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Broderick and Lane are also reunited with two others from the Broadway production: Gary Beach as flamboyant stage director Roger De Bris and his equally gay "common-law assistant" Carmen Ghia, played by Desperate Housewives regular Roger Bart. These two have some of the film's funniest bits, particularly Ghia's unforgettable introduction to Max and Leo.

That leads us to two newcomers to the franchise—Will Ferrell and Uma Thurman. Ferrell is the height of insanity as Nazi playwright Franz Liebkind, but the greater revelation is Thurman, who reveals herself as more than just a sexy blonde bombshell—even as she's playing a sexy blonde bombshell as Swedish office assistant Ulla. Thurman actually sings pretty well and has good comedic timing. In context, "Why Bloom go so far camera right?" may well be one of the year's funniest lines.

The musical 'Springtime for Hitler' comes to life

But the real reason to see this film is the addition of the musical numbers—catchy and clever songs, written in the style of classic 1950s Broadway musicals like Singin' in the Rain or Guys and Dolls. Particularly inventive is the way Bialystock woos the rich old ladies in a hilariously huge song-and-dance number involving scores of them dancing with walkers. Later, Lane gives a show-stopping song that quickly recaps the entire film as he wonders, "What went right?" with his scheme.

Which leads to the primary reason I prefer this remake. The original cast a hippie as the lead in Springtime for Hitler, but hippie humor isn't as funny today. Instead, let's just say that another character is cast in that role, and it helps explain why the musical ends up a hit instead of a flop. From there, the movie goes even further than the original, offering some funny new twists. The downside to all this is that the 1968 film served as a morality play in that our two conniving producers get their comeuppance. In this film, it's a little more "all's well that ends well."

There's something perfectly ironic about the whole thing. Here's a movie musical that parodies the theater business by attempting to stage the world's worst musical, and yet it also manages to pay homage to classic movie musicals in the process, not only with song-and-dance numbers, but also with its sense of humor. Still, only you can best decide whether this is the film for you, or if you should wait for the stage production instead, or rent the classic original, or just skip the whole thing altogether.

Talk About It

1. This film includes "sexual humor." Is such innuendo as "bad" as explicit sex and bad language? Is one worse than the other?
   
   
2. Where do Bialystock and Bloom go wrong (or "right") in their scheme? What could they have done differently to ensure their success (or "failure")?
   
   
3. Based on this film's ending, do you feel it promotes bad behavior? Or is there still a lesson to be learned? Or is it simply all intended as fun?
   
   
4. Do you agree Bloom's comments at the trial? Is everyone happy and content with what happened, or was someone wronged in the process?

The Family Corner

The Producers is rated PG-13 for sexual humor and references. Mel Brooks is the king of innuendo, and there's plenty of it here. Although there's nothing explicit, plenty is implied, and it's decidedly more "adult" than something like Young Frankenstein or Spaceballs. There's a scene where two characters are mistaken for a compromising homosexual position. There's also some bad language, including irreverent references to God, and some flamboyant gay humor that portrays it more as a freakish persona than a sexual lifestyle. Despite the PG-13 rating, this might even be inappropriate for younger teens altogether.

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