• A remake of 1978’s La Cage aux Folles, Mike Nichols’ The Birdcage features heavyweight actors (Robin Williams, Gene Hackman, Dianne Wiest for a start) and a lot of laughs
  • Actually shot by Emmanuel Lubezki—it is far from his greatest work (can’t imagine much here will make his supercut highlight reel)- but it there’s a few more beautiful frames here than I remember when seeing this in the 1990’s
  • The art direction nomination is deserved- really well designed using the colors of Miami
The art direction nomination is deserved- really well designed using the colors of Miami
Actually shot by Emmanuel Lubezki—it is far from his greatest work (can’t imagine much here will make his supercut highlight reel)- but it there’s a few more beautiful frames here than I remember when seeing this in the 1990’s
  • A farce, situation comedy- an update on Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner– gay nightclub owners with a son who is marrying the daughter of a right-wing politician
  • Features a hilariously wailing Nathan Lane, Gene Hackman is terrific
So the film’s highlight reel is also a bit of an outlier. If you’ve seen a clip from the film it is probably Robin Williams doing his one-man show “Madonna, Madonna” at 34 minutes. It is straight out of Williams’ standup – he’s a genius. But the rest of the films he plays it fairly serious. It is a good performance (certainly the less showy of the two performances in comparison with Lane). Williams has a moment where he’s alone at the bar – clearly stressed and pained by the situation. Strong acting
  • Highlights include Robin Williams teaching Lane to act like a man, including the trademark John Wayne walk
  • Light– fringe recommendation