History of the World: Part 1
Mel Brooks' comic genius is unleashed in spades in this episodic spoof of history's seminal moments, narrated by Orson Welles. Beginning with a brilliant send-up of 2001: A Space Odyssey, Brooks then lampoons the Stone Age, the Roman Empire, the Spanish Inquisition and ends with a clever takeoff on the French Revolution. The all-star-cast includes Sid Caesar, Gregory Hines, Madeleine Kahn, Dom DeLuise, Harvey Korman and, of course, Brooks.
Member Reviews
It's Just Not That Funny - revsdd
I had high hopes when I picked up this movie, seeing so many legends of comedy starring in it. Unfortunately, the thing about legends is that they often stick around for too long. With the possible exceptions of Gregory Hines and Madeline Kahn (who still weren't all that funny) we have a classic example of that. For me, this movie just didn't work. I didn't think it was very funny, and the ridiculousness of it wore thin after a while for the simple reason that it was unfunny ridiculousness, if there is such a thing.
Oh, there were a couple of cute moments that caused me to smile. Moses (Mel Brooks) dropping Commandments 11-15 comes to mind. But overall this struck me as a bunch of aging comedians who didn't really have it any more but couldn't admit it. Thank God they didn't go on to Part 2!From a historical point of view, interesting... - rgb_connection
We were curious to see an old movie from Mel brooks. It was interesting to see something at his beginning, we've discover where his jokes in Spaceball comes from. Even if the movie is old, I think it is still something to be amusing today. It is something completely difference of what are produce this days. A completely different kind of humour. Not the best, but I like it. It worth to be seen at least once.An Uneven Effort - Bigmoviefan
Most of the jokes in this movie are OLD! They are also rude, crude and often embarrassing. Do not see this movie if you are concerned with political correctness.
Having said that, my teenage son who are not aware of the vintage of some of the jokes, thought they were hilarious. Sometimes, it was because the jokes were so stupid.
The uneven pacing of the various segments was also a problem. The French Revolution segment was far too long, and somewhere in the middle, the jokes ceased to be funny. Some of the other segments worked perhaps because they did not out stay their welcome.
Member Reviews
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It's Just Not That Funny - revsdd
I had high hopes when I picked up this movie, seeing so many legends of comedy starring in it. Unfortunately, the thing about legends is that they often stick around for too long. With the possible exceptions of Gregory Hines and Madeline Kahn (who still weren't ...From a historical point of view, interesting... - rgb_connection
We were curious to see an old movie from Mel brooks. It was interesting to see something at his beginning, we've discover where his jokes in Spaceball comes from. Even if the movie is old, I think it is still something to be amusing today. It is something ...An Uneven Effort - Bigmoviefan
Most of the jokes in this movie are OLD! They are also rude, crude and often embarrassing. Do not see this movie if you are concerned with political correctness.
Having said that, my teenage son who are not aware of the vintage of some of the jokes, ...