Review of High Anxiety (1977) by Fred B — 14 Jul 2007

There are some very funny spoofs of Hitchcock movies in this film, but unlike most Mel Brooks films, it's more miss than hit with the gag rate, although when a good gag does hit the screen it is not wasted.

Great performances come from Harvey Korman and Cloris Leachman, the two slimy bad guys who run the psychiatric institute. Surprisingly, it's disappointing performance from Brooks that lets the film down.

He seems to be struggling with the material, and the dialog seems forced and there are definite gaps where people are waiting for cues as to when to start speaking. It's not fluid enough and it definitely doesn't match the high standards of Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, or even the slightly lower standards of the later film Spaceballs.

Not a particularly good example of his work, a disappointing comedy, not reccomended.