8 | / 10 |
Users | 4.2 | |
Reviewer | 4.0 | |
Overall | 4.1 |
Crafty railroad worker Bart becomes the first black sheriff of Rock Ridge, a frontier town about to be destroyed in order to make way for a new railroad. Initially, the people of Rock Ridge harbor a racial bias toward their new leader. However, they warm to him after realizing that Bart and his perpetually drunk gunfighter friend are the only defense against a wave of thugs sent to rid the town of its population.
Starring: Cleavon Little, Gene Wilder, Slim Pickens, Harvey Korman, Madeline KahnComedy | 100% |
Western | 32% |
Video codec: VC-1
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 2.38:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.39:1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1 (640 kbps)
French: Dolby Digital Mono
Spanish: Dolby Digital Mono
English, English SDH, French, Spanish
25GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region free
Movie | 4.0 | |
Video | 4.5 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 3.0 | |
Overall | 4.0 |
I was about twelve the first time I caught a highly content-edited version of Blazing Saddles on television. A lot of the jokes obviously went whizzing through the then-blank space between my ears, but I remember laughing uproariously at Mongo sucker-punching the horse, the infamous campfire fart scene, and at the general Loony Toons level of insanity on display—complete with quicksand, fast-forward fight scenes, and an Acme-inspired exploding candy-gram. It wasn’t until I was quite a bit older that I caught on to the film’s subversive elements, the way it toys with staples of the Western genre, goes hog-wild in its unhinging of stereotypes and, as Gene Wilder puts it, “smashes racism in the face.” On the surface, Blazing Saddles is many things—scatological, puerile, and just plain ridiculous—but it also knows precisely where it stands, and behind every slapstick moment there’s a gleam of teeth and a not-so-subtle wink. This was a bold film in 1974, for many reasons, and in a few crucial ways it seems even more shocking today.
"What's a dazzling urbanite like you doing in a rustic setting like this?"
This 2.4:1 1080p VC-1 transfer is a Technicolor dream, even for a Blu-ray disc released in 2006. Colors are strong and well-saturated throughout (check out the curtains during Lili's anti-burlesque show), black levels are deep and un-crushed (see Hedley's suits), and while not razor sharp by today's standards, Blazing Saddles shows an extraordinary amount of clarity for its age. The print has a handful of specks and flecks, and I noticed some extremely heavy grain in the wagon train sequence that stands out from the film's otherwise warm and well-dispersed grain field. This is, however, no fault of the transfer and all goes back to the source material. After years of cruddy VHS releases and good-but-not-great DVD transfers, it's great to see Blazing Saddles get the crisp cinematic treatment it deserves.
Blazing Saddles' original monaural track has been expanded here into a Dolby Digital 5.1 mix that occasionally falls off its horse while galloping across the sound field. The many musical numbers are warm and dynamic; instruments are spread across channels pleasingly and ring true, at least to my ears. That said, the track generally lacks bottom end heft and comes across tinny at times. Voices are occasionally muddled by the surrounding sound effects, which, while not exactly immersive, do offer up some rear channel action. The crowd is especially lively during Lily's song- and-dance, and bullets careen and pi-ting with comic hyperbole. While this is certainly the best that Blazing Saddles has ever sounded, the mix could still use some work, and I do wish that the original track had been included for reference purposes.
Any owners of the 30th Anniversary Edition DVD of Blazing Saddles will be immediately familiar
with the special features offered here. All features are in standard definition.
Back in the Saddle (28:21)
I found this short retrospective enlightening, especially regarding the genesis of the story and the
writing process with Richard Pryor. Mel Brooks, writer Andrew Bergman, producer Michael
Hertzberg, and several cast members provide plenty of insight into the audacity and controversial
nature of the film.
Intimate Portrait: Madeline Kahn (3:40, excerpt)
The back of the Blu-ray case is misleading in calling this short featurette a "documentary."
Basically, it's a brief tribute the wonderful Madeline Kahn, and it's a shame we couldn't have
gotten the Lifetime TV special from which this was excerpted.
Black Bart: 1975 Pilot Episode of the Proposed TV Series Spin-off
It's clear why this concept wouldn't work well on television--the racial attitudes are a bit too fierce
for primetime. None of the principal actors return, and the laugh track cheapens the
deal.
Commentary by Director Mel Brooks
This commentary is very detached from the actual film. It seems like someone just set up a
microphone, let Mel Brooks tell some stories about Blazing Saddles, and then let his ramblings
play over the movie.
Deleted Scenes (9:40)
Theatrical Trailer (2:14)
Comedy is the most fickle and subjective of genres, where one man's ho-hum trash is another's hilarious treasure. If you've seen Blazing Saddles, you're sure to have an opinion of it, one way or another. Either way, Blazing Saddles has stood time's test and been vetted as a verifiable American classic. For the uninitiated (I'm sure there are one or two of you left), get out and rent it. But for fans, this Blu-ray release is a no-brainer, as I can't imagine Blazing Saddles looking or sounding any better for a long time to come.
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