What did we learn from the 1981 movies The Howling and An American Werewolf in London, and the 1984 movies Ghostbusters and Gremlins, and The Simpsons' Treehouse of Horror? The lesson is that horror and comedy are made for each other. I've enjoyed seeing such shows this October, as part of my reviewing of horror and Halloween-themed movies and TV episodes.
True, this isn't Mel Brooks' best movie. I know that because I've seen Blazing Saddles and Spaceballs, though not Young Frankenstein. Jokes like having the superstitious villagers and Van Helsing talk funny aren't brilliant and aren't really funny. Nevertheless, I think this Dracula spoof is underrated. We have Dracula (Leslie Nielsen) doing a double take when he sees the Brides of Dracula seducing Renfield; we have Dracula's hypnotism not working the way it's supposed to; and we have Van Helsing not wanting to get his hands dirty, making Harker do the staking. Above all, though, we have Renfield, played by Peter MacNicol who later starred in Ally McBeal. He's at first stupid, then insane, and at any rate he's a colourful character in this version. A highlight of the movie is where Renfield is eating bugs during a nice lunch, trying to be subtle about it but failing. In the end Renfield unintentionally kills Dracula, making him the unexpected hero. However, he still prefers to be a slave, finding a new master. Crazy stuff.
Happy Halloween.
True, this isn't Mel Brooks' best movie. I know that because I've seen Blazing Saddles and Spaceballs, though not Young Frankenstein. Jokes like having the superstitious villagers and Van Helsing talk funny aren't brilliant and aren't really funny. Nevertheless, I think this Dracula spoof is underrated. We have Dracula (Leslie Nielsen) doing a double take when he sees the Brides of Dracula seducing Renfield; we have Dracula's hypnotism not working the way it's supposed to; and we have Van Helsing not wanting to get his hands dirty, making Harker do the staking. Above all, though, we have Renfield, played by Peter MacNicol who later starred in Ally McBeal. He's at first stupid, then insane, and at any rate he's a colourful character in this version. A highlight of the movie is where Renfield is eating bugs during a nice lunch, trying to be subtle about it but failing. In the end Renfield unintentionally kills Dracula, making him the unexpected hero. However, he still prefers to be a slave, finding a new master. Crazy stuff.
Happy Halloween.