Blazing Saddles (UK)
Never give a saga an even break!
Certificate: 15
Running Time: 89 mins
Retail Price: £15.99
Release Date:
Content Type: Movie
Synopsis:
The railroad`s bound to run right through the sleepy town of Rock Ridge. Land there will be worth a fortune - but the townfolk already own their own land. How do you drive them out? Send in the roughest, toughest, meanest, leanest gang you`ve got... and appoint a new sheriff you figure will last about 24 hours.
But that`s not really the plot of `Blazing Saddles`, just the pretext! Once Mel Brooks` lunatic film - many call it his best - gets under way, logic is lost in a blizzard of gags, jokes, quips, puns, howlers, growlers and outrageous assaults upon good taste - or any taste at all.
Cleavon Little as the new lawman, Gene Wilder as the wacko Waco Kid, Brooks himself as dimwitted politico and Madeline Kahn in her Marlene Dietrich sendup that earned an Academy Award™ nomination all give this sagebrush saga their lunatic best. And when `Blazing Saddles` can`t contain itself at the finale, it just proves the Old West will never be the same again!
Special Features:
Interactive Menus
Scene Access
Production Notes
Includes A New, Exclusive 55-Minute Interview with Mel Brooks
Trailer
Video Tracks:
Widescreen Letterbox 2.35:1
Audio Tracks:
Dolby Digital Mono English
Dolby Digital Mono Italian
Dolby Digital Mono French
Directed By:
Mel Brooks
Written By:
Alan Uger
Norman Steinberg
Richard Pryor
Mel Brooks
Andrew Bergman
Starring:
Mel Brooks
Madeline Kahn
Harvey Korman
Slim Pickens
Gene Wilder
Cleavon Little
Casting By:
Nessa Hyams
Soundtrack By:
John Morris
Mel Brooks
Director of Photography:
Joseph F. Biroc
Editor:
John C. Howard
Danford B. Greene
Costume Designer:
Vittorio Nino Novarese
Production Designer:
Peter Wooley
Producer:
Michael Hertzberg
Distributor:
Warner Bros
Your Opinions and Comments
Content:- Funny as f*ck! The jokes are surprisingly up to date, with something that everyone can relate to. Some very clever gags in here too. A comedy classic in every way.
Video:- Surprisingly good transfer. It actually looked prety damn nice for most of the film. It did look a little soft a times, but it was nice for the most part.
Audio:- Only mono but a good mono at that, and it even comes in 3 different flavours. Crisp and clear throughout. Aye.
Features:- A modest selection. Better than most, but could have done with some more additions. Outtakes woud have been brilliant for this. Ok package though.
Overall:- A nice neat copy of the film. The film is worth buying on its own anyway, so anything else is just a bonus. It could be better but it could be a lot worse. Yep.
Its quite a nice package really. The widescreen picture shows quite alot of detail although none of it is really sharp. Also alot of grain and speckles of dirt were present on the print. This is quite forgivable as the movie is quite old (1974). The picture was a bit soft for a dvd but they dont spoil the enjoyment of the movie overall. There are minor colouration problems but these are brief.
The audio is also a bit of a let down. The movie is presented only in a mono soundtrack but there are 3 language tracks. There are a few extras which include an interview with mel brooks, production notes, trailer and cast+crew bios. This is not much, I would have liked to have seen some more extras on the production.
Overall a classic comedy on a mediocre dvd. If you are a big fan of Blazing Saddles, it might be worth noting that there is a boxset that contains this dvd packaged with a poster, senitypes, lobby cards amongst other things. The RRP of the box set is £44.99 I think but you can pick it up for much less than that if you look around.