The Birdcage

Remakes don’t get much better than Mike Nichols’s The Birdcage, which embraced drag shows long before they became the height of cool, and more unsettlingly, another casualty of the rising tide of fascism.

The Birdcage is silly in all the right ways.

The Birdcage is a little film with knee-slapping scenes coupled with thoughtfully acute moments as well.

It undoubtedly remains a genial crowd pleaser. If the dress fits, wear it.

This isn't the supreme masterpiece it might have been, but Nichols's direction is very polished and some of the lines and details are awfully funny.

If The Birdcage isn't exactly the Mike Nichols-Elaine May movie of our dreams, it does manage to transform what was formerly a campy bit of French fluff into one of the loopiest, most hysterical family-values movies ever made.

Amongst all the hilarity, there are also some poignant moments in the film - when the audience is reminded that the underlying themes in this story are love, acceptance, and support. You can be giggling one second and then tearing up the next.

Hank Azaria steals the entire picture as houseboy Agador.

I was wildly entertained by this. It had a lot of heart and is more than just a bag of laughs. The theme about accepting yourself was really powerful.

This is one of my favorite comedies. The performances of Robin Williams, Nathan Lane, and Hank Azaria still make me laugh every time I watch this.