From Raymond Ogilvie:
"The Producers," Mel Brooks first film, uses its first shot to break taboo by sexualizing old women. The character Max Bialystock is based on a producer Brooks worked for as a young man. This producer would, like Max, make love with old women to get funding for his plays. But Mel Brooks, whose films "rise below vulgarity," doesn't end his taboo-breaking here. He goes on to apply the same gleeful irreverence to ex-Nazis, homosexuals, and voluptuous foreign blonds. Indeed, if the studio had not objected, Brooks would have called this movie "Springtime for Hitler."
Cold open on a frosted glass window with the legend, "Max Bialystock, Theatrical Producer." Behind the glass, two silhouettes kiss and giggle mischievously. The man, the taller of the two, excuses himself for a moment, putting up his finger to tell the woman to keep quiet. Slowly he cracks open the door and peeks out. Here is Max Bialystock, theatrical producer, played by the tall, portly comic actor Zero Mostel. He's checking to see that there are no witnesses to his clandestine love affair.
The coast is clear, so he gestures to the woman he is with. "C'mon," he whispers. And surprise, surprise, it's a little old lady with a perfectly pleasant smile on her face. Judging from her pearls and accessories, she's in a good financial position. She blows Max a kiss, which he energetically pretends to catch in his mouth and chew on.
They exchange goodbyes. Max gently stops the old woman and reminds her, "Don't forget the checkie! Can't produce plays without checkies!" And she happily replies, "You can count on me, you dirty young man!" He mischievously reaches down and pats her bottom. She puts on a face of surprise and delight. Then she turns away and leaves down the stairs. Max waves giddily after her. "Goodbye! Goodbye!" Once she's out of range, his face quickly turns sour, and he says under his breath, "Old buzzard." He pulls out his pocket watch to check the time. He's on a tight schedule today. Shortly after this woman leaves, he greats another old lady for a romantic rendezvous.
The only problem is, it fails to actually elicit laughs from viewers forty years later.
That's because forty years on, such taboo's aren't really taboo anymore, in the sense that it's as 'shocking' to see or hear. You can thank the internet and changes to television for that. Nay, the world has grown up and with each new generation will films like this go misunderstood by the masses. You've got to realise when watching this for the first time, that it broke so many conventions and rules on what you can and cannot say/do, that it's hilarious in a shocking (and to Brook's credit, clever) way.
I dunno, I'm twenty-six years old and I always thought it was funny.
JE: I have to admit Zero Mostel's hair makes me gag every time I see it. Not in a funny way.
Sorry, forgot to add that I didn't see this until six or seven years ago.
I'm just happy to see an Opening Shots entry again after such a long hiatus. Is the plan to bring it back regularly or is this basically a one-off?
JE: Raymond Ogilvie felt the same way, which is why he sent this one in. I'd like to get it going again.
I've been meaning to write a few of these - the one that is dying to be analysed is the opening shot of 24 Hour Party People. "It's the latest craze sweeping the Pennines, and I've got to be honest, I'd rather be sweeping the Pennines right now."
And this was a good one, Raymond; thanks.
Nice Rex Reed-style review there, Ezra. (Reed has a tendency to say a movie "confuses the viewer" when really he didn't understand it and it confused HIM.) It failed to ilicit laughs from YOU. Don't speak for the rest of us.
I too am in my 20s and find this scene, as well as most of the film, pretty damned funny. The Gene Wilder "I'm wet and I'm in pain and I'm hysterical" scene is one of the funniest scenes in film.
Oh, and yay opening shots!
I'm sorry I just called Ezra "Fat, fat, fat".
I don't want to be a sorry sport, but shouldn't an Opening Shot essay provide more than a description of an opening shot? Jim, you've written some excellent analyses. But this quote from Raymond is simply a recitation of what happens.