A Musical Masterpiece
The Producers is a Smash

The worst thing about living in the Heartland is never getting a chance to see big Broadway shows. I love musicals (and theatre in general), but I never see any shows until they make their way to the silver screen. Over the years, I have loved films like Chicago and Rent, but I have never been so eager to see Broadway translated to film like the Mel Brooks musical The Producers.

The Producers
Max (Nathan Lane, left) and Leo (Matthew Broderick) discuss how a dishonest man could make more money with a Broadway flop than with a hit in the musical comedy The Producers. (Universal, 2005)

Directed by: Susan Stroman
Written by: Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan
Starring: Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, Uma Thurman, Will Ferrell, Gary Beach

Rated PG-13 (for sexual humor and references)
Running time: 134 min.

FilmGuru's Rating : 10 out of 10.

Based on his 1968 film of the same name, Brooks decided to reinvent his film as a musical in 2001. The musical went on to become a Tony Award-winner. Now it is lovingly recreated in this film by much of the original cast. Nathan Lane stars as Max, a Broadway producer who has had a string of flops. Matthew Broderick plays Leo, an account doing Max's books who notes that a dishonest man could make more money with a flop than with a hit.

Max persuades Leo to become his partner and help him find a sure-fire stinker to produce. They find a musical romp about the Third Reich called "Springtime for Hitler," which is certain to offend everyone. But in order to guarantee its demise, they also hire the flamboyant director, Roger De Bris (Gary Beach), and give him permission to "make 'Springtime for Hitler' just as gay as anyone could possibly want." Roger Bart also reprises his Broadway role as Roger's "common law assistant," Carmen Ghia.

Will Ferrell joins the cast in the film version and gives a wonderful performance as the Nazi playwright, Franz. Still hiding out after the war, Franz wants to make certain that "Springtime for Hitler" will give a favorable portrayal of the Fuhrer. His fervor is so intense that Max gives him the lead role in hopes that Franz will offend everyone who sees the play.

Also joining the cast is Uma Thurman as the statuesque Swedish actress Ulla Inga Hansen Bensen Yonsen Tallen-Hallen Svaden-Svanson. She strikes the perfect balance between innocent actress-to-be and temptress. Her singing and dancing are provocative, but it's her acrobatics that really make a splash. Her dancing number with Broderick is as wonderful, and envokes the old dance routines of the MGM musicals from the 1940s.

Lane and Broderick are quite comfortable with the roles they created on Broadway, but they never seem to tire of them. I'm sure that there were a number of great moments behind the scenes, because the two of them appear to be as fresh and funny as ever. The singing and comedy is perfect in equal measure, but Lane steals the show with his wonderful number "Betrayed" in which he reenacts the entire musical up to that point.

The songs are pure Mel Brooks, with clever and outrageous lyrics -- including a few wonderful in-jokes for fans of his films. The musical numbers in "Springtime for Hitler" are over-the-top funny (the reaction shots of the audience are priceless, too). Two of the numbers in the musical ("The King of Broadway" and "Where Did We Go Right?") didn't make it to the film. Hopefully they will pop up as extras on the DVD.

Directed by choreographer Susan Stroman, the film has a great pace. Although the film could have been bigger and splashier, it works best as an adaptation of a Broadway musical and keeps that scale. It seems that, apart from one or two scenes, this is almost what theater-goers would see on Broadway.

Those who see the film need to stay through the end of the film. Ferrell gives a heart-felt rendition of "Der Guten Tag Hop Clop" during the credits. Like some corny love ballad, this version also appears on the soundtrack as "The Hop-Clop Goes On." Also, if you don't stay through the credits you'll miss the cast singing "Goodbye!" and the obligatory Mel Brooks cameo.

As a fan of Brooks, I have been listening to the Broadway soundtrack for years, hoping to one day see the musical. I enjoyed The Producers as much as I had hoped. The music, dancing, and performances are a wonderful combination of old muscials and modern theater. If anything, the success of this film may make way for other favorites to make it to the big screen. I hope so, because I would love to see movie versions of recent Broadway hits like Avenue Q and Wicked.