leethomas-11621
At the centre of this movie is the happy/sad/loving/tempestuous/touching relationship between Albin and Renato, achieved by the wonderful rapport between the two leads. Musical score adds to the story-telling. Triomphe!
evanston_dad
This French farce lacks the energy and whimsy of the 1996 Mike Nichols remake, "The Birdcage." Perhaps it's a cultural difference, but the original "La Cage aux Folles" seems to take itself too seriously, and moments that were uproarious in the Nichols version aren't very funny here. I suppose some might say that Americans need their humor to be broader and more obvious in order to appreciate it, but whatever.It's hard to understand now how bold this subject matter -- transvestites, openly gay lifestyles, etc. -- was for 1979, and that probably has played a large role in the life this film has had since (thanks largely also to the hit Broadway musical based on it).I bet people who saw the original first like it better than "The Birdcage," and vice versa.Grade: B
human2
This is an excellent movie, the story is very original and all the characters are extremely well cast and give a flawless performance, especially Michel Serrault as Albin the drag queen and Michel Galabru as Charrier the hysterical conservative politician. The characters are gays but it's presented in a way that makes the whole movie funny to watch, it's not some kind of pro-gay propaganda... I bought the DVD only because the movie was written in part by Francis Veber and I loved his movie "The Dinner Game". The story is about a gay couple owners of a gay night club called "La Cage Aux Folles". One of them had an affair with a woman one time and that one-night stand produced a son. One day his son come to tell him he is marrying a girl whose father is a conservative politician who hate gays, so the son ask his father to pretend to be heterosexual when he first meet his girlfriend's parents, but trouble occur during the dinner... I won't give too much details but at one time Albin the drag queen lover show up and try to pass himself as a real woman, I found that part not credible at all, anybody is able to distinguish a man from a woman, especially in this case when he have to speak... The 1996 American remake of this movie goes even farther with the drag queen dancing with a man who believe he's dancing with a woman... It's an insult to the brain... Overall I give this movie 7/10. I recommend seeing the sequel "La Cage Aux Folles 2" even if you don't liked the first because the story is very different, I would say that the sequel is less gay, more serious and have more of the "Veber touch"...
MonikaCzwornog
The first time I saw "La Cage ax Folles" was in my French film class and I loved it. Michell Serrault became my favorite French actor after watching this comedy. He is really great and I could not stop laughing. You don't even have to speak nor understand French too much, because just looking at him makes you laugh. Another factor that contributes a lot to the good acting of the two lovers are fabulous costumes. My favorite one was the heart-shaped one worn by the butler, but they were all great. I have also seen the American remake of this film "The Birdcage" and I have to tell you that it doesn't even compare to the original. There are more part of La Cage aux Folles, but the first one is the best of all and I would definitely recommend it.
