 Hello horror fans and welcome to my bungalow of blood. He should put in a second bathroom. You can't believe the morning's in this place. I use the litter box. Join me and my roommates Dr. Ed, Nurse Natasha, Gary Gray and Hans the Butler as we talk about all things horror. Since the dawn of cinema there have been movies based on Mary Shelley's novel Frankenstein dating all the way back to 1910. The 1910 version was produced by Thomas Edison. Every horror fan has their favorite Frankenstein film but I'm gonna try to convince you that young Frankenstein, a comedy, is actually the best Frankenstein film ever made. My favorite is The Bride with Sting. Mine is Aberdeen Costello Meat Frankenstein. The 1931 Boris Karloff version. You're all wrong. It's flesh for Frankenstein. I'm not gonna lie. I'm a bit biased. Ever since I was a child, young Frankenstein has always been one of my favorite movies. But I always believed the 1931 universal version and the 1992 made for TV version to be the two best Frankenstein films. Until this past Halloween, I had to carry them all the way up to bed. Maybe it was the beer. Maybe it was the sugar. But while watching young Frankenstein for another countless time, it just clicked in my brain. This is the best Frankenstein film ever. And now I'm gonna try to convince you why. Oh yes, great. Just shove your opinion down our throats. For those of you who don't know, young Frankenstein was released in 1974. It was co-written by comedy legend Mel Brooks and Gene Wilder, who also stars as the lead role. Oh, I just love Gene Wilder's hair. Oh, so that's why you married me. Gene Wilder thought it'd be funny to write a movie about a descendant of the Frankenstein family who wanted nothing to do with the family's past but couldn't escape it. It's pronounced Frankenstein. And for a goofball schlocky horror comedy, that's a pretty deep theme. Not being able to escape one's past. The sins of the father are visited upon the son. Or in this case, grandson. Gene Wilder plays the grandson of Victor Frankenstein, which is the first thing that makes this movie great. It's not just spoofing the original 1931 version, but it's actually trying to be a worthy sequel. There's a line in the town hall where one of the villagers says, we've seen this from five times before. This is a reference to all the Universal Frankenstein movies that came before. Frankenstein 1931, The Bride of Frankenstein 1935, The Son of Frankenstein 1939, Ghost of Frankenstein 1942, Frankenstein meets the Wolfman, House of Frankenstein, and House of Dracula, all featured the Frankenstein monster. That's way more than five. No, it's not. Though it's probably not intentional and more of a fan theory, Gene Wilder does look a lot like the son of Baron Wolf von Frankenstein in Son of Frankenstein, making him the grandson of Henry Frankenstein from the original 1931 film. Isn't it Victor Frankenstein? Yeah, it is supposed to be Victor Frankenstein, but they changed it to Henry in the 1931 version for some reason. Young Frankenstein isn't an official sequel to the 1931 film, but it really does a great job of making us believe that it really is. It's even got the same laboratory set. Mel Brooks actually bought the original laboratory set used in the 1931 film. The original set designer just had them in his garage for some reason. Lucky he did because it made Young Frankenstein really feel like it takes place in the same universe as the Universal films. And it was shot on black and white film. Mel Brooks insisted that the movie be actually shot on black and white film stock, and feared that the studio would try to release it in colors sometime in the future. This along with the 1930s wipe and dissolve style transitions really makes it feel like it came out in that golden era of horror. Yes, yes, yes, enough backstory. Now tell us why you think it's the best Frankenstein film of all time. Let's start with the cast. Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of Colin Clive and Dwight Fry from the 1931 film. They were the first on-screen mad scientist and bumbling assistant duo. Kenneth Branagh, Robert De Niro and of all people John Cleese did a great job in the 1994 version. But I do think that the cast of Gene Wilder, Marty Feldman, Cloris Leachman, Madeline Kahn, Terry Gar, Gene Hackman and Peter Boyle trumps all other movies by a long shot. It might be one of the best on-screen ensembles of all time. Some movies casting choices can just be lightning in a bottle. Never to be duplicated. I'm not sure if getting all these actors on the same film happened by pure luck or if it was genius planning by Mel Brooks. Not only do the actors play off each other perfectly, both comedically and dramatically, but can you think of another Frankenstein movie that has as many memorable characters as young Frankenstein? You have Gene Wilder as Frederick Frankenstein. His presence and voice are indistinguishable. Marty Feldman plays Igor with a deadpan delivery, face and frame that you'll never forget. Cloris Leachman is Frau Blocher, whose name strikes fear into horses. Kenneth Mars as the one-eyed, one-armed Inspector Kemp. Gene Hackman as accident-prone blind hermit. And let's not forget Peter Boyle's classic performance as the monster. No, the bride of Frankenstein is just as many memorable characters. Okay, Ed, then let's hear them. Colin Clive as Dr. Frankenstein, Boris Karloff as the monster. Elsa Lanchester as the bride. Ernest Thiesger as Dr. Petorius. Luna O'Connor as the screaming old bitch. Well, Ed, that's five and I think I named seven, so young Frankenstein wins. Fuck you! So now that we've concluded that young Frankenstein has the most amount of memorable characters than any other Frankenstein film. We have? Yes, Hans, seven is more than five. Young Frankenstein also has the most amount of memorable lines, not just from any other Frankenstein film, but it can be argued to be one of the most quoted movies of all time. As quoteable as American movie? Auntie Python and the Holy Grail? Anchorman? That movie fucking sucks! There's some timeless lines in other Frankenstein films, of course. It's Alive, the classic line from the 1931 film will always stand a test of time. How about this line from Flesh for Frankenstein? You have to fuck life in the Galbladder. And not quite up there with It's Alive. What about this one? What does matter is the size of your heart and the strength of your character. That's The Monsters, not a