“Young Frankenstein” was released on December 15, 1974. At once an affectionate homage to and an irreverent parody of Universals classic Frankenstein films, “Young Frankenstein” is consistently ranked on lists of all-time greatest film comedies. The American Film Institute puts it at number thirteen on their list of the 100 Funniest American Movies. Director/co-writer Mel Brooks was at the height of his comic brilliance, and his to-die-for cast the same. Stories have it that all were in tears toward the conclusion of production, not wanting their time together to end, and that Brooks tacked some added scenes onto the shooting schedule just to keep the magic alive. The chemistry shows, and the jokes, gags, ad-libs, and quotable dialogue still feel fresh after forty years. Given that most everyone has seen the film, any sort of plot summary is superfluous, but the concept of the grandson of the original Dr. Frankenstein being ashamed of his heritage is credited to star and co-writer Gene Wilder, who pitched the idea to Brooks on the set of “Blazing Saddles” (1972). Other historical trivia includes Columbia Pictures turning the project down as they disagreed with Brooks over his insistence on shooting the film in black-and-white, and the use of the working electrical machinery made for Frankenstein’s lab in Universal’s original 1931 production of “Frankenstein”, and used again in 1935 for “Bride of Frankenstein”. Brooks tracked down Kenneth Strickfadden, the maker of the prop machinery, and found that he had the various devices stored in his garage. Brooks put them in his film and gave Strickfadden the screen credit he never received on the original films. In 2003 “Young Frankenstein” was deemed culturally, historically or aesthetically significant by the National Film Preservation Board and is preserved in the Library of Congress National Film Registry. It’s readily available on DVD and Blu-ray from 20th Century Fox.
Posted on: Mon, 15 Dec 2014 03:48:09 +0000