Banzé na Rússia

As Mel Brooks films go, I rate it second only to Young Frankenstein. The action takes place in Russia 10 years after the Revolution. Ron Moody is marvelous as a low IQ and totally inept former nobleman, now hiding out as a clerk in a government office, who learns that the family jewels had been sewn into one of the 12 dining room chairs. He returns to his former residence, now an old folks home, and learns from former servant, now janitor, Mel Brooks that the chairs are gone, confiscated by the government. Con man Frank Langella threatens to turn Moody in if he does not allow him in on the quest. Of course, the chairs have been widely distributed. A major fly in the ointment is Dom Deluise, the village priest, who has also learned the secret. He relinquishes all for greed ("O, Thou who knowest all---you know.") and competes in the search. Not a perfect movie, but loaded with laughs. May be Dom's funniest role. I give it an 8 out of 10.

The Twelve Chairs Years after the Russian Revolution in 1917, the former aristocrat Ippolit Matveevich Vorobyaninov (Ron Moody) is informed by his terminal mother-in- law that she has hidden her jewels in a the upholstery of chair from a set of twelve chairs. The Orthodox Father Fyodor (Dom DeLuise) also hears and leaves the Church to seek out the treasure. Vorobyaninov travels to his old house and meets his former servant Tikon (Mel Brooks) that adores him. He learns that the chairs had been expropriated by the new government and sent to another place. However the con artist Ostap Bender (Frank Langella) convinces Vorobyaninov to be his partner. They travel to Moscow where Ostap succeeds in luring Father Fyodor, telling that the chairs belong to the Engineer Bruns (David Lander), who has very similar chairs and lives with his wife in Siberia. Will Vorobyaninov and Ostap find the twelve chairs?

"The Twelve Chairs" is a typical Mel Brooks' comedy with the usual type of humor with a satire to the Russian Revolution. This comedy is also the debut of Frank Langella in the cinema. Fans of Mel Brooks will certainly like it, but who is not his fan may not find this comedy entertaining. My vote is six.

Title (Brazil): "Banzé na Rússia" ("Mess in Russia")

In his lifetime Mel Brooks has created many motion pictures which have established him as an artistic genius. "The Twelve Chairs" is another milestone for him. From the very beginning of this film, to its ending, there is a sense of serious, but humanistic brilliance. The era is the aftermath of the Russian Revolution and a dying woman wants to clear her conscience and reveal her greatest sin. As thousands of the nobility are fleeing for their lives, she decides to hide her family's fortune inside the lining of a set of handcrafted chairs. That secret is her dying revelation and is said unfortunately into more than one set of ears. This initiates a mad dash for the lost treasure. Seeking the cache of jewels are three intrepid, but greedy set of characters. The first is incredibly talented Ron Moody who adroitly and brilliantly plays the legitimate, greedy and opportunistic son, Ippolit Vorobyaninov. Once a Marshall of the nobility, he is now reduced to a minor banking clerk and opportunistic son-in-law. Frank Langella is superior as Ostap Bender, a handsome, street-wise, traveling Gypsy, who also wants in on the treasure hunt. Finally there is Dom DeLuise who plays Father Fyodor, an Orthodox but impoverished monk who believes, God will help him find the elusive chair first. What the trio soon discover is that the chair is one of Twelve which have been scattered across the vast twelve thousand miles of Russia. If Mel Brooks sought to create an amusing memorable movie, he succeeded. By the time one reaches the end of this film, we realize . . . . a Classic has been born. ****

Knowing that Mel Brooks usually makes the silliest movies possible, it's a surprise that he directed the lightweight comedy "The Twelve Chairs". It portrays a former Czarist (Ron Moody, happy birthday!) and a young soldier (Frank Langella) looking for some jewels hidden in chairs in the Soviet Union in the 1920s. I will say that not much really happens throughout much of the movie, but it is a famous part of Russian literature. I haven't read the novel, but the movie is worth seeing, if only as a look at Brooks's early career. Also starring Dom DeLuise and Brooks in a small role.

Epilepsy...

A "serious comedy" from Mel Brooks. "The Twelve Chairs" borders on farce but is relatively restrained. This restraint is all the more remarkable in light of Dom DeLuise's manic attempts to take over. Ron Moody (who is best remember as Fagin in 'Oliver' on film and on the West End and Broadway)is superb. Frank Langella is less impressive, but he does bring the necessary character to the role. If you expect and want "Blazing Saddles" this movie is not for you. Nor is it as perfect a picture as "Young Frankenstein". But this Brooksian take on a Russian comedy of errors is well worth your attention. The belly laughs are few and far between, but the tugs on the heartstrings (along with some slapstick) suffice. If I am spare on the details, it is only because I have not seen this motion picture since its theatrical release in 1970; it's definitely one to which I have to renew my acquaintance.