NinetyForChill: The #Podcast - "The Producers" (1967) - A Guide to Punting Proud Boys

 NinetyForChill.com: The #Podcast

Episode 77: "The Producers" (1967) - A Guide to Punting Proud Boys (And Michael Dubois's Dream of Holographic Gene Wilder).

The Producers 1967 - A Guide to Punting Proud Boys

July 19, 2022

Michael Dubois returns to NinetyForChill: The #Podcast to continue their tribute to the late great Gene Wilder with 1967's "The Producers". It only seems fitting to revisit Mel Brook's motion picture debut in honor of his recent 96th birthday. This feature is Cool Movie Darth's favorite from the auteur, but Michael would have preferred Nathan Lane's presence. What the two do agree on: We need more mocking of the Far Right via cinema.

Allow me to get out of third-person. Happy Prof. Shurtleff of Illinois Central College? I (CM Darth) will try not to make so much light of violent death in this summation. This is my declaration of changing perspective. 

So...I am not waiting till the last minute to get this post completed. What is another lost day off? "Pokémon Legends: Arceus" is in my library. There will be a day when it will finally be played.

To my credit, I have at least figured out how to make these blog posts relatively concise. There is a chance that I will be ably to enjoy the rest of this Sunday. Too bad it has to be cut short since my early shifts always seem to come the day following my scheduled days off.

Sleeping in is something my cats graciously allow me. The result is I responsibly only get 10 hours to fuck around. Do employers consider that some people like to stay up late and do stupid things with their time? Sorry that I have chose not to procreate. Somethings you do not have to out grow.

It is having late nights that allow me to find and truly appreciate classic cinema. This is especially true when you lived with a girl for the better part of four years who did not like Mel Brooks. You would think that Ally from Ally's Accessories Shop on Etsy would appreciate all of the musical numbers. Thankfully Michael Dubois does.

If anything, Michael missed the lack of them from Mel Brook's feature debut. He first saw the 2005 adaptation of the Broadway musical adaptation of this 1967 movie which famously had Nathan Lane portray scheming producer Max Bialystock. @GentleThemE on Twitter preferred the friendlier take on this lead role over Zero Mostel's return to Hollywood after the Black Listing from McCarthyism. I think adding context to the importance of this casting may have softened Michael's take. From there, we talk about the feature and my inquiries about whether or not the 2005 remake was comparable in quality.

1967...2005...we are talking about a movie that tells the tale of producing a play guaranteed to fail with songs that glorify Adolph Hitler. Because we are in 2022, it ends up being very easy for us to go on plenty of antifascist tangents. This gives Michael the forum to preach about how mocking them is the key for the Western world to survive.

If you need more backing behind this revelation, check out the videos of Lindsey Ellis on YouTube.

As I was pulling the above video from her channel, it opens with a statement about how people try to use "Mel Brooks did this" as a blanket statement for poor satire. Not what I was hoping for, but it serves as a great transition into other elements of the podcast we discuss. From mocking Proud Boys to trying to understand them and how they misinterpret cinema like "Fight Club" and "American History X". I am surprised that I did not ask about how Edward Norton is somehow the Neo-Nazi ideal.

The two of us ended up talking for over two hours, so this recording will be divided into two parts. I imagine it will get more political. That is what I look forward to when I have Michael as a guest. By the 1:30 mark, I am sure the language will finally get explicit, so next week may not be appropriate for kids. Actually, I can guarantee that.

After FanExpo, I watched "Jay and Silent Bob Reboot". Since the theatrical run was based around a tour showing the feature off, there are no green band trailers. Thus, to do it justice, you have to deal with a lot of cursing.

I guess my final word for part one is that if you do not like the politics on the pod, my next guest wants to talk about "They Live". Gregory Carl Gathmann may focus on Roddy Piper and wrestling chatter, but you cannot avoid the Reagan bashing that comes with John Carpenter's greatest satire.

If you want to end the politicization of my movie podcast, follow the instructions below.

Follow me on Twitter @catbusruss. If you want to be on the show, contact me on Twitter or send an email to russthebus07@gmail.com. All we need is a theme, movie, director, or actor and a focus on sub 100-minute material. As long as the credits start before the 1:39:59 mark on the runtime bar, the movie qualifies.