I think I now know why Matthew Broderick used a very obnoxious, distracting and nasally voice when playing Leo Bloom in the original Broadway run of The Producers. It was to keep you from hating all the obnoxious facial ticks, mugging and overacting...which has all been blown up on the big screen, minus the voice, in the movie based on the musical based on the movie The Producers.
If I had to list my favorite film comedies of all time, The Producers would be on it. Mel Brooks' 1968 film is a classic that always makes me laugh...no matter how many times I've seen it. Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder are perfect in every way and they're supported by a wonderful cast of character actors. The Broadway musical version is a good adaptation of the movie to a different medium, but I think most of its charm is based on two things...it's sweet feel of sendup towards classic musicals and the charm and talents of the original Broadway cast...or at least the hype of the charm and talents of the original Broadway cast.
The new movie version of the musical is essentially a record of what that original cast was like (with a few changes). There are two actors who have been replaced, three musical numbers that have been removed, one that's been truncated and the obligatory shot at an Oscar for Best Original Song has been added to the end credits (there's also the addition of a excerpt from song cut from the Broadway show that Mel Brooks is on record as calling stupid).
Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick spend the 2 plus hours on screen continuing to act like they need to be seen in the balcony of the St. James Theater. They also seem to spend most of their time sleepwalking through roles they've played many times before. Will Ferrell does a decent job at bringing Nazi playwright Franz Liebkin to life, but Brad Oscar (who makes a very brief cameo as a cab driver) was a thousand times better (especially singing "Have You Ever Heard The Grman Band?"). Uma Thurman is very good as Ulla, but you'll still ask why they didn't use Tony winning actress Cady Huffman. Gary Beach and Roger Bart are still amazingly hysterical as Roger De Bris and Carmen Ghia.
As directed by Susan Strohman what the film is missing most is pacing and flow. A lot of things that work on stage come off as hackneyed and cliched on film (like the couch gags during "That Face"). There also seems to be very little artistry to the film itself. Sure the sets and costumes look great, but it's really just in service of having a record of the show. Take for example Leo's big number "I Want To Be A Producer". It looks amazing on film (one of the few successful moments of the film version) with many more chorus girls to bolster it, but at the same time a few things have been taken away from it (the "racist" dialog of the African-American accountant and the recurring joke of the ugly chorus girl is cut way back). The number that comes off the best is obviously "Springtime For Hitler" which is hysterical no matter which version of this story you're watching...here we get a nice mix of the Broadway version (the "extended cut") and the original movie (we get to see audience reactions again in close up which you don't get on Broadway).
Of the missing numbers, I missed all three of them. While it was decided to cut "The King of Broadway" just to get to the "story" faster, it is too funny a song and too great a setup of Max's character to just toss away. The same goes with "Where Did We Go Right" towards the end (and that one's a short song). And "In Old Bavaria" is a great setup for Franz and his birds that also doesn't run very long. If they needed to cut songs, they should have started with "That Face" which I've always found kind of blah at best. At least on Broadway it opened Act Two...here it's just a slow spot in the middle of the film. Also, the nature of the medium has necessitated the dropping of two very funny jokes on stage (both stemming from there being an intermission).
There are a few interesting cameos worth noting...just for fun...Andrea Martin and Debra Monk are two of the little old ladies, John Barrowman plays the lead tenor in the film's biggest number, Michael McKean puts in an appearance as a prisoner at the end and Jon Lovitz does a great bit as Leo's boss.
The Producers isn't a bad movie simply because its original source material is so classic. It just could have been a lot better. Its a bittersweet disappointment at best.
Two quick shot reviews:
Monster-in-Law is a formulaic comedy that underuses the talented Jane Fonda and overuses the underwhelming J-Lo (who was really good in Out of Sight and little else). Don't bother yourself.
Bewitched is a remake of the old TV series that complicates itself too much by adding an extra layer (it's not just about a man who marries a witch, it's about a man cast as Darrin in a remake of the TV series who casts an unknown actress as Samantha who is actually a witch). Why not just remake the TV series and be done with it? And if you're going to go that extra mile why not just have Shirley MacLaine play Endora instead of her playing an actress playing Endora (said actress playing Endora could have been Shirley MacLaine). Again...don't bother.
That's it for 2005. Have a Happy New Year. We'll be back with more reviews and other crap in 2006. My list of the year's best will appear closer to February as I'm still trying to watch 25 films from the year to make up a list like I always do. Having a kid seems to have changed our movie viewing habits somewhat.
Be seeing you.
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