Tuesday, April 10, 2012

The Birdcage (1996)

When his son announces that he's getting married to a right-wing senator's daughter (Calista Flockhart), gay cabaret owner Armand (Robin Williams) must put on a facade of "straightness" to meet her parents...including figuring out what to do about Armand's flamboyant partner Albert (Nathan Lane).

This is one of those silly feel-good movies for me. Nathan Lane is hilarious, although he plays his more serious scenes very well too. Gene Hackman and Dianne Wiest are great as Flockhart's conservative parents. But my FAVORITE giggle-worthy performance comes from Hank Azaria as Agador, their house boy/Albert's assistant/jack-of-all-trades (just don't ask him to cook!). He's totally hilarious.

There are a lot of memorable scenes, including Armand taking us through a history of dance ("Madonna! Madonna! Madonna!") and Albert trying to act "straight" (his attempt to walk like John Wayne is too funny). But as funny as this movie is, it's a feel-good movie that teaches us a real lesson. How different are we all, really? Can't we all just get along?

Pop the popcorn and give this one a watch. And remember: we are family!


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