For me, the Blues Brothers were a transitional comedy for my family. It was a movie my parents would watch, laughing hysterically, and I loved it too. I remember when it was the Saturday Night Movie of the week. They would have Bond films, the disaster films or the 70's, some musicals, but the Blues Brothers was always a hit when it aired. We'd make some popcorn and settle in for a good ride, with me on the floor in front of the TV.
The main reason I was a fan at 13 was simple, they destroyed a lot of cars in this movie. There is no CGI or computer animation. They are just crashing cars constantly in this film. The final chase scene is a demolition derby on steroids, an over the top celebration of carnage. Watch it in letterbox to get the full impact of it.
The mall chase, which I have linked to here, also has another distinction, capturing the American Mall in all of it's late 70's/early 80's glory. This was right before malls became the iconic hangout of the Reagan 80's teenagers, and some of the stores they mention are friendly reminders of the culture before big hair, British New Wave, and shoulder pads.
Watch the movie for the music too. The music in Blues Brothers is so good, it has rarely been matched for soundtracks. As a matter of fact, I would even recommend the sequel (I'll wait for the boos to die down) for the music in that one too. The one exception in Blues Brothers 2000 is Riders in the Sky, a clear take off of Rawhide from the first movie. Also the sequel has as much hilarity as a Dick Cheney interview on Fox. Still, the music is very good.
Enjoy a trip inside the mall!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTRXnuoK1ss
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