Summary
- Mel Brooks’ satirical style of humor has made him one of the most popular comedy directors of all time.
- Brooks’ quick wit and punchy dialogue keeps audiences laughing, especially with some iconic comedic actors.
- By parodying different genres, Brooks endlessly finds new material.
Mel Brooks is one of the most popular comedic filmmakers of all time, and his movies are filled with classic quotes that can still get laughs decades later. Mel Brooks’ best movies showcase his satirical style of humor. He has lampooned different film genres many times, but his parodies go deeper than most. He has a knack for getting at the heart of what makes people interested in certain stories.
As well as having an unmatched satirical wit, Brooks has a natural ear for comedic dialogue. His movies burst at the seams with punchlines, each stacked on top of one another in quick succession, competing for the audience’s attention with visual gags. It helps that Brooks has often worked with the best comedic actors around, including Gene Wilder, Rick Moranis and Leslie Nielsen, although Brooks also takes on his fair share of roles.
Related Mel Brooks’ History Of The World 3 Teased By Showrunner
History of the World Part II showrunner David Stassen offers an optimistic outlook on the future of the four decades-belated Mel Brooks sequel series.
10 “So The Combination Is 1, 2, 3, 4, 5? That’s The Stupidest Combination I Ever Heard In My Life!”
Dark Helmet in Spaceballs (1987)
Spaceballs Where to Watch
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Director Mel Brooks Release Date June 24, 1987 Cast John Candy , Daphne Zuniga , Mel Brooks , Rick Moranis , Bill Pullman
In Mel Brooks’ hilarious Star Wars parody, Rick Moranis portrays his Darth Vader pastiche as a petulant manchild. This is the perfect counterpoint to James Earl Jones’ weighty performance, and Moranis also contrasts the character’s imposing physicality with his own short-statured tantrums. Moranis is able to turn some throwaway lines into hilarious quotes, like when Dark Helmet discovers the combination for a planet’s defense systems.
In Mel Brooks’ hilarious
Star Wars
parody, Rick Moranis portrays his Darth Vader pastiche as a petulant manchild.
37 years after Spaceballs was released, Spaceballs 2 has now been confirmed, with Josh Gad writing the sequel. The new movie will presumably parody the Disney era of Star Wars in the same way the original poked fun at George Lucas’ first trilogy. Rick Moranis retired from acting years ago, so it will be a challenge replacing his presence in the movie, unless he could somehow be tempted out of retirement for a reunion with Mel Brooks.
9 “The Lord Jehovah Has Given Unto You These 15… Oy… 10… 10 Commandments For All To Obey!”
Moses in History Of The World, Part I. (1981)
The History of the World: Part I Where to Watch
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Director Mel Brooks Release Date June 12, 1981 Cast Mel Brooks , Dom DeLuise , Madeline Kahn , Harvey Korman , Cloris Leachman , Ron Carey
Mel Brooks may be best known as a writer and director, but he has small roles in many of his best movies, and he knows how to knock them out of the park. He plays a few different roles in History of the World, Part I, a comedy anthology that takes Brooks’ iconic satirical eye to the history books. He plays Moses, who descends from the mountaintop with 15 commandments, but he quickly adjusts course after dropping one of his stone tablets.
Mel Brooks may be best known as a writer and director, but he has small roles in many of his best movies, and he knows how to knock them out of the park.
Brooks’ delivery is part of what makes the joke work so well. Moses shatters a tablet of divine commandments from the Lord, but he brushes it off with a subtle nonchalance. Brooks followed up his anthology movie with the Hulu series History of the World, Part II in 2023. The series received mixed reviews, but there are a few sketches which evoke Brooks’ greatest hits.
8 “Mongo Only Pawn In Game Of Life.”
Mongo in Blazing Saddles (1974)
Blazing Saddles Where to Watch
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Director Mel Brooks Release Date February 7, 1974 Cast Cleavon Little , gene wilder , Slim Pickens , Harvey Korman , Madeline Kahn , Mel Brooks
Blazing Saddles is a hilarious Western comedy that skewers the absurdities of the genre. Mongo is a send-up of the dim-witted strongman archetype, played by former NFL star Alex Karras. Mongo has plenty of great moments despite his limited role, but his funniest line comes when he says something so poetic and beautiful that it betrays his whole character. He faces the camera and breaks the fourth wall to sell the poignance of the moment.
