Mel's Best Film? *contains spoilers*

Rating: Null/10 (28 August 2001)

Mel Brook's has always been a favorite director of mine, not because I believe him to be a genius, but because 90% of his work is side-splittingly hilarious. Only after seeing The Producers, Mel's first film, did I realize how much of an impressive director he is. Not only is the movie wildly amusing, it's perhaps the one of the most well written farces of all time. It certainly is Mel's most skillfully written film, possibly surpassed only by 1974's Young Frankenstein.

Max Bialystock (Mostel) is a washed up New York producer whose last attempts to fund his business involve the seducing of elderly women. All seems lost, until his neurotic accountant (Wilder) gives him an idea. After raising millions of dollars for a play that is a sure-fire flop, they can keep the remaining funds when it tanks on opening night. The two quickly develop an outlandish friendship and rummage around for the most appalling play they can find. Salvation is found in what seems to be the crudest play of all time, `Springtime For Hitler'. After recruiting an abnormal director, and the worst actors ever to grace the stage, Max and Leo assume they've closed the deal. There's only one problem `Springtime For Hitler' turns out to be a hit.

Gene Wilder received an Oscar nomination for his work as Leo Bloom, and it was completely deserved. His quirky antics as the nervous accountant easily stand the test of time, providing a character that's very pleasurable. On the other end of the spectrum, Zero Mostel was a gluttonous, self-centered, greedy shmuck whose schemes never acquiesce, even in prison. In other words, he was superb. No one else could have fit the huge, in more ways than one, role of Max Bialystock. Highly amusing characters makeup the rest of the cast, from Franz Liebkind (Kenneth Mars) as the sadistic author of Springtime For Hitler, to Ulla (Lee Meredith) Max and Leo's slightly under-qualified secretary. Every supporting actor gives a top-notch performance in The Producers.

The screenplay is fantastic for a comedy of this kind. The character interaction is brilliant, especially between Zero and Gene. The scenes were a little choppy, and the picture didn't have the blazing fast pace later Brook's films provided. Brook's himself, wrote the songs including `Springtime For Hitler', proving that his writing talents are slightly superior to his directing abilities. He won the Oscar for best original screenplay, but wasn't nominated for best director. Still, this movie is nothing to complain about. It's drop dead hilarious, extremely witty, and a must see for anyone who loves a brilliant laugh-fest. B