"The Producers" (2005)

Starring Matthew Broderick, Nathan Lane, Uma Thurman
Directed by Susan Stroman


"The Producers" is the movie version of the Broadway musical based on the 1968 movie (you got that?). It's a good film, but doesn't quite measure up to the original.

Max Bialystock (Nathan Lane, "The Birdcage") is a Braodway producerwho has had nothing but flops for awhile now. Leo Bloom (Matthew Broderick, "Election") is an accountant who unwittingly gives Max an idea that he can make more money than a flop. So they start the scheme to get the worst of everything in order to make the scheme work. However, the play they chose, "Springtime for Hitler," ends up becoming a hit.

I loved the original "The Producers." It's one of the great comedy hits from the 1960s, and the jokes were hysterical. As much as I love the music from this version of it, there's something missing. Maybe it's because I've heard a lot of the jokes used in this film in the previous version. Maybe it's because that, as good as Lane and Broderick are in their roles, they just aren't Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder. Maybe because it just doesn't seem original to me anymore.

Not that it's a terrible movie. Director Susan Stroman (TV movie "Contact") makes the film feel more like a Broadway show. It's very rare to get most of the original cast to play their characters in the film version, and it lends to the Broadway feel of the film. I just think it's because the original film so ingrained in my memory that I couldn't help but make the comparisons.

If you haven't seen the 1968 film, you'll probably get a kick out of this adaptation. If you have, you'll most likely be disappointed.

Buy "The Producers" on DVD!