La Cage aux Folles (film)
| La Cage aux Folles | |
|---|---|
| File:LaCage1.jpg French poster | |
| Directed by | Édouard Molinaro |
| Starring | Ugo Tognazzi Michel Serrault |
Release dates | France 25 October 1978 USA 30 March 1979 Australia 1 March 1980 |
Running time | 110 minutes |
| Countries |  France Italy |
| Language | French |
| Box office | US$20.4 million |
La Cage aux Folles is a 1978 film adaptation of the 1973 play by Jean Poiret. It was directed by Édouard Molinaro. Like the play, the film tells the story of a gay couple - Renato, the manager of a Saint-Tropez nightclub featuring drag entertainment, and Albin, his star attraction - and the adventures that ensue when Renato's son brings home his fiance's ultra-conservative parents to meet them.
The film (subtitled "Birds of a Feather" on the US poster) won over audiences with its sight gags, uproarious complications, and a tender and touching conclusion. It ran for well over a year at the Paris Theatre, an art house cinema in New York City, as well as theatres throughout the country in both urban and rural areas. For years it remained the most successful foreign film to be released in the United States.[1]
Unlike many other non English language films, the English dubbing was generally done by the original cast.
The film score was composed by Ennio Morricone.
Cast
The film stars Michel Serrault as Albin, in the role he had created in the original stage production.
- Ugo Tognazzi - Renato Baldi
- Michel Serrault - Albin Mougeotte/'Zaza Napoli'
- Claire Maurier - Simone
- Rémi Laurent - Laurent Baldi
- Carmen Scarpitta - Louise Charrier
- Benny Luke - Jacob
- Luisa Maneri - Andrea Charrier
- Michel Galabru - Simon Charrier
Sequels and remake
The film was followed by two sequels: Cage aux folles II (1980), also directed by Édouard Molinaro, and La Cage aux folles 3 - 'Elles' se marient (1985), directed by Georges Lautner.
A 1983 Broadway musical called La Cage aux Folles based on the play and the film was also successful.
In 1996, an American remake titled The Birdcage, directed by Mike Nichols, was released, relocated to South Beach, Miami, and starring Robin Williams and Nathan Lane.
In 2008, a production of La Cage aux Folles opened at the Menier Chocolate Factory in London's West End. In October of the same year, it transferred to the Playhouse Theatre. It is currently starring Graham Norton as Albin.
