoof a film made in the early decades of the 20th Century. At the time when the original Frankenstein was released, special effects were far less advanced than they were in 1974, so in order to really get people into the spirit of it, Brooks decided to make this film in a way that would give it the appearance of having been made in the same period as the original. This foresight was nothing short of genius on Brooks’ part, because he specifically tuned down the effects to make it seem as old as the original. This is also brilliant because it helps reinforce the idea that a film doesn’t need the best special effects or graphics in order to become a major hit.
Entertainment: 10; Acting: 9; Humor: 9
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