This is a really funny movie. It's got some gags that don't work, sure, but on the whole, it's a big hit. It isn't, however, the greatest comedy of all time, or even close to that.
It does have some great comic performances, mainly from Madeleine Kahn and Gene Wilder.
But the ending, sadly, is a disaster. I realize what Brooks was going for, but.. well, I just lose interest every time. There are still some funny gags there at the end, but... Let me put it this way, even in a very broad parody like this, the story remains important. Not nearly as important as it would be in a real (i.e., "straight") Western, but not utterly disposable either. The story is a loose (very loose) framework of characters, motivations, and events, within which the comedy can occur. In a comedy of this type, there is a lot of room to stretch the story (anachronisms, for instance). But it can't be stretched forever. The ending goes too far, and falls flat as a result.
But, watch it at least that far, anyway, and then turn it off. I do the same thing with "Monty Python and the Holy Grail".
It does have some great comic performances, mainly from Madeleine Kahn and Gene Wilder.
But the ending, sadly, is a disaster. I realize what Brooks was going for, but.. well, I just lose interest every time. There are still some funny gags there at the end, but... Let me put it this way, even in a very broad parody like this, the story remains important. Not nearly as important as it would be in a real (i.e., "straight") Western, but not utterly disposable either. The story is a loose (very loose) framework of characters, motivations, and events, within which the comedy can occur. In a comedy of this type, there is a lot of room to stretch the story (anachronisms, for instance). But it can't be stretched forever. The ending goes too far, and falls flat as a result.
But, watch it at least that far, anyway, and then turn it off. I do the same thing with "Monty Python and the Holy Grail".