Birdcage

Various (Actor, Director) Format: Blu-ray

4,544 ratings

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Genre	General
Format	PAL
Contributor	Various
Language	English

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Product description

Birdcage (BD/S)

Product details

Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.78:1

Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No

Language ‏ : ‎ English

Package Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 18.03 x 13.76 x 1.48 cm; 83.16 Grams

Item Model Number ‏ : ‎ 5039036064903

Director ‏ : ‎ Various

Media Format ‏ : ‎ PAL

Actors ‏ : ‎ Various

Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ English

Studio ‏ : ‎ Fox

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00GNXONYC

Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1

Best Sellers Rank: 3,056 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

2,329 in Movies (Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews:
4,544 ratings

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4.8 out of 5
4,544 global ratings

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Miss S Roberts
Really funny film
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 June 2022
Verified Purchase
Robin Williams stars as Armand Goldblum the owner of "The Birdcage" a gay bar and his partner Albert is the main star "Starina" played by Nathan Lane. Armands son wants to get married and his fiancé's father is a Conservative Senator played by Gene Hackman. His co founder of a moral Christian group id found dead in the bed of an underage black prostitute and to distance themselves they decide to go see her fiancee and his parents. There daughter has told them that his father is a cultural attache to Greece and his mother is a housewife. Chaos ensues has Albert tries to man up and the apartment has to be toned down. Armand and his son decide to get his biological mother to help out but she is late and so Albert dresses up to step up. The dinner is a disaster and when the senator and his wife find out the truth they go to leave just as journalists turn up. The senator can't leave or it will be all over the news so Albert has a plan. So they all get out dressed in drag which is hilarious especially Gene Hackman.
The chemistry between Williams and Lane is great and the scenes in the apartment during dinner are so funny.
Hank Azara is also in it has the Goldblum's houseboy and his performance is hilarious and so is his accent. Thoroughly enjoyed it
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Mark Barry
"…I Hate It When 'You' Get Hysterical!" - The Birdcage on BLU RAY (2014)
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 26 May 2014
Verified Purchase
The thing about "The Birdcage" is that you forget how funny it is – and not just sporadically either – but all of the time. Maybe "Airplane" or "Some Like It Hot" comes close to it – but Mike Nichols' 1996 United Artists remake is one of those great films – a pick-me-up that will have you howling with helpless and delicious laughter for its entire duration.

Principal in its success are two things - the spot-on casting - and Elaine May’s screenplay. The movie boats a razor-sharp re-working of an already well-honed play called "La Cage Aux Folles" by Jean Poiret - first staged in 1973 - then made into a celebrated French/Italian film farce in 1978. Nichols simply updates the Euro references to American ones - and adds clever jabs at double standards to spice up the very funny set pieces.

Robin Williams and Nathan Lane play middle-aged gay lovers – the wildly camp Armand and Albert Goldman – flamboyant toasts of the Florida sun, sand and sex set. They wear garish shirts, gold jewellery and foundation trowelled onto their cheeks to look younger. Armand owns the Miami South Beach nightclub "The Birdcage" where Albert is "Starina" – their principal drag queen attraction who comes on after a transvestite troupe has done their best Sister Sledge "We Are Family" mime. Men are called Beatrice and Dante and their live-in South American maid is Agador – a man so camp Liberace would blush – boogieing in the kitchen area to Gloria Estefan’s Spanish rhythms with a sweeping brush, a wig, denim hot pants and a padded bra (a fabulous comedic turn by Hank Azaria). Apart from Starina’s odd hysterical outburst about being "fat and hideous" – most nights in the club are a form of bare-bottomed costume mayhem – where no one is afraid to be open - no matter what their preference may be - or what anyone else thinks.

But twenty years back – when Armand was finding his sexuality – he had an affair with a career-obsessed Katherine Archer (Christine Baranski) and their union produced a divorce and sole custody of their son Val. 20-year old Val (Dan Futterman) now arrives at The Birdcage one night to inform Pop that he’s getting married to the woman of his dreams – a 19-year old Barbara Keeley (Calista Flockhart) – daughter of Senator Kevin Keeley. Dad is none too pleased because he thinks the lad is too young – but that’s the least of his problems.

