Start the Revolution Without Me (1970)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Bud Yorkin

Writers:

Fred Freeman (written by) and
Lawrence J. Cohen (written by)

Release Date:

14 August 1970 (West Germany)

Genre:

Comedy | History

Plot:

Two mismatched sets of identical twins - one aristocrat, one peasant - mistakenly exchange identities on the eve of the French Revolution.

Plot Keywords:

French Revolution | Twins | Sensuality | Shakespeare's The Comedy Of Errors | Nipples

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Gene Wilder	...	Claude / Philippe
Donald Sutherland	...	Charles / Pierre
Hugh Griffith	...	King Louis
Jack MacGowran	...	Jacques
Billie Whitelaw	...	Queen Marie
Victor Spinetti	...	Duke d'Escargot
Ewa Aulin	...	Christina
Helen Fraser	...	Mimi
Rosalind Knight	...	Helene de Sisi
Harry Fowler	...	Marcel
Murray Melvin	...	Blind Man
Ken Parry	...	Dr. Boileau
Maxwell Shaw	...	Duke de Sisi
Jacques Maury	...	Lt. Sorel
Graham Stark	...	Andre Coupe

Also Known As:

Louis, There's a Crowd Downstairs! (USA) (working title)
Two Times Two

Runtime:

90 min | Spain:98 min (alternate version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Canada:14+ (Ontario) | Singapore:PG | Iceland:L | USA:Approved (No.22144) | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Sweden:11 | USA:M (original rating) | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Vaux-le-Vicomte, Seine-et-Marne, France

Company:

NorBud Productions

Trivia:

Gene Wilder chose to do this film over Catch-22 (1970).

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Twentieth century buses visible on a bridge in background of swordfight.

Quotes:

Duke d'Escargot: I warn you gentlemen, I am not to be trifled with. To pull the tail of a lion is to open the mouth of trouble and reveal the teeth of revenge biting the tongue of deceit.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Dallas: Start the Revolution with Me (#4.14)" (1981)

FANTASTIC but not for everyone

I loved this movie and it's one of my all-time favorite comedies, though I realize it is NOT for everyone's taste.

To enjoy this movie, you MUST have a high tolerance for the weird and silly. So, this means that the movie would go over well with Monty Python fans but would not appeal to most teenagers or those who MUST view only conventional comedies.

The plot is a hopeless mish-mash of both Alexander Dumas' books and French history. Is it historically accurate? Not even close!! But, its non-stop energy and weirdness is VERY infectious if you give it a chance. The story begins with the Count DeSisi and his wife stopping at a country doctor's home as the Countess is about to give birth. Only minutes later, a commoner, Mr. Coupe arrives with his extremely pregnant wife as well. BOTH women give birth to identical twins but the babies are mismatched and both families raise both a DeSisi AND a Coupe child.

Years pass until the poor Coupes are mistaken for the highly dangerous (and psychotic) DeSisis--and then the fun begins!!! People who would like this film are also those who love The Producers, Monty Python and the Hold Grail and Strange Brew. If any of these movies make your head hurt or just don't make sense, then avoid Start the Revoluition Without Me--because it WILL hurt your head and make NOT ONE BIT OF SENSE.

"Are you HAPPY?!.......You've Broken My Bird!!!"