Mongo has plenty of great moments despite his limited role, but his funniest line comes when he says something so poetic and beautiful that it betrays his whole character.
It would have been funny to hear Mongo saying any kind of intelligent and deep quote, but it’s particularly amusing that this line suggests he has some understanding of his own limitations. He knows on some level that he is an unintelligent person whose fate lies in the hands of others, and by looking at the audience he also acknowledges his role as a secondary character in a movie that isn’t about him.
7 “Non.”
Marcel Marceau in Silent Movie (1976)
Silent Movie doesn’t get as much love as some of Mel Brooks’ most popular movies, but it has plenty of great jokes, especially for fans of silent film stars like Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. Marcel Marceau, the famous French mime performer, makes a memorable cameo, and he delivers the only audible line in the entire movie. The character on the other end of the line claims not to have understood him, since they don’t speak French.
Marcel Marceau, the famous French mime performer, makes a memorable cameo, and he delivers the only audible line in the entire movie.
Marceau didn’t appear in many movies, so his casting in Silent Movie was a big surprise before he even opened his mouth. The joke of having a famously silent performer speak the only word in a silent movie is funny enough, but the quote has another layer. The characters call Marceau to ask him if he wants to be in a silent movie. He declines their offer, but this flips the conversation that Mel Brooks must have had with him in real life. Silent Movie also features cameos from stars of the silent film era.
6 “And Now It’s Springtime For Hitler And Germany!”
Singer in The Producers (1967)
The Producers Where to Watch
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Director Mel Brooks Release Date November 10, 1968 Cast Zero Mostel , gene wilder , Dick Shawn , Kenneth Mars
Mel Brooks has proven over the years that nothing is beyond the scope of his comedy.The Producers lampooned the horrors of the Nazi regime while the war was still relatively fresh in the public conscience. The Producers was almost titled Springtime For Hitler, which would have been even more risqué and controversial. The musical which takes place in the movie does use that title.
The beauty of the opening number is just how far Brooks is willing to wade into the waters of bad taste.
After Max Bialystock and Leo Bloom gamble their futures on making the worst musical of all time, they wait excitedly for the opening number of Springtime For Hitler, and the curtain rises on an extremely offensive musical. The beauty of the opening number is just how far Brooks is willing to wade into the waters of bad taste. The lavish stage production and the gleeful expressions on the faces of the performers are the perfect contrast to their words.
5 “We Can’t Believe It. You Can’t Conceive It. How’d He Achieve It? It’s The Worst Show In Town.”
The Broadway Audience in The Producers (2005)
The Producers
Director Susan Stroman Release Date December 25, 2005 Cast Nathan Lane , Matthew Broderick , Uma Thurman , Will Ferrell , Gary Beach , Roger Bart
The 1967 version of The Producers was Mel Brooks’ directorial debut, and he later turned it into a record-breaking stage musical. In 2005, he made that musical back into a movie starring Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick. The remake of The Producers is just as gloriously distasteful as the original, with a few added musical numbers to sell the glitz and glamour of Broadway.
Other great musical additions to the remake including Will Ferrell singing “Der Guten Tag Hop-Clop” and Nathan Lane’s “Along Came Bialy”.
The first song “Opening Night” is one of the standout numbers, and it provides a great introduction to Max Bialystock’s character. Before he even appears on screen, the audience emerges from his latest production, decrying how wretched it is. For a moment, they appear to be feeling positive about the show, right up until the punch line “It’s the worst show in town!” Other great musical additions to the remake including Will Ferrell singing “Der Guten Tag Hop-Clop” and Nathan Lane’s “Along Came Bialy”.
4 “A Riot Is An Ugly Thing… And, I Think That It Is Just About Time That We Had One.”
