The Birdcage


3/4

Starring: Robin Williams, Nathan Lane, Gene Hackman, Dianne Wiest, Dan Futterman, Hank Azaria, Calista Flockhart

Rated R for Language

When it comes to gay comedies, the pinnacle of the genre is probably “Le Cage aux Folles” by Jean Poiret (it’s at least the best known).  It was made into a film in 1978 by Francois Verber, the master of French farce, and in 1996, an American film version came out filled with talent from top to bottom.  The result isn’t nearly as funny as it could have been (time could be a factor), but I still liked it.

Armand Goldman is the proud owner of “The Birdcage,” the hottest drag club in South Beach.  His partner is Albert (Lane), the drag queen (emphasis on “queen”) who is the star of the show.  Together, the two have raised Armand’s son, Val (Futterman), the product of a one-night-stand.  Now, Val is going to walk down the aisle, which horrifies his parents because he’s only 20.  But it’s about to get a whole lot worse: his fiancĂ©e, Barbara (Flockhart) is the daughter of Sentator Kevin Keely (Hackman), the chairman of the Comission for Moral Order.  This guy makes Pat Robertson look like Al Gore; he thinks that Billy Graham is too liberal.  They’re coming to meet Val’s family, and that’s when all hell breaks loose.

“The Birdcage” is really two different kinds of comedies.  The first and largest part, which sets the stage and introduces the characters, relies mainly on jokes, gags and characters for laughs.  The final act, the dinner, is a screwball comedy:  Miscommunication, misunderstandings and soup bowls that could charitably be called “inappropriate” turn the night into a complete disaster.

The acting is solid; Robin Williams, famous for playing over-the-top characters, proves that he can get just as many laughs by playing the straight man.  He wisely leaves the histrionics to Nathan Lane, whose Albert contains enough over-the-top moments for this movie and two sequels.  Lane is terrific, but the character becomes repetitive, and Lane isn’t able to do much to prevent that.  As Senator Keely, Hackman is good as the neo-conservative, something that the actor is known for (despite the fact that in real life, Hackman is a soft-spoken liberal).  Dianne Wiest is miscast; her acting as Keely’s doting wife is caricature level, and compared to Albert, that’s saying something.  Dan Futterman and Calista Flockhart are also good as the lovebirds, while Christine Baranski and Hank Azaria round out the cast as Katherine, Armand’s said lover (of 90 minutes) and Agador, the flamboyant butler.

Known for being a dramatic theater director who has ventured into movies, Mike Nichols may seem like an odd choice to direct a full-on comedy like this (“Working Girl” was a comedy-drama with an emphasis on the latter), and while his workmanship is solid, I can’t imagine what it could have been with a director with a surer hand at comedy.  While some of the jokes are dated, there’s nothing deep or dramatic about this movie, and that requires a different sort of technique than Nichols has.

Still, for those who are looking for a few yuks, this one fits the bill.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Desert Flower

2/4 Starring: Liya Kebede, Sally Hawkins, Timothy Spall, Juliet Stevenson Rated R for Some Violent Content, A Scene of Sexuality and Language The problem with "Desert Flower" is not that Waris Dirie's story isn't suited for the cinematic treatment or that the actress playing her isn't acceptable.  The problem is that director Sherry Hormann doesn't do a good job of telling it.  This is a poorly focused film that can't decide what it wants to be about or what it wants to say. As is the case with many a true story, the life of Waris Dirie is too amazing to be made up by a Hollywood screenwriter.  This woman fled an arranged marriage as a child, spent years as a servant to a Somali diplomat in England, survived on the streets, and was discovered by a fashion photographer while working as a janitor.  Then she became a supermodel and UN Ambassador in the fight against female genital mutilation. Waris experienced a lot in her life.  Telling it all in a...
Read more

The Road

3.5/4 Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Charlize Theron Rated R for Some Violence, Disturbing Images and Language "The Road" has to be the most downbeat, depressing and cynical movie I've ever seen.  That's not meant as a criticism, but a fact.  This is a tough movie to get through, but not a chore.  Those who venture in will find their time well spent, albeit not in a necessarily pleasant way.  Then again, if a movie is based off a novel by Cormac McCarthy, "pleasant" isn't a word one would hope to be used to describe it. The film takes place after the world has ended.  How it happened is not explained because it doesn't matter.  But any hope of the Earth recovering from what happened has long since gone.  A man (Mortensen) and his son (Smit-McPhee) are travelling together, trying to "get to the coast."  There are few people left, although considering what many are doing with the goal of survival, that's a good thing...
Read more

My Left Foot

 2/4 Starring: Daniel Day-Lewis, Brenda Fricker, Ray McAnally, Fiona Shaw, Alison Whelan Rated R (probably for Language and Brief Violence) "My Left Foot" feels like one of those movies designed to win Oscars and nothing else.  In fact, it did win two Oscars for the immortal Daniel Day-Lewis and Brenda Fricker, but apart from their strong work, there's not much else to remember about this movie.  It's well-acted, but all in all it's pretty dull. Christy Brown (Day-Lewis) is getting recognized for his work in order to raise money for the disabled.  Despite being a talented artist and writer, Christy is not the ideal candidate for the job.  He's an alcoholic jerk who makes no secret of his lust for women nor is he above using his disability to manipulate people into doing what he wants.  Interspersed with his attempts to seduce a woman tasked with looking after him while he awaits his entrance are vignettes from his childhood.  Most notably how his mothe...
Read more