Blazing Saddles
A town—where everyone seems to be named Johnson—stands in the way of the railroad. In order to grab their land, robber baron Hedley Lamarr sends his henchmen to make life in the town unbearable. After the sheriff is killed, the town demands a new sheriff from the Governor, so Hedley convinces him to send the town the first black sheriff in the west.
Critics Sentiment
Madeline Kahn performs I'm Tired as Marlene Dietrich parody
Hedley Lamarr recruits army of criminals including Nazis and KKK members
Film drops from Kahn's celebrated musical performance to the more controversial criminal recruitment sequence before recovering with the elaborate fake town climax
Blazing Saddles maintains strong audience approval throughout most of its runtime, with particular peaks during Cleavon Little's clever sheriff moments and Madeline Kahn's show-stopping performance. While some critics found the structure messy and certain boundary-pushing elements divisive, the film's satirical take on racism and western conventions generally succeeded with both contemporary and modern audiences.
Full cast
Showing 20 of 134
Cleavon Little
Bart
Gene Wilder
Jim
Slim Pickens
Taggart
Harvey Korman
Hedley Lamarr
Madeline Kahn
Lili Von Shtupp
Mel Brooks
Governor William J. Le Petomane / Indian Chief
Burton Gilliam
Lyle
Alex Karras
Mongo
David Huddleston
Olson Johnson
Liam Dunn
Rev. Johnson
John Hillerman
Howard Johnson
George Furth
Van Johnson
Jack Starrett
Gabby Johnson
Carol Arthur
Harriett Johnson
Richard Collier
Dr. Sam Johnson
Charles McGregor
Charlie
Robyn Hilton
Miss Stein
Don Megowan
Gum Chewer
Dom DeLuise
Buddy Bizarre
Count Basie
Self
Crew
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