Whether satirical or serious, there is no such thing as a piece of media that will be universally understood for what it is (and I’d venture to say that “serious” films about bigotry have a much worse habit of making the bigots look sympathetic than satires do). If you can’t see how Blazing Saddles is lampooning racists, you’re willfully ignoring it. It’s not subtle.
That said, I’d venture to say that Blazing Saddles wouldn’t be green-lit today mainly because it doesn’t really have an ending; it just sort of smashes through the fourth wall and careens through the studio backlot for 15 minutes until the credits roll.
