Hollywood has it’s crop of up and coming funnymen and women, but looking over the long run of a career no one comes close to Mel Brooks and Woody Allen.
Each of these talented directors has three of their films listed in the American Film Institute Top 100 Comedies of all time. For Mel Brooks, who can forget the genre bending spectacles of “Blazing Saddles” and “Young Frankenstein”? Then there is the never ending story of ” The Producers”. It was written as a play then made into a movie. went back to being an award winning play. and then remade as a movie.
On the Woody Allen side, there is “Annie Hall”,” Manhattan” and “Bananas.”
For fans , we must also mention “Sleeper’ and “Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Sex”.
Allen did his share of genre work with ” A Midsummer Night’s Sex Comedy”.
Woody developed off screen relationships with his leading ladies, Diane Keaton and Mia Farrow and promoted the early careers of Mariel Hemingway and Scarlett Johansson.
Mel Brooks married the elegant Anne Bancroft, an Academy Award winner from “The Miracle Worker” as well as Mrs. Robinson from “The Graduate”. They appeared together in ” To Be Or Not to Be” which Brooks produced, but did not direct.
In 1980, Siskel and Ebert had a debate about who was funnier, Mel Brooks or Woody Allen, in a classic episode of their popular show, “Sneak Previews.” The result of that debate was a draw.
When the resumes of these comedy titans are examined side by side, it is striking how many similarities stand out. Both of them have roots as writers in early television shows with pioneers like Sid Caesar and Carl Reiner. They each had career chapters as stand up comedians and sold records, created hit plays for Broadway and they are musicians with Woody on jazz clarinet and Mel on drums and piano. Woody often goes out at night and jams in a variety of venues. Mel writes a lot of the music for his movies and even sings ! His rendition of “High Anxiety ” combines Frank Sinatra with William Shatner in a mind boggling omelet.
It’s in the differences between these two comedy giants that the best comparisons can be found. While Woody is often found front and center in his movies, Mel found his greatest triumphs by casting Gene Wilder, who stars in the above mentioned comedy classics.
Mel Brooks continued a long career by deconstructing many film genres like the Hitchcock thriller, in “High Anxiety,” the epic “History of the World, Part One,” and science fiction in “Spaceballs.”
Woody Allen broadened his range with serious relationship movies like “Crimes and Misdemeanors” and the homage to directors like Ingmar Bergman in Allen’s “Interiors” and to Frederico Fellini in Allen’s “Radio Days.”
Both Mel Brooks and Woody Allen have been prolific in their output. Brooks has not directed a film in years, but has been active as a producer through his company, Brooksfilms. He now leans towards turning his film classics into Broadway plays. After the response to “The Producers”, let’s hope that “Blazing Saddles” comes around again as a musical.
Allen recently had a hit with “Midnight in Paris” using Owen Wilson as his new stand in. The box office has been good by Woody Allen standards and has received critical reviews that say it’s his best film in years.
Hollywood has it’s new crop of comedy stars like Mike Meyers and Seth Rogen, but these newcomers have their work cut out to achieve the level of Mel Brooks and Woody Allen.