The Producers
2005 Directed by Susan Stroman
Synopsis
After putting together another Broadway flop, down-on-his-luck producer Max Bialystock teams up with timid accountant Leo Bloom in a get-rich-quick scheme to put on the world's worst show.
Cast
Popular reviews
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Film Number 4 of the Adapted April Challenge!
It's just not good... There isn't much else to say. As much as I would love to NOT be one of those people to say "stick with the original" I feel like in this case it's kind of a given. Mel Brooks had a hand in this film and there are moments where his greatness shines bright through the overbearing mediocrity. I am not a HUGE fan of the original or musicals in general, but this one got a lot of the musical scenes down decently enough. I found that I was having fun and tapping my toe one minute and being frustrated and bored the next. Nathan Lane no matter what…
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The Producers isn't the best film made. Not even close. Not the best musical, not the best Broadway-to-film adaptation. Not nearly the best Mel Brooks movie. It bombed at the box office and got some pretty bad reviews. It has parts that drag on and some of the songs are boring as all hell. It doesn't hold a candle to the 1968 original.
But, for reasons I can’t put words too, I love it. So much! And I don’t know why. I saw it on a whim in a full theater, maybe that did it. There’s a real difference between watching a film alone at home and with sharing with a room full of people. The jokes are funnier, the…
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This film somehow makes Will Ferrell very unfunny, and Uma Thurman rather un-sexy.
It also happens to be one of the most ageist, misogynistic, homophobic and outright offensive excuses for a film I've ever seen.
This film is Satan's spawn. Complete crap from beginning to end.
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Adapted April Challenge - Week 1
I really don't enjoy musicals. So watching this was like two hours of torture. It was crass and unfunny, I felt extremely uncomfortable watching this, spontaneous song and dance makes my skin crawl. I was grimacing every time Matthew Broderick was on screen fellating his scabby blanket. I only laughed once, it was more of a half smile and that was only at two words or dialogue. ("Heil ... me.")
The story is about two producers who intentionally make a terrible play so they can cash in on the projects surplus funding. I think the producers of this film had the same idea. They succeeded in making the worst film, the making money part not so much.
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"Wait a minute...my name's not Alvin. That's not my life. Somebody else's life is flashing before my eyes...What the hell is that about?!"
I'm a big believer in judging movies on what they want to be. A lot of the criticisms of The Producers seem to be forgetting that this is an intentionally OTT, gaudy, camp and ridiculous musical, which puts it's strength in the audience's ability to play along and enjoy the bizarre ride accompanied by some fantastically elaborate musical numbers. So yes, Broderick, Lane and everyone else in the cast completely overacts to a cringeworthy degree, and there isn't much of an adaptation from the stage to the screen. In addition to this, the film is also pretty…
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What works on Broadway doesn't always work in film. This is a perfect example of that. On Broadway it was the funniest thing and the best performances I had ever seen. On film, it was all lost and just fell flat! Too bad!
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The film version of the stage show of the film (you with me?), The Producers suffers in comparison to the original. Simply put, it's leagues apart from Mel Brooks' comedy classic. As a theatrical experience, I imagine The Producers worked. Translated to film, it seems redundant and pointless, especially when a near flawless film already exists. The acting is all fine (Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick reprise their roles from the stage), it's efficiently made, it looks good but it is just unnecessary. All the funny bits were done better in the first film. It probably didn't help that I only watched that two days ago. The songs are fun though.
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Film Number 4 of the Adapted April Challenge!
It's just not good... There isn't much else to say. As much as I would love to NOT be one of those people to say "stick with the original" I feel like in this case it's kind of a given. Mel Brooks had a hand in this film and there are moments where his greatness shines bright through the overbearing mediocrity. I am not a HUGE fan of the original or musicals in general, but this one got a lot of the musical scenes down decently enough. I found that I was having fun and tapping my toe one minute and being frustrated and bored the next. Nathan Lane no matter what…
-
The Producers isn't the best film made. Not even close. Not the best musical, not the best Broadway-to-film adaptation. Not nearly the best Mel Brooks movie. It bombed at the box office and got some pretty bad reviews. It has parts that drag on and some of the songs are boring as all hell. It doesn't hold a candle to the 1968 original.
But, for reasons I can’t put words too, I love it. So much! And I don’t know why. I saw it on a whim in a full theater, maybe that did it. There’s a real difference between watching a film alone at home and with sharing with a room full of people. The jokes are funnier, the…
-
This film somehow makes Will Ferrell very unfunny, and Uma Thurman rather un-sexy.
It also happens to be one of the most ageist, misogynistic, homophobic and outright offensive excuses for a film I've ever seen.
This film is Satan's spawn. Complete crap from beginning to end.
-
Adapted April Challenge - Week 1
I really don't enjoy musicals. So watching this was like two hours of torture. It was crass and unfunny, I felt extremely uncomfortable watching this, spontaneous song and dance makes my skin crawl. I was grimacing every time Matthew Broderick was on screen fellating his scabby blanket. I only laughed once, it was more of a half smile and that was only at two words or dialogue. ("Heil ... me.")
The story is about two producers who intentionally make a terrible play so they can cash in on the projects surplus funding. I think the producers of this film had the same idea. They succeeded in making the worst film, the making money part not so much.
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Whan can I say about this? Will Ferrell plays a neo-nazi. Enough said.
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So weird, but so funny. I'm a musical person, this isn't /exactly/ my kind of musical (heh) but I liked it.
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"Wait a minute...my name's not Alvin. That's not my life. Somebody else's life is flashing before my eyes...What the hell is that about?!"
I'm a big believer in judging movies on what they want to be. A lot of the criticisms of The Producers seem to be forgetting that this is an intentionally OTT, gaudy, camp and ridiculous musical, which puts it's strength in the audience's ability to play along and enjoy the bizarre ride accompanied by some fantastically elaborate musical numbers. So yes, Broderick, Lane and everyone else in the cast completely overacts to a cringeworthy degree, and there isn't much of an adaptation from the stage to the screen. In addition to this, the film is also pretty…
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Ah, The Producers. One of my personal favorites. I could get in arguments all day about which version is better. Personally, they're both great in my book. This one stars two big hitters of broadway, Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick. Along with the always funny Will Ferrill and the always attractive Uma Thurman. While this one is not directed by the great Mel Brooks, it still encompasses the general spirit of the original. Broderick does a great job of capturing the compulsive Leo Bloom, dare I say better than the original Gene Wilder. And Nathan Lane does his fair share as the greedy Max Bialystock. Overall this is a very fun film that plays with the campiness of Broadway.