The Birdcage

Name: The Birdcage
Genre: Comedy
Released: March 8, 1996
Duration: 117 min
Rating: 71
Cast: Gene Hackman, Nathan Lane, Robin Williams

1996

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 18 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 62 Ratings

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7.7

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7.7	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 62 Ratings

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The Birdcage

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Movie Details & Credits

United Artists | Release Date: March 8, 1996 | R

Starring: Gene Hackman, Nathan Lane, Robin Williams

Summary: Mike Nichols remakes "La Cage Aux Folles." The comedy features a flamboyant gay couple (Williams and Lane) who attempt to "play it straight" for their son's prospective in-laws.

Director: Mike Nichols

Genre(s): Comedy

Rating: R

Runtime: 117 min

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Critic Reviews

Owen Gleiberman

Enchantingly witty. Read full review

James Berardinelli

The film is so boisterously entertaining that it's easy for the unsuspecting viewer not to realize that there's a message here. Read full review

Janet Maslin

An American remake with plenty of new pizazz. Read full review

Susan Wloszczyna

Light as a feather. [8 March 1996, p.D1]

Desson Thomson

A spirited remake of the French drag farce, has everything in place, from eyeliner to one-liner. Read full review

Barbara Shulgasser

While Birdcage has many isolated funny moments, long bits of slowness interrupt the energy. Read full review

TV Guide Magazine Staff (Not credited)

This drag comedy is aimed squarely at middle America, where these cuddly queens should play very well -- just so long as nobody remembers that gay people don't just sing show tunes and cook delightful meals; they also have sex. Read full review

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User Reviews

Rcavey92212

Jul 2, 2020

I hated this movie when I first saw it as a gay teen. Although I was flamboyant it brought to light all the stereotypes and characteristics I was ashamed off. Since than I've learned to enjoy it. And revisiting it now I find it absolutely hilarious. Sure the movie is filled with stereotypesI hated this movie when I first saw it as a gay teen. Although I was flamboyant it brought to light all the stereotypes and characteristics I was ashamed off. Since than I've learned to enjoy it. And revisiting it now I find it absolutely hilarious. Sure the movie is filled with stereotypes but its celebrated and in a time where we are being more open minded and exploring the film is a positive representation of being ones self and loving yourself for it. Robin Williams and Nathan Kane are beyond spectacular, Hank Azaria is a scene stealer, and Gene Hackman, Diane Ladd, Calista Flockhart, Christine Baranski and sexy Dan Futternan are solid as well. All these years later the film stands as not just an amazing comedy but a lesson in acceptance and celebration.

Budget: $31m
Box Office: $185.3m

10/10… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

kowalski

Aug 27, 2011

A truly amazing comedy filled with delightful performances. Lane is particularly memorable, he lets his talent shine and he milks every moment. A can't-be-missed experience!

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

JAFO

Apr 23, 2020

A wonderful movie, a must watch, Nathan Lane steals the show, you won't be disappointed.

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

AustinA.

Nov 22, 2005

A delicious treat.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

beingryanjude

Sep 4, 2014

One of Mike Nichols' greats--filled with hilarious performances from all of the best. Every great comedy should be just as this is. Long live Nathan Lane and Robin Williams!

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

Spangle

Mar 7, 2017

What does a young man do when his gay parents must meet the ultra conservative parents of his fiance? Well, he tries to get them to play it straight for just a single night. Unfortunately, there is no holding down dynamic duo Armond (Robin Williams) and Albert (Nathan Lane), not even aWhat does a young man do when his gay parents must meet the ultra conservative parents of his fiance? Well, he tries to get them to play it straight for just a single night. Unfortunately, there is no holding down dynamic duo Armond (Robin Williams) and Albert (Nathan Lane), not even a co-founder of the coalition for moral order who is the father of the soon-to-be bride. Senator Kevin Keeley (Gene Hackman) has his own scandal brewing, however, with his co-founder of the coalition being found dead in a bed with an underage black prostitute who he derogatorily referred to as "chocolate". Bad news for a guy who spent his life ensuring the "natural" family stayed strong. Trying to escape the media frenzy by going with his daughter Barbara (Calista Flockhart) to meet her fiance Val (Dan Futterman) and his parents in South Beach, little does he know that the press coverage is just starting.

