STORY STUDY - MEDIUM: FILM - “The Twelve Chairs”
- Jeffrey Tung
- Jul 16, 2018
- 2 min read
People do crazy things when they learn that the most innocent thing they owned has something very rare and valuable hidden within it. They become crazier when it turns out they have competition in finding that treasure.
Directed and written by Mel Brooks, and based on the novel of the same name by Ilf and Petrov, The Twelve Chairs is the story of a former aristocrat who learns from his mother-in-law who is near death that she has hidden a fortune in jewels in one of the twelve chairs part of their dining room set. The aristocrat travels to his former mansion to retrieve the treasure.
While there, he comes across a con-artist who manipulates his way into the aristocrat’s life, becoming reluctant partners.
They travel across Russia to find the one chair that contains the jewels before their rival finds it first: a priest who abandons the cloth after learning of the treasure himself from the woman through her confession.
Among the filmography of Brooks’ work, this film is the least talked about. In fact, when I found out about it, I was surprised I never heard of it. At least with The Producers, it was his first film, and it spawned a very successful stage musical. But this? It had no genre that he was satirizing, though the novel itself is a satire.
The characters behave over-the-top save for one, the con-man whom I can assume is the straight man playing off the zany characters. He has funny dialogue, but he speaks of them in such a calm manner.
The whole film is played with such immaturity and cartoony. Characters scream, they run in fast motion, a character is gullible when being sent on a wild goose chase. Anyone who is a fan of classic Looney Tunes will probably be a fan of this.
Does the film hold up to today? Honestly, that’s probably why this film isn’t really referenced that much when it comes to Mel Brooks. It’s not like it was a critically panned film at the time; it was widely praised. Personally, I do think it’s because it’s not (in an American sense) culturally accessible to us. With his widely remembered films, he is parodying films and/or genres that are/were coming out.
I was aware of this film when I was going through my Mel Brooks film collection. Again, it was a title I was absolutely unaware of, so I had no expectations. It is a funny film to watch, and the lesson the characters learn at the end is a classic theme in stories with crazy journeys.
The Twelve Chairs is an obscure gem; an early work of a man who has a voice that most audiences and filmmakers could relate to. It’s zany, it’s over-the-top, and it’s wild.
Grab a CHAAAAAIIIIIRRRRRRR, and check it out.
