Laserdisc Title: "LA CAGE AUX FOLLES (1979)"
Edition: The Criterion Collection (Single Disc)
Directed By: Edouard Molinaro
Starring: Ugo Tognazzi, Michel Serrault, Michel Galabru, Claire Maurier, Remi Laurent, Carmen Scarpitti, Benny Luke, Luisa Maneri
Special Features: ---French with English subtitles on Analog and Digital Tracks * English dub version on Analog Track 2---
Production / Year: 1979 Les Productions Artistes Associes-Paris DA. MA.
Running Time: 97 Minutes / Color
Audio Format: CX Encoded
Video Format: Videoscope, NTSC, CLV (Extended Play)
Miscellaneous Features: None
Distributed By: The Voyager Company (First Printing 1992)
Catalog / Spine Number: CC1274L (Spine Number 96)

IMPORTANT: This is a 12-inch Diameter Laserdisc, which is NOT the same as DVD and cannot be played on a DVD player!

Cosmetic Condition:
Disc (s): Very Good - Few very light to very minor hairline surface swirls or very light fingerprint marks
Jacket: Very Good - Normal shelf wear, few creases, light scuffs, worn-out corners or edges but no signs of spines splitting

Synopsis:

A likable 1977 French farce (and the basis for the 1996 American remake, The Birdcage), this popular comedy was one of the most successful international films of all time, and even spawned a Broadway musical and two sequels. It tells the story of a gay couple who--when one man's son from a previous liaison brings home his fiancée--masquerade as husband and wife for their prospective in-laws. The film is saved from becoming an exercise in silliness by the heartfelt characterizations of the gay nightclub owners. La Cage aux Folles is one of the funniest imports from Europe and a great comedy in any venue.

American audiences tend to resist foreign films for some good reasons. Sure, its tough to keep up with subtitles at times, and yes, sometimes the translations are lacking the depth the filmaker intends to convey. But this is a film that can and should be enshrined in the Movie Hall of Fame as one of the funniest, most endearing films ever released.

Americans are familiar with the story, since "La Cage" was turned into a successful Broadway show and then a huge money-making comedy "The Birdcage" featuring Nathan Lane and Robin Williams in the lead roles (not to mention a young Calista Flockhart of "Ally McBeal" fame and Dan Futterman who is brilliant in "Urbania.") But "The Birdcage" as funny as it can be, fades by comparison to the original, with star making performances by Ugo Tognazzi and Michel Serrault as the leading cross dressing couple of the French Riviera. Where "The Birdcage" allows for broad humor that both confronts and appeases the typical homophobic US audience, "La Cage" offers no apologies, and rests on its own merits as a farce without limits. When Tognazzi teaches Serrault how to "walk like John Wayne" you quickly forget the language barrier, and give up on Robin William's own attempts to educate the shrill Lane in the English version. Somehow, the fact that these characters are French adds a dimension of humanity that is lacking in the "Birdcage." Even the setting on the French Riviera (versus the buff and tough South Beach in the American version) adds to the three dimensional aspects of the characters. There is a sleazy-humor at work here that has been toned down tremendously for the American version, and that can only be captured by a cast that is uniformly superb, endearing, and wonderful. Oscar nominated for its leading performer, Tognazzi, as well as its superb direction, THIS is one of the funniset movies ever made in ANY language. If you love Robin WIlliams movies, and enjoy laughing, BUY THIS FILM - you will be more than glad you did, and you'll find yourself literally hitting the pause button in order to GAWFAW your way through it.

ABOUT THE TRANSFER

The Criterion Collection is pleased to present La Cage Aux Folles in its original aspect ratio for the first time. A new digital film-to-tape transfer was created using a 35mm duplicate negative and 35mm 3 track magnetic transfer.

THIS IS A 12" LASERDISC AND WILL NOT PLAY IN A DVD PLAYER

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