Inspector Kemp in Young Frankenstein (1974)
Young Frankenstein
Director Mel Brooks Release Date December 15, 1974 Cast Marty Feldman , Cloris Leachman , Madeline Kahn , Peter Boyle , gene wilder
Young Frankenstein is filled with great quotes, as Gene Wilder delivers one of his most memorable comedic performances. The horror movie parody also has plenty of great visual gags, like the monster’s dancing in “Puttin’ on the Ritz,” and other non-verbal jokes, like the horses whinnying at the mention of Frau Blucher’s name. Overall, Young Frankenstein has countless ways of making its audience laugh.
Overall,
Young Frankenstein
has countless ways of making its audience laugh.
Inspector Kemp’s best line is typical of Mel Brooks’ humor. It’s a simple joke that subverts expectations with a standard set-up and punchline, but it also has further layers that make it even funnier. Inspector Kemp is meant to keep the peace, but he has a look of delight on his face as he incites the mob to start rioting. This highlights the giddy stupidity of most riots, as most of the people in the mob are just excited about being outside and doing something interesting.
3 “No Sir, I Didn’t See You Playing With Your Dolls Again.”
Colonel Sandurz in Spaceballs (1987)
The number of great quotes in Spaceballs is remarkable, with every scene providing a memorable punchline or two. Lone Starr, Barf and Yogurt all have outstanding moments, but the movie’s funniest creation is Rick Moranis’ Lord Dark Helmet. The enforcer for the Spaceballs tries to maintain his menacing appearance in front of his men, but it’s clear that he isn’t really fooling anyone.
The word
“again”
tagged on to the end of the sentence elevates this from a good line to a great one.
When Colonel Sandurz walks in on Dark Helmet playing with his dolls, Moranis’ character reacts like a child who has been caught doing something naughty. He desperately tries to cling on to his respectability, but Colonel Sandurz’s response says a lot. The word “again” tagged on to the end of the sentence elevates this from a good line to a great one. It shows just how paper thin Dark Helmet’s façade is.
2 “Holy Sh*t! Wait A Minute, Wait A Minute. Last Request.”
King Louis XVI in History of the World, Part I. (1981)
Mel Brooks’ most famous quote as King Louis XVI in History of the World, Part I is “It‘s good to be the king.” He repeats this line several times after harassing the women of the court, often directly to camera with a sickening sleaze, as if he assumes the audience agree with his behavior. He finally gets his comeuppance during the French Revolution, but he doesn’t realize the seriousness of his predicament until the executioners test the guillotine.
Brooks’ humor always pushes the limits of acceptable taste, but he doesn’t always go in for profanity. When he does, he makes sure that it has the desired impact
Brooks’ humor always pushes the limits of acceptable taste, but he doesn’t always go in for profanity. When he does, he makes sure that it has the desired impact, and it works perfectly during the execution scene. King Louis is a vulgar character, and it’s a joy to watch him desperately attempt to buy time without having a legitimate last request. History of the World, Part I is rather uneven, like most anthology movie, but its highs are very high indeed.
1 “You’ve Got To Remember That These Are Just Simple Farmers. These Are People Of The Land. The Common Clay Of The New West. You Know… Morons.”
Jim in Blazing Saddles (1974)
Gene Wilder and Mel Brooks worked together three times, and their collaborations brought the best out of each other. Wilder clicked with Brooks’ style in each of their movies, but Blazing Saddles is probably the best of the bunch. The movie takes every possible opportunity to deconstruct the Western genre, as well as its own bare-faced artificiality, but Wilder plays his part with earnestness.
The best quote from
Blazing Saddles
is a great comedic reversal that makes fun of the Western genre’s phony blue-collar sentimentality.
The best quote from Blazing Saddles is a great comedic reversal that makes fun of the Western genre’s phony blue-collar sentimentality. One of the running gags in Blazing Saddles is that classic Western movies are made by pampered Hollywood celebrities pretending to understand the grit and resilience of middle America just because that’s what the script tells them to do. These actors pretend that they are representing the “common clay of the new West,” but they secretly see their fans as “morons”.