Rating: 
Summary: You Can't Keep A Good Movie Down!
Review: "The Producers" was a very bold movie for first time director Mel Brooks to tackle. Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder were not nationally known movie stars, and the subject matter was very controversial. To his credit, Mel stuck to his guns and made the movie exactly the way he envisioned it. The only concession he made was changing the original title "Springtime For Hitler," because no movie studio would promote a film and theater owners wouldn't show a movie with Hitler in the title. The first part of the movie is hysterical, especially watching Gene Wilder getting so agitated that he appears to actually be having a nervous breakdown! The scene at Lincoln Center is one of the most effective scenes ever filmed. Zero finally persuades Gene to go along with his crazy scheme, and Gene yells "I'll do it!" Just then, the water in the fountain majestically rises up. Gene giddily dances around the fountain as Zero smiles approvingly.The opening dance number of the play "Springtime For Hitler" is outrageously over the top, with the dancers wearing Nazi uniforms and goose-stepping across the stage. Especially offensive to some is when the overhead view shows the dancers below in the form of a swastika. As Mel said in his interview, if you've gone that far out, you might as well go all the way. The cult status of the film has grown over the years. Life imitated art when "The Producers" was turned into a real Broadway musical. The staggering success of the play led to the film finally being released on DVD. As a great man once wrote, you can't keep a good movie down!
Rating:
Summary: Just A Scream!
Review: This is my favorite comedy. I am so happy to see that it has returned to DVD. Zero and Gene are breathtakingly funny!! (litterally) The story is so rooted in theatre that anyone in the business will relate instantly. Funny for everyone!
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Classic Comedy
Review: This is Mel Brooks at his best. The comedy here is outrageous as Zero Mostel & his accountant hit on the scheme of having a whole batch of rich old ladies supplying financial backing for a planned flop, and what is more likely to flop than a musical biography of Hitler titled "Springtime For Hitler"? Indeed, this is an example of comedy in bad taste which is so hilarious, you can't possibly be offended by it. Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder are at their very best. This is a true comedy classic.
Rating:
Summary: God Dag Per Dig
Review: "The Producers" is the essence of the cult film. You either love it or you don't get what all the hubbub is about. Those of us who love it, really love it. By now, the plot is familiar - a crooked producer (Zero Mostel) cons a nebbishy accountant (Gene Wilder) to help him pull off a scam to net a million bucks (a lot in 1968) by producing the greatest Broadway flop ever. The opening credits sequence - a seduction between Mostel and an 85 year old Estelle Winwood (Hold Me, Touch Me) in which you have to ask who is seducing who - is riotous, and from there the comedy escalates. Mel Brooks fans may be disappointed because this is the most un-Brooksian comedy he's made. It isn't a genre parody or a pastiche, it's a genuine farce with a plot that builds and twists and turns, with the characters going further and further out onto the limb with every twist. By the time the opening number of "Springtime for Hitler" unfolds, complete with dancing stormtroopers and chorus girls with pretzels and beer on their breasts, you can't believe you've suspended your disbelief quite so far, and you can't imagine what's to come. At its heart, though, "The Producers" is sort of a coming of age comedy. Gene Wilder is as manic as he's ever been, but it his vulnerability that really sells the role of Leo Bloom. Zero Mostel is a force of nature, all bluster and bull, but is also the older brother who Bloom never had, who takes him under his wing and shows him the world. And Ulla is ... just Ulla, the Swedish Tease. After years of wasting away on VHS, it's great to see this movie as a crisp new DVD transfer. (I've never seen the blacks so black before!) The extras are a mixed lot. The "Making of" documentary is well done, but the sketches and photos are presented in no order and with no context. Lee Meredith is a bit of an embarrassment (though still in great shape at 55!), and a little of her goes a long way. But the movie is a comic masterpiece. The lines are still quotable today, Brooks is as unashamed of bad taste as ever, and the performances are all spectacular. Ever with no extra features, it would be worth it to have this movie remastered and preserved on DVD for a new audience. I first saw "The Producers" on TV as a kid, when my uncle made my cousin and me watch it with him. Hopefully this new transfer will introduce Bialystock and Bloom to a whole new legion of fans.
