Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick return to their award-winning roles in the hilariously funny film of the record-breaking Broadway smash-hit. Scheming producer Max Bialystock (Lane) and his mousy accountant, Leo Bloom (Broderick), discover that under the right circumstances they could make more money by producing a Broadway flop than they can with a hit. But what will they do when their sure-to-offend musical becomes a surprise sensation? Co-starring sexy Uma Thurman and comedy genius Will Ferrell, The Producers is a fun-filled, side-splitting comedy.
The trend is to convert movies into stage musicals, but The Producers goes a step further: making a feature film of the smash-hit stage musical that was adapted from the 1968 film. The chief drawing card, of course, is Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick reprising their roles from the stage. Lane plays Max Bialystock, a legendary Broadway producer who hasn't had a hit show in a long time. Enter nebbish accountant Leo Bloom (Broderick), who tells Bialystock he could actually make more money with a flop than a hit. So the two set out to produce the worst Broadway musical of all time, one guaranteed to close on opening night, with the collaboration of an outrageous cast of characters: Will Ferrell as sieg heil-ing author Franz Liebkind, Uma Thurman as Swedish bombshell Ulla, Gary Beach as director Roger De Bris, and Roger Bart as his assistant, Carmen Ghia, among others.
As directed and choreographed by Susan Stroman (who did the same honors on Broadway) and co-written by Mel Brooks, The Producers is laugh-out-loud funny. It's also a relentlessly over-the-top, shamelessly bawdy, stereotype-ridden comedy that may turn off its audience just as much as its centerpiece, Springtime for Hitler, was intended to. But Broadway fans who are used to larger-than-life figures who play to the back row while showering the first row with spit, are likely to forgive and just enjoy the famous granny-walker dance, a supporting cast dotted with Broadway performers (playing a taxi driver is Brad Oscar, who originated the role of Liebkind on Broadway then later played Bialystock), or the mere spectacle of seeing Lane and Broderick memorializing the performances that millions never got a ticket to see. (For maximum laughs, stick around through the closing credits.) --David Horiuchi
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
Love this Movie:
I am a huge fan of the theater, especially musicals but for some reason I never saw THE PRODUCERS. I acknowledged all the kudos and Tonys but I just thought I would not like it even though I am a huge Matthew Broderick fan. Boy do I regret not seeing it now. Thank God this film is so well made, has Matthew Broderick and Nathan Lane and allows me to settle for second best next to seeing it live. The story flows effortlessly here and plays like a Broadway musical. When the characters burst into song or... more info
New Interpretation of a Classic:
OK. No, this is not as great as the original with Mostel and Wilder. It is a musical interpretation of that original, which was an often brilliant classic of silly slapstick, over the top acting, and poor taste (read Ebert's review of each film). I thought the musical numbers were well staged and directed, and the songs were deliciously vulgar and witty. The stars reprise performances honed on Broadway, and Uma Thurman was a nice surprise as a musical performer. If you like musicals, and if you laughed at... more info
Funny Musical:
Max Bialistock is a Broadway Producer who is down on his luck. One day he meets acountant Leopold Bloom and they come up with an idea to make alot of money. Find the worst play eveer written, get the worst director, and take off with the money to Rio. Their plan seems to go according to plan when they find "Springtime for Hitler" by Franz "I was never a member of the Nazi Party" Liebkind, and got Roger DuBris to Produce. Things go wrong for them on opening night though. Franz was supposed to play... more info
Entertaining Musical:
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood: From the Secret Files of Harry Pennypacker
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Shadow Watcher
Nobody Drowns in Mineral Lake This screen adaptation of Mel Brooks' hit Broadway musical was perhaps the most entertaining movie I saw in 2005. I even liked it better than the 1968 original that starred Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder. Some reviewers have criticized stars Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick for overacting their roles on screen. One of these... more info
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