Frankenstein film. But it makes me feel special inside. Herman Monster is the wisest man on television, and he's a hunk. So anyone else with a classic quote from a Frankenstein film? How about this one? That's just Kenneth Branagh being a pretentious asshole. And very sweaty. Okay, so there you have it. Most Frankenstein films have one or two memorable lines. But young Frankenstein is loaded with them from start to finish. Just take a look at a few, and this isn't even skimming the surface. It's pronounced Frankenstein. Walk this way. That line inspired the Aerosmith song. Would you like a roll in the hay? What, knockers? If I thank you, Doctor. Frau Bruchel. Damn your eyes! Too late. He would have an enormous one, Stoker. That goes without saying. Get down, you fool. That's a reference to the 1931 film. What hump? Wait, where are you going? I was gonna make espresso. My name is Frankenstein! Who'd know on the- Okay, okay, that's enough. I think we all get the point. That was fun! Okay, so now that we've proven that young Frankenstein is the most quotable Frankenstein film, let's tackle the music. I think this has the best score out of all other Frankenstein films. I agree 100%. The music was composed by John Morris, who collaborated on many movies produced by Mel Brooks. Even The Elephant Man? Mel Brooks produced The Elephant Man? Great thing about the young Frankenstein score is that it's not scored as a comedy. For the same reason it was shot on black and white film, it is scored to sound like a horror movie from the 1930s. If it was scored as a comedy, it wouldn't have the emotional impact that it does. The music strikes fear when it needs to, and also pulls on the hard strings when need be. The violin melody played to soothe the monsters is one of the most memorable melodies in any other Frankenstein film. When I hear that song, I get all steamy. Then she can't keep her hands off me. So this movie really is a horror movie disguised as a comedy. Or is it a comedy disguised as a classic horror? That can be true too, and the score complements it perfectly. If the music was composed to enhance the comedy, I don't think it would be as an effective comedy. That doesn't make any sense. Just think about it, Hans. It also wouldn't be as an effective Frankenstein film. And that's what this all boils down to. It's not just trying to be the best comedy possible. It's trying to be legitimately the best Frankenstein film possible. Though it's a parody, it's not making fun of other Frankenstein films. It's rather just really good jokes and humor in characters in the context of a Frankenstein film. Like Spaceballs? No, actually, I don't think it's like Spaceballs at all. Even though it's still a Mel Brooks spoof-style movie, it's a totally different kind of parody. In fact, I wouldn't even call it a parody at all because it's continuing a story already laid out for us. It's not making fun of the genre, but rather showing deep respect for it. Deep? The subject matter in this movie is also very profound. Like any other Frankenstein film, it deals with a man trying to play God and the consequences of doing so. That is in every Frankenstein movie. But it's not a very relatable subject. How many of us have actually tried to create a man or woman from scratch in a laboratory using dead body parts? Present company excluded, of course. Of course. But it also adds the layer of Frederick trying to distance himself from the family name and then later on try to redeem the family name. And I think that's something we can all relate to. Maybe not to the extent of the Frankenstein story, but there's something in all of our past that we're not proud of. I don't know if I have more skeletons in my closet or lab coats. She's not even talking about figurative skeletons. She has real skeletons in her closet. Speaking of redemption, that brings us to the end of the movie. I believe that Young Frankenstein has the most satisfying payoff of all the Frankenstein films. That's because it isn't retelling the novel. Exactly. Mary Shelley's novel has a very bleak ending where the monster kills its creator and then destroys itself. So then in turn, most adaptations will have a very similar ending. Doesn't the monster broom to death in a windmill? No, that's just the 1931 version. The monster rips his own arm off and beats John Hurt with it? No, that's Frankenstein Unbound. The monster dies in a laboratory explosion? No, that's every other universal Frankenstein film. And unlike those, Young Frankenstein does not follow in their footsteps. What? Footsteps, footsteps, footsteps. See what I did there? Very cute. Unlike most Frankenstein films, this one has a happy ending. The Bride with Sting has a happy ending? Frederick Frankenstein is able to give the monster the part of his brain that makes him a genius. In a brain fluid transference. As per usual, the Transylvanian mob breaks into the lab to try to kill the monster. But in this movie, the monster stands up and gives a beautiful, eloquent speech. The mob then decides to back off and go home for some wine and sponge cake. Oh, shit! So if the monster got all of his smarts, what did Frederick get in return? He got the monster's big wang. Ooh! And they all lived happily ever after. Except for Igor, he's stuck by his lonesome playing some damn bugle horn. So unlike most Frankenstein films, this one actually has a happy payoff, which makes it stand out amongst the rest. The Bride has a happy ending! Okay, besides the Bride, and it's not just a happy ending, it's actually truly heartwarming. So there you have it. That's the end of my argument as to why Young Frankenstein is the best Frankenstein film of all time. It's got the best cast. It's got the best characters. It's got the most amount of quotable lines. It's got the best score. And even though it's a comedy, it still delivers an emotional impact with the moral. It's a great redemption story, all while doing a great job of fitting into the continuity of the universal Frankenstein films. No, it's not the best retelling of that original novel. But overall, I find it to be the most enjoyable and rewatchable of all the Frankenstein films. But hey, that's just my opinion. Make sure to leave yours in the comments. And until next time, keep following in your grandfather's footsteps. Hey Hans! Wasn't your hump on the other side? He doesn't have a hump, silly. It's just a bad back from carrying you upstairs when you're drunk on the couch.