High Anxiety Review

I'm a big fan of Alfred Hitchcock's movies. Psycho might be one of my all time favorite movies. I recently discovered that one of my favorite comedy film makers, Mel Brooks, made a hilarious "tribute" to some of Hitchcock's films called High Anxiety (1977). I can thank The Q Filmcast for introducing me to this hilarious bit of cinema. As a comedy film, it's pretty good. As a spoof of more than ten Hitchcock films, it's something along the lines of amazing.

Renowned Harvard psychiatrist Dr. Richard H. Thorndyke (Mel Brooks) conceals a fear of heights, or High Anxiety. Thorndyke takes over as the new director of the PsychoNeurotic Institute for the Very, Very Nervous after the last director dies under suspicious circumstances. He soon finds himself to be in the company of some very strange colleagues including Nurse Diesel (Cloris Leachman), a charge nurse with a dark sneer and a tendency toward domination; Dr. Montague (Harvey Korman), a psychiatrist with a closeted habit of his own; and Victoria Brisbane (Madeline Kahn), the eccentric daughter of a patient at the institute. Thorndyke heads to a psychiatry conference where he is framed for murder. Thorndyke must confront his own psychiatric condition in order to clear his name, save the Institute, his reputation, and his own sanity.

I've been telling friends and colleagues that I saw High Anxiety and have tried to introduce them to the movie's premise. Most of them have already heard about it and seen it. While I'm a fan of both Hitchcock and Brooks, I haven't seen the entirety of their filmographies, but you'd think I'd have heard about this movie related to the two directors. High Anxiety spoofs The Birds, Psycho, North by Northwest, and Vertigo and makes references to many others. Hitchcock wasn't involved in the making of the movie, but Brooks held a private preview of the movie for Hitchcock to see his reaction. When Hitchcock walked out at the movie's end without saying a word, Brooks feared that Hitchcock hated the movie. But days later Hitchcock sent a congratulatory case of wine to Brooks, knowing that Brooks was a wine connoisseur. Evidently Hitchcock himself got a kick out of High Anxiety on some level.

The Hitchcock references are many and cleverly woven into the story and dialogue. The location of the phone booth scene beneath the Golden Gate Bridge is Fort Point, the same location a critical scene in Vertigo was filmed. Brooks hired the actual bird handler from The Birds to work on the bird scene in this movie. As a tribute to the Roger O. Thornhill character in North by Northwest who never reveals his middle name, Richard H. Thorndyke in High Anxiety is hesitant to reveal his middle name. In another tribute to Hitchcock, Dr. Thorndyke is told that a "Mr. MacGuffin" changed his hotel room reservation. Hitchcock's MacGuffins were objects or devices which drove the plot but which were otherwise inconsequential and could be forgotten once they had served their purpose. There are a couple of nods to Psycho as well; Psycho has one of the most famous murder scenes which has already been spoofed many times over in other media, so you just know there's going to be some kind of a "shower scene" in this one, and it doesn't disappoint.

The humor is mostly good, as is Brooks' usual fare. There are some witty set ups to ridiculously silly punch lines. There's also some highly juvenile gags that you simply can't help but chuckle at. The movie also includes some crude humor here and there, which usually garners an eye roll from me. The movie is rated PG and while some of the crude humor suggests something dirtier, at face value it's pretty clean for a Brooks movie. For example, at the psychiatry conference Thorndyke is asked some questions about psychosexual development according to Freud. Right after he begins to answer, a conference attendee enters with his two children apologizing for their presence because he couldn't find a babysitter. Thorndyke continues to awkwardly lecture on the topic of sexual development while using kid-friendly vocabulary for the human anatomy which makes him sound like a buffoon. You're probably okay watching this with small children present since you'll get the underlying joke that will completely go over kids' heads. This was released before the PG-13 rating was created.

Comedy movies usually don't lend themselves to deep or interesting stories. High Anxiety isn't any different. The story is used mostly as a means of delivering a bunch of silly jokes, which it does exceedingly well. But as a story, there is a lot that is left unresolved and seems non-sequitur. It's a fun movie, but it isn't Mel Brooks' best. That's probably why I hear about Young Frankenstien, Spaceballs, and The Producers a lot more than High Anxiety. But you can't deny that High Anxiety is a good movie. Brooks put a whole lot of work into it; he was the lead role, director, producer, co-writer, and for the title song he was both composer and lyricist. You can't tell me that's not impressive.

High Anxiety is a good, funny Mel Brooks movie. Brooks has such a unique style that his movies are almost a genre unto themselves; this movie is no different. All the Hitchcock references are fun to watch for. You don't need to be an avid Hitchcock fan to appreciate High Anxiety, but many of the gags will be even funnier if you have seen a number of Hitchcock films. It's not Brooks' best movie, but I think it's worth seeing for a good laugh. As of writing this, High Anxiety is on NetFlix Instant Play; it's worth catching there. It's only worth purchasing if you're already a Mel Brooks fan.

