French-Italian co-production based on Jean Poiret's play about a drag queen and his lover hoping to pass as straights for the sake of the lover's son, who has announced he's getting married. In its time, a rather obvious sex farce, made even more so today in the wake of two sequels and the 1996 American remake "The Birdcage". Mixture of bitchy bickering, door-slamming slapstick, and semi-serious overtures regarding the kowtowing of gays to straights creates a bumpy cinematic rhythm. Worse, the overall results--though popular at the box-office--are undermined by a dreariness that never goes away. May prove fascinating for "Birdcage" enthusiasts eager to compare the two, but this version offers even fewer laughs, with dramatic outbursts awkwardly and embarrassingly staged. ** from ****
Review of La Cage aux Folles
