# What is the greatest Mel Brooks movie, and why? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 9, 2009, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946 "2009-11-09T21:30:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/81 "2009-11-10T16:40:05Z")
> [@TWDuke](#): > > Young Frankenstein, but I’m boycotting the poll feature this time because credit is due to the entire ensemble, not just Terri Garr. That was my first Mel Brooks movie; my favorite was Inspector Kemp. Hey, I was six! ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/82 "2009-11-10T17:07:55Z")
> [@TWDuke](#): > > Young Frankenstein, but I’m boycotting the poll feature this time because credit is due to the entire ensemble, not just Terri Garr. :rolleyes: Mentioning Teri Garr is…a…joke. All the given reasons are jokes. I mean, do you think Spaceballs! quality (or lack thereof) is based solely on Daphne Zuniga’s wedding dress? ---
**Author:** ![want2know](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/50afbb/32.png) [@want2know](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/want2know)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/83 "2009-11-10T17:15:03Z")
I go back and forth between _Blazing Saddles_ and _Young Frankenstein_, with _The Producers_ occasionally sneaking into the top spot. Currently, it’s _YF_. But I have to confess that _Silent Movie_ is, for me, the honorable mention on the Brooks list. It never fails to crack me up, and is the finest use of the superb physical comedy skills of Marty Feldman. Throw in all the big Hollywood star cameos and Brooks’ subversive parody of the corporate studio culture, and it truly stands up to repeat viewings. I also enjoy _To Be Or Not To Be_, though it’s not as good as the Jack Benny original. Also, props to _History of the World_–though uneven, it satisfies comedically, and is the source of _the_ most quoted line from Brooks’ films, the ubiquitous “It’s good to be the King!”. My biggest disappointment was _Spaceballs_. I really had high hopes for it, being a huge _Star Wars_ fan, but so many of the jokes fell flat and the comic timing is haphazard. Joan Rivers as the voice of Dot Matrix could have been very funny, but she sounded like she was reading her lines under heavy sedation. The best performance in the film was Rick Moranis, and even he has given much better performances. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/84 "2009-11-10T17:41:14Z")
> [@want2know](#): > > My biggest disappointment was _Spaceballs_. I really had high hopes for it, being a huge _Star Wars_ fan, but so many of the jokes fell flat and the comic timing is haphazard. Joan Rivers as the voice of Dot Matrix could have been very funny, but she sounded \*\*like \*\*she was reading her lines under heavy sedation. The best performance in the film was Rick Moranis, and even he has given much better performances. (bolding mine) Er, yes. She sounded like that, but it was only an illusion. Sure. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/85 "2009-11-10T17:53:10Z")
_Young Frankenstein_ for me simply because it is as funny as Blazing Saddles, but it seems just much more complete in a whole movie sense. Wonderfully directed, acted, Gene Wilder deserved an Oscar nomination but they don’t really give them out for comedic performances (Kevin Kline excepted). “SED-A-GIVE?!?!” ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/86 "2009-11-10T18:06:38Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > Shtupp isn’t funny because it’s Yiddish. It’s funny because it’s onomatopoeia. > > _Shtupp…Shtupp…Shtupp_ Shtupp is Yiddish for “fuck.” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/87 "2009-11-10T18:09:36Z")
> [@want2know](#): > > My biggest disappointment was _Spaceballs_. I really had high hopes for it, being a huge _Star Wars_ fan, but so many of the jokes fell flat and the comic timing is haphazard. You’re just mad about Yoda and “muychendising.” 🙂 I can’t **breathe** in this thing! ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/88 "2009-11-10T18:53:40Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > :rolleyes: > > Mentioning Teri Garr is…a…joke. All the given reasons are jokes. I mean, do you think Spaceballs! quality (or lack thereof) is based solely on Daphne Zuniga’s wedding dress? But these polls are _important_! If I vote for something I don’t 100% agree with, there’s no telling what may happen?! 😃 But, anyways, I voted for Spaceballs!. I honestly think it was good. I saw Blazing Saddles, and it seemed more like a Monty Python movie, lots of absurd comedy, very little plot. In Spaceballs, there’s an actual story. And while everyone whines about it parodying only Star Wars, I’ve never seen a single Star Wars film, and I still got most of the jokes. Heck, I wonder if they were funnier that way. As for everything else? Haven’t seen 'em. Maybe they are so amazing that they make Spaceballs! look like crap. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/89 "2009-11-10T18:54:06Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Shtupp is Yiddish for “fuck.” > 🙂 Yes, I knew. It’s an onomatopoeic word for “fuck”. One of Brook’s planned titles for the film was “She Shtupps To Conquer”. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/90 "2009-11-10T19:05:05Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > But, anyways, I voted for Spaceballs!. I honestly think it was good. I saw Blazing Saddles, and it seemed more like a Monty Python movie, lots of absurd comedy, very little plot. I’d call it the most important film ever made about racism. I mean that very honestly and sincerely. It’s a damn shame that Richard Pryor wasn’t stable enough to star in the film as planned, although Cleavon Little was excellent. ---
