La cage aux folles (1978)

Director:

Edouard Molinaro

Writers:

Jean Poiret (play)
Francis Veber (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

30 March 1979 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Two gay men living in St. Tropez have their lives turned upside down when the son of one of the men announces he is getting married...

Plot Keywords:

Wig | Farce | Gay Parent | Sex Comedy | Soup

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 4 wins

Cast

Ugo Tognazzi	...	Renato Baldi
Michel Serrault	...	Albin Mougeotte / 'Zaza Napoli'
Claire Maurier	...	Simone Deblon
Rémi Laurent	...	Laurent Baldi
Carmen Scarpitta	...	Louise Charrier
Benny Luke	...	Jacob
Luisa Maneri	...	Andrea Charrier
Michel Galabru	...	Simon Charrier
Venantino Venantini	...	Le chauffeur de Charrier
Carlo Reali	...	The bouncer
Guido Cerniglia	...	The doctor
Angelo Pellegrino
Nicola D'Eramo
Vinicio Dimanti		(as Vinicio Diamanti)
Liana Del Balzo	...	Mme Charrier

Also Known As:

Birds of a Feather (USA) (poster title)
Il vizietto (Italy)

Runtime:

USA:110 min | Germany:87 min | Argentina:98 min

Country:

France | Italy

Language:

French

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:X (original rating) | Argentina:16 (re-rating) | Australia:M | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | France:U | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:12 | Singapore:PG | Netherlands:AL

Filming Locations:

Dear Studios, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Da Ma Produzione

Trivia:

The Broadway musical based on this movie opened on Aug 21, 1983 at the Palace Theatre, ran for 1761 performances and won the 1984 Tony Awards for Best Musical, Book and Score.

Quotes:

Albin Mougeotte: He's being taken from us, and we won't have any others.
Renato Baldi: Unless there's a miracle.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Gabriel Knight 3: Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned (1999) (VG)

Better than its remake.

I first saw La Cage Aux Folles after its American remake "The Birdcage". This was unfortunate because that meant the plot was already familiar to me. However, it was even more hilarious than its American version. The characters in the American version are nearly exact duplicates of their French counterparts. Somehow, the whole movie appears funnier in its original French (even though I don't speak French).

American audiences may like the remake better because the script was rewritten so that its humor was more topical. For instance, Gene Hackman's character is an obvious farce of Bob Dole, who was a prominent republican leader at the time. The French version contains a more generic conservative versus liberal dialogue.

However, if you can stand reading the translations, La Cage Aux Folles is well worth your time. I enjoyed it thoroughly.