Rating:
Summary: _Finally_ on dvd:)
Review: I'm so happy this movie finally made it to dvd. I know it was because of the renewed interest due to the Broadway play, but it works for me. Zero Mostel, of course, is Max Bialystock, a down on his luck Broadway producer who is reduced to seducing little old ladies and having them invest in his play. Gene Wilder is Leo Bloom, an accountant who discovers the scheme that sets the whole movie in motion - more money can be made from a flop Broadway play than a hit. Bialystock considers it briefly and decides to act upon this newfound knowledge by convincing Bloom to join in on the scam by promising retirement to Rio. They decide to find the worst play, worst actors and worst director to make this scam pay off for them. And it looks like it could work - who _could_ like a play about Adolph Hitler complete with music and huge dance mumbers with showgirls dressed as Stormtroopers? Mostel plays a wonderful part - he was a great actor - and he is a joy to watch as he romances the old ladies. WIlder plays neurotic very well and is hilarious to watch, especially the "I'm wet, I'm in pain and I'm still hysterical" bit. Kenneth Mars (look for him on "Malcolm in the Middle" as Francis' boss at the "dude ranch") is terrific as the old Nazi pining for Hitler and ranting about Churchill. Lee Meridith as Ula is especially memorable - and if you want to see how well she aged, check the additional features section. This movie is funny from beginning to end. This is one of Mel Brooks' best movies and I recommend it highly on dvd. The colors are bright and clear, the sound is great and the additional features make this a worthwhile investment for any Mel Brooks fans or somebody just wondering about Mel Brooks' movies.
Rating:
Summary: One of our All Time Favorite Films with a Special Edition
Review: Wow, for a movie that almost never made it, it's great to see the special edition with comments from the cast and crew. Hidden treasures are included like the editorial Peter Sellers wrote after his private viewing and the alternate ending. It's almost amazing to think this was a movie that almost "never was". My husband's favorite part was the "intermission". It took him a while to get the joke, but we were both laughing through out this. You can see why this is a movie that has tickled the funny bone.
Rating:
Summary: The DVD is great, the supporting material is better!
Review: As funny and hysterical as this movie is, watching Gene Wilder and Mel Brooks recall what they had to go through to get the movie made was even better!
Rating:
Summary: Satire at its Finest
Review: "The Producers" ranks as the best of Mel Brooks' best films due to its scathing screenplay, great comedic performances and unmatched direction. Gene Wilder, later immortalized in Brooks'"Young Frankenstein" and "Blazing Saddles" earned an Oscar nod while Zero Mostel proves why he once ruled Broadway. Fans of the stage musical - a zany laughfest far lighter than the film - should be prepared to listen carefully for smart one-liners and generational references in a script that's chock-full of smart observations about society, and its roots in both good and evil. While the story is essentially the same in both mediums, and while "Springtime for Hitler" will be familiar, the arsenal of comedic genius on display in the movie serves as a distinct point of difference, not better or worse, but far more insuinating and sardonic. Brooks won a much-deserved Oscar for his original script, which remains to this day a lynchpin of screenwriting study. Finally on DVD, "The Producers" - the original comedic gem of a movie - deserves a place of honor in your DVD collection and remains one of the best films of all time.
Rating:
Summary: BRING YOUR OWN BLUE BLANKET!
Review: Renee Taylor as Eva Braun? Why...not? Anything goes in this madcap, merry and wildly gaye saga of transformation [Gene Wilder] from milquetoaast grey to spectacular Technicolor - thanks to immortal Zero Mostel! What a legacy! This one has charmed many a dull individual over the years and it's the Brooks Genius to thank for all of this. More said would be to hex it all - don't missithe opening cvredits - Estelle Winwood was never more sexy - as for Inga? Uta? Whatever - oh yes Ulla!...P>Then there's also Dick Shawn ...P>DVD extras are fun and fine. Long live Brooks!
Rating:
Summary: One the Best Gene Wilder Movies ever
Review: This movie is so well written and cast that I still laugh every time I see it...The only thing about this that makes me sad is that I can only imagine what Zero Mostel would have been able to do had he not been black listed by the McCarthy folks in the 50's. This is a must have core to your movie collection
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