Barbara’s father is a twat – a boorish right-wing politician who hates anything that isn’t homely and decent ("It's porno…not pronto…" he says into his Dictaphone). When his equally moralizing television sparring partner Senator Eli Jackson of the 'Committee For Moral Order' dies on him during election time – caught in bed with a minor who is both black and a prostitute – Keeley and his wife Louise (Dianne Wiest) spot that the wedding would be a great way to deflect the press army camped outside their home waiting on a comment from Mr. and Mrs. Family Values. "If necessary – we'll get the Pope's blessing – it's not that hard!" his wife offers helpfully as her husband munches down on chocolate – his chosen way of calming his nerves.

Unfortunately young Barbara has also been economical with the truth and told her Senator parents that her Val's Mum and Dad are 'in the arts'. She's even suggested that Armand is The Cultural Attaché To Greece and Albert his wife. So the Conservative Keeleys head down to Florida in a car (pursued by press hounds looking for a juicy story) – not knowing Armand and Albert’s sexual preferences let alone dress-sense. Armand and Albert have only hours to become fully-fledged straight men to ensure the young couple’s happiness. Cue the toning down of their rampantly gay mannerisms, removal of phallus-shaped furniture, Neptune statues (in fact anything with a willy on it) – and in comes a large crucifix and net curtains.

As you can imagine - the one-liners and double-entendres come fast and furious. When Barbara reveals she’s been sleeping with Val – Dad grimaces and says - "Has he been tested?" When Albert suspects that Armand is having an affair because there’s white wine in the fridge when they both only drink red – he hysterically demands - "I Want A Palimony Agreement! And I Want One Now!" Always suffering for his art – Albert sits at his dresser with a Philishave and a Powder Puff bemoaning his artistic fate "…If it wasn’t for the Pirin tablets – I don’t think I could go on!" Little does he know that they’re really Aspirins Agador has scraped the AS off.

You might think that all this hilarity is at the expense of homosexuality – long the target of many a Hollywood cheap shot. But like "Behind The Candelabra" – this is a film that laughs 'with' the camp – and not 'at' it. And while Robin Williams is his usual brave fabulous self – it’s Nathan Lane who steals every scene – comic and brilliant ever second he’s on camera. The scene in an outdoor Miami restaurant where Armand (Williams) tries to teach Albert (Lane) how to be a 'man' is just ball-breakingly funny – including great observations about sticking out his Pinkie Ring as he sips tea, macho talk about American football and even how John Wayne walks. Albert yelps and screams and constantly acts like a balding short fat woman on the verge of a nervous breakdown ("You look hagard Agador! Take these supplements – I bought them for Armand – but that’s all over now!”) And conveniently – his agony is always 'someone else’s fault' (dialogue above). Even when he does finally dress as a hetro for the sake of Val’s future happiness – he can’t help slipping in pink socks under the trousers of a butch suit.

Not to be outdone in the funny stakes – both Gene Hackman and Diane Wiest are fair game too. The dinner scene has Albert dressed up as Armand’s opinionated wife – all Jackie Kennedy couture jackets and handbags - waltzing with an admiring Gene Hackman to Frank Sinatra’s "I Could Have Danced All Night". In order to avoid detection - Hackman and Wiest later dress up as a woman and a butch dominatrix in the final nightclub scene (joining the enemy and all that). It’s so funny – you may find yourself reaching for the sedative cabinet.