Riding high on the comic energy of Robin Williams and Nathan Lane, The Birdcage serves as the perfect vehicle for the duo's physical comedy, especially Lane. Though Williams is a comic legend who nails his role as drag club owner Armond, a far more masculine man, the flamboyantly gay drag queen headliner for the club played by Lane is hysterical. In particular, the film is quite funny when Armond plans to let Albert stay for dinner, but as gay uncle Al who walks and talks like John Wayne. Unfortunately, Albert has his own plan and shows up as Val's mother, even with Val's female mother on her way to the dinner. While The Birdcage is undeniably cliche, the absurdity of it all and the comedic tour de force of both simply funny lines and physical comedy put on by Williams and Lane is more than enough to lift the film over the hurdles placed in front of it by those cliches.

That said, The Birdcage is not all comedy. Instead, underneath its surface, is a message of tolerance and acceptance. In a poignant speech to his son Val, who is hardly an **** himself and just trying to make an ill-fated attempt at a good impression, Armond says that yes he is gay. But, it has taken him a lot of time to get where is and he does not care who sees or whether they accept him or not. Albert, similarly, just wants to be himself. He is the "mother" to Val and incredibly flamboyant, but Lane does a great job showing how awkward acting "masculine" is to him. It is not who he is, nor is it what he wants to be. Even their house maid Agador Spartacus (Hank Azaria) is who he wants to be and that is a man who speaks with the stereotypical "gay accent" (for lack of a better term) blended with a Guatemalan accent. It is for these portrayals that the film has been called offensive as they come at a time when the world had still not fully accepted homosexuals as equals and, here, it turned them into jokes. But, crucial to understand is that the film preaches a message of choosing one's own path. All of the characters may be various stereotypes, but they own it. Agador even says he talks exactly how he wants to talk. Lane is not mocked for acting feminine, but rather his comedic height in this film is when he tries to act masculine. It is not even just funny because of him acting masculine, but rather because he is not being himself. The film's message of accepting who you are without care for how others perceive you is what saves it from being offensive. The men on display know they are being stereotypical, but it is who they want to be and who they are. Ultimately, who they are does manage to save Kevin Keeley from scandal, which certainly must also count for something.

Funny, sweet, and charming, The Birdcage is a film about accepting yourself above all else. It is only when they realize this that things begin to go better and the marriage can go ahead without a hitch. The more they pretended to be somebody else, the more troubles they encountered on the dinner. At the end of the day, everybody seems to realize this and it is what allows everything to go on without a hitch at that point on. That said, the film's portrayal of gay characters and some of the dialogue can certainly be offensive to some, but the film does enough to try and normalize homosexuality and show the benefits of being yourself (especially for 1996) to mostly overcome its own stereotypes. While cliche and a remake, The Birdcage is a comedy film that benefits tremendously from excellently funny turns from Robin Williams and Nathan Lane.… Expand

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amheretojudge

Aug 25, 2019

What could have been another mixture of an exaggerated dysfunctional family sketch, instead ends up being real.

The Birdcage Nichols dramatizes the joke with utmost sincerity. Something that we lack in this day and generation. It is always advised to completely dive and commit yourself toWhat could have been another mixture of an exaggerated dysfunctional family sketch, instead ends up being real.

The Birdcage

Nichols dramatizes the joke with utmost sincerity. Something that we lack in this day and generation. It is always advised to completely dive and commit yourself to the absurdity of the comical world that you represent. One of the finest examples is Will Ferrell in Jon Favreau's Elf. The silliness is the usual, call it a baggage or an armor, thing that you carry in your body language but the sheer childish madness that Ferrell has conjured is what makes the film and the character so iconic. And it is not that the director Mike Nichols doesn't have someone as enthusiastically committing as Ferrell, if anything, he has the king of all, he has Robin Williams in his film.

Yet, only for once does Williams get to showcase his comic skills which too is a part of act that he channels to mock Albert his hyper emotional partner played mesmerizingly by Nathan Lane. And the film stays reserved till the credits starts rolling, it is one of its best assets. Hence, this dramatic version of a comical situation is what keeps you awake in a what could be a riot of laughter; which by the way there aren't any. Not to say it isn't funny, the jokes are smart, the one liners follows a slapstick humor which then is followed by a plenty of medicinal talk.

Aforementioned, Nathan Lane comes off as a rise and shine hero in this pragmatic world since he is on your face the whole time. In a good way. His character has to be and is over-the-top. An actor wouldn't miss a chance to let go off such a golden opportunity and you can see Lane holding tight to it dearly. The Birdcage is defined to me in that montage sequence of Williams preparing Lane for a ruffian John Wayne role, but that definition is only completed when Lane, after the training, walks out in front of us, sits and looks right at us, an actor.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

SEE ALL 9 REVIEWS

37	#37 Best Movie of 1996
46	#46 Most Discussed Movie of 1996
37	#37 Most Shared Movie of 1996