The Birdcage
1996 Directed by Mike Nichols
Synopsis
Come as you are.
A gay cabaret owner and his drag queen companion agree to put up a false straight front so that their son can introduce them to his fiancé's right-wing moralistic parents.
Genre
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Part of Dastardly Difficult December: film nr.32
I tend to severely dislike those Hollywood remakes of foreign comedies (and by foreign I mean anything not American). The humour usually falls flat and a lot seems to get lost in translation. This is one of the few examples where it worked rather well.
La Cage aux folles is a delightful comedy and quintessentially French. This remake somehow managed to capture that really well, but still managed to make it a successful transition to American culture. It is essentially still the same story, so all opportunities for strong situational comedy remain, yet it is within the performances this film excels.
Nathan Lane is scrumptiously gorgeous here. His performance is not only unbelievably…
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"I am the co-founder for the coalition of moral order... my partner has just been found dead in the bed of an underage black whore....!"
Scripted by 2 time academy award nominee Elaine May, the Birdcage is a remake of the 1978 movie La Cage au Folles and deals with 2 couples as far removed from each other as could possibly be who are forced into meeting each other due to their kids announcing they are to be married.
Peppered with zingers, the script wouldn't have lived up to its expectations had it not been for an inspired choice of casting. Gene Hackman and Diane Weist are the Senator Kevin and Mrs Keeley, said co-founder who finds he's in the…
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Nathan Lane is a fat, insecure, middle aged, adorable thing in this film and I loved every minute of him (no homo).
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Witty and wonderfully farcical, an underrated comedic gem.
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A charming, very funny farce that still holds up almost 20 years later. Its attitudes about homosexuals may seem a bit dated, but there's a heart running through this that sells some of the more outlandish moments, and Robin Williams and Nathan Lane both perfectly modulate their characters--they can go over-the-top and rein it in as the situation calls on it. Also a reminder how much I miss Gene Hackman in movies.
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Witty and wonderfully farcical, an underrated comedic gem.
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Yeah, it might be very broad, but it's also very funny. Hank Azaria is great.
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This is a modest three stars. It scares me to think that this might actually go up if I rewatch this movie. It has been a while, but I remember loving it and, for some reason I have no desire in exploring, kind of hating myself for it.
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A pretty nice movie, with some interesting themes about the benefits of being who you are vs. being who the people you love need you to be. Although some of it was very stereotypical towards homosexuality, it was nice to see a gay couple in such a strong and realistic relationship, and also sad to realise that we still face the same problems via homosexuality as we did when the original play was released in 1973.
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"I am the co-founder for the coalition of moral order... my partner has just been found dead in the bed of an underage black whore....!"
Scripted by 2 time academy award nominee Elaine May, the Birdcage is a remake of the 1978 movie La Cage au Folles and deals with 2 couples as far removed from each other as could possibly be who are forced into meeting each other due to their kids announcing they are to be married.
Peppered with zingers, the script wouldn't have lived up to its expectations had it not been for an inspired choice of casting. Gene Hackman and Diane Weist are the Senator Kevin and Mrs Keeley, said co-founder who finds he's in the…
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A very funny movie with good performances from everyone (especially Hank Azaria: "It's the shoes!")
The only thing is that as I get older, I get more and more jaded towards their judgmental son. Watching it now I just want to give him a slap and a "GET OVER IT", but then again without that conflict there isn't much of a plot.
There are few Americanized remakes worth watching, but this certainly is one.
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It's just a sunday afternoon comedy...
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Good cast. Funny story. Enjoyable.