The BLU RAY is defaulted to 1.85:1 Aspect Ratio so the picture fills the entire screen (no bars top or bottom) – and I’m thrilled to say that the print is a major improvement on the DVD. I always felt the DVD had a slight pallor – a hazy lack of definition. But right from the opening credits as the camera pushes in to the Miami coastline and then to The Birdcage club itself (with the Sister Sledge "We Are Family" song playing as it does) - it’s obvious that there’s real improvement in focus and clarity. And it pretty much stays that way for the duration. The scene where Val reveals to Armand that he’s getting married is staggeringly clear. The only slight softness I noticed was inside the club – but even then - that’s natural grain – and how it was filmed. The big let down however is the complete lack of Extras – only a crappy Theatrical Trailer – when this is a film that screamed out for retrospective features.

Audio is DTS-HD Master Audio: English 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 2.0, French Dolby Digital 5.1 and Italian DTS 5.1 - while Subtitles are in English For The Hard Of Hearing, Spanish and Italian (it doesn’t say much of this on the outer box - but they are on the menu).

"There’s 150 people out there and half of them are Kennedys…" Armand tells Albert as he tries to convince him to go on stage - one more time.

Convince yourself to own this fabulous and life-affirming comedic gem on BLU RAY. You’ll be in the pink when you do…
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GerryL
Very pleased
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 9 January 2018
Verified Purchase
My late wife saw this film on TV a few years ago and thought it one of the funniest she had ever seen. She thought I might like it too so she bought a copy on DVD. She was right - I really enjoyed it, and I am difficult to please when it comes to humour. Last year I loaned the DVD to a friend who enjoyed it so much that I let them keep it, and I bought a new copy which I watched over Christmas. It is still as funny as ever even though I have now watched it 4 or 5 times.
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Throda tzen
“How do I make Albert into a housewife!” [Armand] -dark cover version
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 July 2016
Verified Purchase
This 1996 remake is based on the 1978 sit-com, which itself is based on the play and shows the mayhem that ensues when Val (Dan Futterman), brings home his fiancée, Barbara Keeley (Calista Flockhart), and her ultra-conservative parents (Gene Hackman and Dianne Wiest) to meet his father Armand Goldman (Robin Williams), the troubled manager of a Miami nightclub specialising in drag entertainment, notably starring Albert as ‘Starina’ who is also the fathers gay lover.
The original film was one of the earliest ‘ground-breaking’ alternative lifestyle productions of the late 70s to mid 90s but this rides on the coat tails. Virtually copying the subdued French farce [with a few added scenes and some minor reworks], for the most part this is almost word perfect to the original but lacks the subtle character interaction of the Franco/Italian production and displays a European flavour, but played by Americans in America that doesn’t quite work [lose a *]. The risqué jokes and situations are all there, but many seem flat while the décor is less flamboyant, the social tensions and faux pas less effective.
The single disc opens to a language screen [English, Deutsch, Francais, Italiano, Castellano] before going to a main menu offering play, scene selection, language options [spoken: as opening choice, subtitles: as previous plus most other Baltic & central European] and US trailer. Rated 15 this contains overuse of the F word and racial comments with a few sexual gestures thrown in. Fortunately it doesn’t suffer from subtitles, thus you catch the gags [a flaw of the original]but the visuals are somehow weaker. The extra 1/2 hour does nothing for it, simply ‘explaining’ events that need no explanation [a pointless interview, the car journey, the redecorating etc] making it feel overlong and reducing it to a ***. A decent enough view, but, if you can cope with subtitles, go for the original –it’s far more intense, especially the visual gags.
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Halosphere
I am glad to say that with a little guidance
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 21 June 2015
Verified Purchase
Well, I started nervously, because the style of this movie is slick and clean. The camera angles and sound are very well thought out. \The script has been carefully adapted from the French film to make sense in context. There Is a carefully planned counterpoint which shows up the chasm between the two protagonist groups. I am glad to say that with a little guidance, the play can be enjoyed by teenagers up. So the messages, the comedy and pathos can be enjoyed by a wide audience. The acting is of the highest quality. Good acting is a wonderful experience for the viewer; especially one like me who wants to be a little more than just entertained. The heart of the story is constantly warmed by the actors and the production does nothing but enhance the stagecraft. The movie is seamless and lots of fun!
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