Young Frankenstein (1974)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Mel Brooks

Writers:

Gene Wilder (story) and
Mel Brooks (story) ...

Release Date:

15 December 1974 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Music | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

The scariest comedy of all time!

Plot:

Dr. Frankenstein's grandson, after years of living down the family reputation, inherits granddad's castle and repeats the experiments.

Plot Keywords:

Castle | Housekeeper | Brain | Hunchback | Scientist

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 9 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Gene Wilder	...	Dr. Frankenstein
Peter Boyle	...	The Monster
Marty Feldman	...	Igor
Cloris Leachman	...	Frau Blücher
Teri Garr	...	Inga
Kenneth Mars	...	Inspector Kemp
Richard Haydn	...	Herr Falkstein
Liam Dunn	...	Mr. Hilltop
Danny Goldman	...	Medical Student
Oscar Beregi Jr.	...	Sadistic Jailor (as Oscar Beregi)
Arthur Malet	...	Village Elder
Anne Beesley	...	Little Girl
Monte Landis	...	Gravedigger
Rusty Blitz	...	Gravedigger
John Madison	...	A Villager

Runtime:

106 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | German

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

UK:15 (re-rating) (1987) | Finland:K-16 (video rating) (1988) | Portugal:M/12 | Finland:K-16 (cinema release) (1975) | Canada:G (Quebec) | South Korea:15 | New Zealand:PG | Australia:PG | Canada:PG | Iceland:LH | Norway:16 | Singapore:PG | Spain:T | Sweden:15 | UK:AA (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Netherlands:12

Filming Locations:

Mayfair Theatre - 214 Santa Monica Boulevard, Santa Monica, California, USA

Company:

Gruskoff/Venture Films

Trivia:

The brain which Igor is sent to steal is labeled as belonging to "Hans Delbrück, scientist and saint." A real-life Hans Delbrück was a nineteenth-century German military historian and professor at the University of Berlin, notable for going beyond technical problems and linking warfare to politics and economics. His son Max Delbrück was a twentieth-century biochemist and Nobel laureate.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: When Gerhard Falkstein meets Dr. Frankenstein in his class, he refers to Baron von Frankenstein as his great-grandfather, while the rest of the film refers to him as the grandfather. However, it is stated later in the film (most notably in the deleted sequence "The Reading Of The Will") that the Frankenstein who's will is being read is the Great-Grandfather, and the infamous Victor Frankenstein is his son, or Fredrick's Grandfather.

Quotes:

The Monster: For as long as I can remember people have hated me. They looked at my face and my body and they ran away in horror. In my loneliness I decided that if I could not inspire love, which is my deepest hope, I would instead cause fear. I live because this poor half-crazed genius...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in A cena col vampiro (1988) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Ah, Sweet Mystery of Life

A Track of Laughs.

Mel Brooks' hilarious "Young Frankenstein" is one of those strange films that is so outlandish and makes fun of itself so much that it sucks the viewer into its twisted world and does not let up until the final credits roll. The titled character (Gene Wilder) decides to go to Transylvania and continue the research of a late relative. What follows is a comic joy-ride that involves the assistant (Marty Feldman), the love interest (Teri Garr), the stuck-up girlfriend (Madeline Kahn), the weird house-keeper (Cloris Leachman), the odd detective (Kenneth Mars) and naturally the monster himself (Peter Boyle in a priceless performance). Gene Hackman's whacked cameo as a the blind man who encounters the monster is one of the best sequences during the history of the cinema. A brilliant screenplay and beautiful black-and-white cinematography assist "Young Frankenstein" in being the total success that it is. 4.5 out of 5 stars.