The Film
"It's good to be the king."
It's also pretty good to be the director, especially if you are Mel Brooks. History of the World Part I is certainly not the director's best work. However, it is a greatest hits as far as talent. Dom DeLuise, Madeline Kahn, Harvey Korman, Cloris Leachman, Ron Carey, Orson Welles, Sid Caesar, Shecky Greene, and of course, Mel Brooks, are just a few of the famous faces you'll see parade across the screen during the quick-moving film.
Oh yes, it's very quick. Brooks whips through this history class, cramming in periods of history both past and (for a few minutes) future. Even quicker than the skits is the rapid fire of jokes. Not all of them are golden, but if you wait a whole 10 seconds, another one will surely be on its way.
History of the World Part I is more like a history lesson in comedy. In today's politically correct world, this movie looks more like hieroglyphics, which are both dirty and hilarious. If you can't remember that less PC time, this film should more than jolt your memory and possibly your blood pressure. The easily offended will want to stay far away. The rest should enjoy this trip down Memory Lane. 
History of the World Part I is certainly not the best of Brooks. However, his worst is still better than most comedies. It's a nice trip down Memory Lane, which had us wondering... whatever happened to part II?
The Picture
Despite this film's age, the 2:35:1 transfer looks surprisingly good. The dawn of time has the dimmest image, but as time marches on, the image picks up a little. There's more detail, the fleshtones look great, and more colors begin to pop. The sections highlighting Rome and France offer some of the brightest material -- both on-screen and in the jokes.
The Sound
Even though the image doesn't make the film seem dated, the audio certainly does. This has nothing to do with jokes, but the one-dimensional sound that's presented. The comedy is mainly rapid-fire one-liners and the DTS-HD Master Audio track does deliver those with a punch. However, all of the other audio sounds a bit hollow, hovering around the front speakers. Horses galloping, feet shuffling, crowd scenes; there are plenty of sounds there to create more ambience. Even the musical soundtrack doesn't belt out to the surrounds.
The Extras
Fans will be slightly disappointed that History of the World Part I doesn't play more like a history of Mel Brooks. Aside from a trivia track and trailers, there are two extremely short features. One talks about how Mel was made for musicals. The other has a few anecdotes about the movie. They are actually too short, but interesting, feature Brooks himself, and are well worth the 20 minutes it takes to watch both.
Final Thoughts
Despite being on of the less impressive Mel Brooks films (and Blu-rays), History of the World Part I will not disappoint the director's fans. There's some dated material here, but the image is pretty impressive and the film is still funny after all these years.
Product Details
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