What is your favorite Mel Brooks movie? Comment below and tell me why!

The Croods Movie Review

Now that Dreamworks is essentially doing its own thing down instead of trying to emulate Pixar (see my Kung Fu Panda review for further ranting), Dreamworks has created a number of exceptional animated movies. The Croods (2012) was fun and showcased some stellar animation, but floundered a bit in terms of story.

The Croods, a family of prehistoric cavemen, has managed to survive harsh environmental hazards and predators for years in the safety of their cave. It is the job of the patriarch, Grug (Nicolas Cage), to keep his family safe and has repeatedly taught them the rules that have kept them safe for so  long; "new things" pose a threat to survival, and to never not be afraid. Grug's wife Ugga (Catherine Keener) and their three kids, Eep (Emma Stone), Thunk (Clark Duke), the ferocious baby Sandy, and Ugga's mother Gran (Cloris Leachman) spend their days cowering in their cave and scavenging for food. The Croods are forced outside the safety of their cave when it is destroyed as the tectonic plates begin to shift. Terrified of the alien world outside, they seek out a new shelter with the help of a nomadic caveboy named Guy (Ryan Reynolds) who, unlike the Croods, uses his brain to come up with ideas and inventions to overcome obstacles.

Concept Art for The Croods
Similar to Lilo & Stitch art

Chris Sanders is the guy responsible for The Croods. He directed it, wrote the screenplay, came up with the story concept, and heavily influenced the character designs. Chris Sanders also did all of this for Lilo & Stitch as well as provide the voice for Stitch. He's got a passion for animation and it does show in The Croods. You can see some similarities to the art style from Lilo & Stitch manifesting itself in The Croods.

The animation in The Croods is really fantastic. Everything is highly texturized. You can see very believable cracks and crags in rock formation, see clumps of fur and individual hairs on the characters and their fur skin clothing, small blemishes and imperfections in the skin, you can even see the veins bulge in Grug's neck when he yells. Among the most impressive bits of animation is the dust clouds. They look remarkably realistic!

Most of the characters are actually not that interesting. Grug and Eep are easily the most interesting since they each grow and develop the most. The other characters pretty much have one shtick that defines them and it is continuously reiterated in each scene. For example, Gran seems to be there for the sole purpose of mother-in-law jokes. On the other hand, Grug is having to accept change, accept that he can't control everything, and that rules naturally need to change as the world changes. It seems that rebellious teenagers go back as far as protective fathers do. Eep wants to explore and see the world, which goes completely against Grug's "new things are dangerous" and "never not be afraid" rules. Eep learns that the rules that have been around for generations have lasted for a reason; they work, and they keep us safe.

One of the things I particularly appreciated about The Croods is the family doesn't fight with one another. They certainly have very different views and don't always agree with one another. Sometimes they become angry at each other, but they don't fight amongst themselves. Family movies often have a kids vs. parents sort of theme, but that is not present here at all. The entire Crood family loves and respects each other despite their differences. This is established early on when The Croods scavenge for food; the whole family is in on it and they work together as an efficient team. Everyone works seamlessly together in a hilarious scene that is a cross between dodge ball, an obstacle course and a rugby game. I thought that was refreshing and I would love to see more movies do that.

There is a joyful, exciting, and tense theme of exploration and discovery. None of the prehistoric creatures the Croods encounter are actual prehistoric animals; they're all unique, comical, and bizarre. Even the landscapes they traverse seem highly strange and otherworldly. This gives us a sense of unfamiliarity along with the characters. While this was well implemented, they didn't do much else. The Croods encounter a new thing, they panic, and either accidentally find a way around it, or Guy provides a way around it. Nearly every scene follows that pattern, and it quickly becomes predictable.

The Croods is a good clean movie that the whole family could enjoy. It wasn't the best movie, but it had some very good qualities. It features some remarkable animation, some simple characters and some good characters, a fun theme, and good family values. The slapstick and cartoon physics are funny, but not very diverse. That coupled with a predictable story pattern weakens the movie overall. In the end, I think it's an okay movie. Kids will love it, older audiences will be amused. It's worth seeing once, but probably not worth owning unless you've got kids. You shouldn't lose any sleep over missing this, should that be the case.

I really liked the fact that the family in The Croods was actually functional; they disagreed and became angry with each other at times, but were always loving and respectful of one another. It was realistic, yet optimistic. I want to see that in more movies. Can you think of any other movies that have a family like that in it? Comment below and make some recommendations!