Young Frankenstein (1974)

Director:

Mel Brooks

Writers:

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

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 | Monster | Scientist | Surgeon

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 9 wins & 3 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Fri. Dec. 11	11:45 PM	AMC
Mon. Dec. 14	12:30 PM	AMC
Tue. Dec. 15	6:30 AM	AMC

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

Also Known As:

Frankenstein junior (Canada: French title) (France) [fr]
Det våras för Frankenstein (Sweden) [sv]
El jovencito Frankenstein (Spain) [es]
Frankenstein Júnior (Portugal) [pt]
Frankenstein Jr. (Finland) [fi]
Frankenstein Jr. (Venezuela) [es]
Frankenstein Junior (Finland) [fi]
Frankenstein Junior (West Germany) [de]
Frankenstein Junior (Italy) [it]
Frankenstein junior (Denmark) [da]
Frankenstein junior (Finland: Swedish title) [sv]
Mladi Frankenstein (Croatia) [hr]
Mlody Frankenstein (Poland) [pl]
O Jovem Frankenstein (Brazil) [pt]

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 shot of the monster carrying Elizabeth in the woods is a subtle reference to a similar shot in Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954).

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: The film is set in a mythological German-English "Transylvania," not a realistic depiction of the eponymous, 30,000 square-mile, Hungarian-Romanian province. In reality there would not be a single "Transylvania station" for trains, but would be many towns, each with their own station. But the movie's Transylvania is an imaginary land with imaginary people that Mel Brooks makes up, even though he uses a real place's name for it.

Quotes:

[following Igor's botched attempt to interpret Dr. Frankenstein's charade clues while being attacked by the monster]
Dr. Frederick Frankenstein: SEDA-GIVE?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Madeline Kahn/Carly Simon (#1.19)" (1976)

Soundtrack:

I Ain't Got Nobody (and Nobody Cares for Me)

Comedic Genius

Mel Brooks' tribute to the Frankenstein movies of the 40s is done with such love, such skill, and such side-splitting, fall-on-the-floor hilarity, that it has rightfully become a comedy classic. I first saw it in a movie theater: I had no idea what it was, had very little knowledge of Mel Brooks at the time, and expected to be bored. Instead, I found myself shrieking aloud with laughter that became so intense, I missed many of the major lines. Hence the video.

What can I say? From the wild-eyed Igor, the hunchbacked Transylvanian servant whose hump keeps changing from side to side, to the modern-day descendant of Baron von Frankenstein, determined not to follow in his great-grandfather's nefarious footsteps, to the nurse, a naif with enormous...er...chestal appendages, to the fearsome Frau Bleucher, whose mere mention causes horses in the castle's faraway stables to neigh in fear...to the scene of the monster and his creator singing and dancing in black tie to "putting on the Ritz," this movie should come with a warning: "Danger--Uncontrollable Laughter May Become Chronic."

The cast is beyond superb. The late, wonderful British comedian Marty Feldman (Igor), who turned his congenital wandering eyes into comedic foils, never misses a beat as second banana to Gene Wilder, who plays the distraught Dr. Frankenstein to the hilt and beyond. Cloris Leachman, who looks like a cross between a witch and a warlock, plays the feared housekeeper Frau Bleucher (neighhh!!!), and a very young, beautiful, and buxom Teri Garr plays the nurse-assistant to the good doctor. Then there is the marvelous Madeline Kahn, who gave a bravura performance as the doctor's fiancee. The late comedienne's burst into operatic ecstasy during her rape by the monster is simply inspired, and is one of the comedic high points of the entire film. All of Kahn's considerable talents came into play during this movie; she was taken from us too soon.