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Undescribable Perfection

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Great Film overall

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

In this film, a young man is about to marry a girl--a girl from an EXTREMELY moralistic family. In fact, her father is a big-wig with a French political party that prides itself on its righteousness and pro-traditional morality stance. This is a serious problem, as the man was raised in a home with two fathers--a biological one and the father's lover--who just happens to be a cross-dressing star of a cabaret! So, to try to get the father to give his blessing, everyone conspires to hide this--to pretend that the young man was raised in a very conservative home. At first, it means possibly having the boy's biological mother pose as the mother--even though she abandoned him when he was a child. Then, when she doesn't show, the father's lover (already a cross-dresser extraordinaire) decides to fill in for her and pretend to be the mother! Will this elaborate ruse work?! A few months ago, my oldest daughter and I saw the play for "La Cage Aux Folles" on Broadway. The show was marvelous and we had a wonderful time. Now, we both sat down to see the original French film on which the play was based. In retrospect, this was not the best way to have seen the movie, as it simply was better and made the movie look a lot worse by comparison. I think if I'd seen the movie first, I would have done a much more favorable review here on IMDb.Plot-wise, the film and play are very similar. The biggest difference is not WHAT happens but how. So, despite the events being mostly the same, the film falls quite flat in comparison because the characters seem to lack heart. In other words, there isn't the same loving chemistry there was in the play. In the play, no matter what, you KNOW that the people all love each other down deep. In this film, however, they all seem a bit selfish. In addition, the film lacks some of the humor of the play--though I could live more with that than the coldness of the characters towards each other. Good--but it could have been a lot better.By the way, for a French comedy with a gay theme that was better AND directed by the same man who wrote the screenplay for "La Cage Aux Folles", try "The Closet"--a delightful and poignant movie indeed.

French cinema at its best. Witty jokes, nice plot and absolutely outstanding actors' play. Ugo Tognazzi and especially Michel Serrault play they roles so naturally that it's hard to believe they are not gay. Every movement, every expression shows that Albert is a woman in man's body - and it's not the makeup that makes you think that!. It's played and directed so good that can watch this movie over and over, one of the best movies on my list. Even if you know the plot you are going to enjoy this movie every time you watch it. Sequels aren't nearly as good - mainly because of weak plot. US-made remake is the expected disaster.

French-Italian co-production based on Jean Poiret's play about a drag queen and his lover hoping to pass as straights for the sake of the lover's son, who has announced he's getting married. In its time, a rather obvious sex farce, made even more so today in the wake of two sequels and the 1996 American remake "The Birdcage". Mixture of bitchy bickering, door-slamming slapstick, and semi-serious overtures regarding the kowtowing of gays to straights creates a bumpy cinematic rhythm. Worse, the overall results--though popular at the box-office--are undermined by a dreariness that never goes away. May prove fascinating for "Birdcage" enthusiasts eager to compare the two, but this version offers even fewer laughs, with dramatic outbursts awkwardly and embarrassingly staged. ** from ****

I first saw the remake Birdcage many years ago, and only last night got around to see La Cage Aux Folles. I liked it a lot. I can only imagine it's impact back in 1978. (I also appear to be in the minority since I also liked the campy/funnier version of Birdcage with it's disco soundtrack).I think what I liked best about the French version was the role of the mother. She was unapologetic about not wanting to raise a child. In this day and age of slow moving public acceptance of gay couples (and hopefully one day gay marriage), I found this challenge to the stereotyped notion of motherhood to be more (refreshingly)shocking than the gay issue. I barely remember how they explained the mother in the American version, I believe the parents had been married and were divorced and the implication was that the mother was in the sons life (I might be misremembering). Not all women have this maternal "instinct" that society insists they have. I was happy to see a successful career woman with no regrets for her choices.I'm glad that they tried to hit on gender issues, class, race AND issues of sexuality, instead of just focusing on one to the exclusion of all others.p.s. it reminded me a of Ang Lee's Wedding Banquet - I wonder if he was influened by this film or maybe trying to appear straight to appease traditional parents a common issue that many people have had to address.