**Author:** ![Satchmo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/satchmo/32/4223_2.png) [@Satchmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Satchmo)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/91 "2009-11-10T19:14:24Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > I voted for “Negro love songs” given that I am pigmentally challenged and Skald is not. Wait a minute! Skald is black?!? I heard he was hung! On the other hand, that explains a lot. 🙂 Satch (pigmentally challanged as well for anyone playing along at home) ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/92 "2009-11-10T19:17:55Z")
> [@Satchmo](#): > > Wait a minute! > Skald is black?!? Well, he might be Irish. I am easily confused. ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/93 "2009-11-10T19:28:25Z")
> [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](#): > > {snip]Those who voted for Young Frankenstein, though ultimately mistaken, have made a reasonable and understandable mistake, as it does feature Teri Garr at the height of her goddesshood. [/snip] But I voted **Young Frankenstein** not for Teri but for Marty. Don’t get me wrong, Teri was primo eye candy. Marty, on the other hand was primo eyes! ---
**Author:** ![Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/94 "2009-11-10T19:33:09Z")
> [@Wile\_E](#): > > Young Frankenstein by a mile. It never needs to resort to fart jokes like some other film. > > I object to the phrasing in the poll, it isn’t just because of Terri Garr. As others have said, the entire cast is perfect. \ Truer words were never spoke. Writ. Whatevered. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/95 "2009-11-10T20:00:01Z")
After consulting with the ghosts of James Whale and Boris Karloff, \*\*Young Frankenstein \*\*gets my vote. “His brain is rotten! Rotten, I tell you!” “Ixnay on the ottenray!” ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/96 "2009-11-10T20:30:54Z")
> [@Wile\_E](#): > > Young Frankenstein by a mile. It never needs to resort to fart jokes like some other film. I voted YF, and that’s not my favorite scene in Blazing Saddles, but I have to ask - “resort to?” We’re talking about Mel Brooks here. He does lowbrow comedy. He’s done more with it than just about anybody and never pretended to do anything else. Blazing Saddles resorts to fart jokes like Hamlet resorts to being a ghost story. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/97 "2009-11-10T21:13:35Z")
> [@Ruby](#): > > Spaceballs is quoted in this house regularly… > > “I hate it when my Schwartz get twisted” > > “What is it you do here, Yogurt?” “Moichandizing” > > “WHAT?? You went over my helmet?” > > “They’ve gone PLAID!” > > “Ludicrous speed” > > “No, not that!” “Yes, that” > > “I knew it, I’m surrounded by Assholes” > > “I’m a mog. Half man, half dog. I’m my own best friend.” > > “Never underestimate the power of the Schwartz” > > And that’s just off the top of my head. It’s probably quoted in the RubyHaus only second to The Princess Bride. The silence must be deafening. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/98 "2009-11-10T21:21:25Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > _Young Frankenstein_ for me simply because it is as funny as Blazing Saddles, but it seems just much more complete in a whole movie sense. Wonderfully directed, acted …and photographed. The movie just _looks_ beautiful. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/99 "2009-11-10T21:25:32Z")
\*\*Young Frankenstein \*\*was a favorite of mine until **History of the World Part I** came out and then I changed my loyalty due to one thing: " The Inquisition “. I remember me and my friend laughing hysterically and telling my mom all about and she getting positively indignant because” there is NOTHING funny about the religious persecution and torture of innocent people (mom wasn’t usually so humorless but she could get rather Godwinesque at times)". Also, to this day I still say “Don’t get saucy with me, Bernaise”. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2009, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946/100 "2009-11-10T21:37:21Z")
Teri Garr screwed up "Tootsie’. It was unbelievable that the hero would leave Teri to go after Jessica Lange. Such complete impossibility makes the movie hard to follow after that. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-greatest-mel-brooks-movie-and-why/516946.md?page=6)