Mel Brooks has earned himself a place in cinema history many times over for his classic comedy films that include The Producers, Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein and High Anxiety. But at age 86, the writer/director doesn’t seem to be content on resting on his laurels. Instead, he is looking at making another film, though in a genre that one would not normally associate with the comedy maestro.
As Brooks told the Wrap –
I’m working on a horror film; it’s kind of a traditional slasher film called “Pizza Man.” It reminds me of those Hammer Films from the 1950s. So who knows — I might direct it, but I need to polish it and rewrite it.
I’ve got Cary Elwes playing the lead and Stacy Keach is interested in being the villain.
I’ve got to get the distribution though. I would be happy to go raise the money, but I won’t do that without distribution. That’s the mistake many of these people make, because they raise the money and then they can’t get a decent DVD deal because they don’t have distribution in place.
As a fan of Brooks’ films, I have to say that I am very intrigued by what this new film will look like. There is the fear that it could look old-fashioned to some sections of the audience if he is going for the feel of the old Hammer Studios film. But given that for his film parodies like High Anxiety or Young Frankenstein he has demonstrated such a keen eye for the details of the original, I think he can handle a straight up horror film.
