The Producers (2005)

After putting together another Broadway flop, down-on-his-luck Producer Max Bialystock teams up with timid accountant Leo Bloom in a get-rich-quick scheme to put on the world's worst show.

Director:

Susan Stroman

Writers:

Mel Brooks (screenplay), Thomas Meehan (screenplay)

Stars:

Nathan Lane, Matthew Broderick, Uma Thurman

Nominated for 4 Golden Globes. Another 1 win & 13 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nathan Lane	...	Max Bialystock
Matthew Broderick	...	Leo Bloom
Uma Thurman	...	Ulla
Will Ferrell	...	Franz Liebkind
Gary Beach	...	Roger DeBris
Roger Bart	...	Carmen Ghia
Eileen Essell	...	Hold Me-Touch Me
Michael McKean	...	Prison Trustee
David Huddleston	...	Judge
Debra Monk	...	Lick Me-Bite Me
Andrea Martin	...	Kiss Me-Feel Me
Jon Lovitz	...	Mr. Marks
Bryn Dowling	...	Usherette / Girl with Pearls / Little Old Lady / Bavarian Peasant
Meg Gillentine	...	Usherette / Girl with Pearls / Little Old Lady / Tapping Brown Shirt
Kevin Ligon	...	Workman / Little Old Lady

Storyline

New York, 1959. Max Bialystock was once the king of Broadway, but now all his shows close on opening night. Things turn around when he's visited by the neurotic accountant Leo Bloom, who proposes a scheme tailor-made for producers who can only make flops: raise far more money than you need, then make sure the show is despised. No one will be interested in it, so you can pocket the surplus. To this end, they produce a musical called Springtime for Hitler written by escaped Nazi Franz Liebken. Then they get the insanely flamboyant Roger De Bris to direct. Finally, they hire as a lead actress the loopy Swedish bombshell Ulla (whose last name has over 15 syllables). As opening night draws near, what can go wrong? Well, there's no accounting for taste...

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Plot Keywords:

scheme | opening night | accountant | swedish | nazi | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Musical

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sexual humor and references

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Max and Leo are fighting, Leo says "Oh how I hate you!" and Max responds with "Double! Double!" This is a call back to the 1997 film 'Mouse Hunt' in which Nathan Lane played a lead role. In that film, Lane's character Ernie is arguing with his brother Lars (Lee Evans) and when Lars tells Ernie he hates him, Ernie responds with "Double! Double!"

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Goofs

In "Along Came Bialy", just when Max and the old ladies arrive at the park - there is a sequence of a couple of jump cuts. In the last cut, one of the trees to the right disappears.

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Quotes

Max Bialystock: [about Franz's hop-clop] It's sort of a Nazi Hoedown.

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Crazy Credits

For the closing credits, Will Ferrell (in the character of Franz Liebkind) recorded "The Hop-Clop Goes On" - a slower version of "Der Guten Tag Hop-Clop" that parodies "My Heart Will Go On" from "Titanic" right down to the cheesy instrumentals. At the end of the song, Franz whispers to the audience: "Don't forget to purchase 'Mein Kampf' in paperback. You can find it at Borders... or Barnes and Noble...und Amazon.com"

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Connections

Referenced in Episodes: Episode Three (2012)

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Soundtracks

We Can Do It
Music and Lyrics by Mel Brooks
Performed by Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick

User Reviews

now I wish to see the full stage of the unsuccessful disaster play!

I saw this film for the first time, not having ever seen the 1968 movie, nor ever been able to frequent theatrical shows. It was therefore an exciting experience to see the highly reputed theater piece performed by stage actors alongside screen actors; then I allow myself falling in love with motion pictures (and screen actors) again rather than lamenting a life without chance to be a theatergoer.

Dialogues are funny and "deeply" cynical, spoken just they should be; but I felt they were often upstaged as every small role is played by enough eye-catching entertainer to weaken the charm of words. The Central Park fountain eruption following the scene of the successful-fiasco-seeking "producer" calling God, "old friend", seemed quite modest, playing rather good "supporting" role.

It is hard to dislike this musical, after all. The song, "I Want to be a Producer" is sweetly sung like a touching love song; I wonder this soft singing voice existed in the original 1968 film? Also, Ulla's flaring blue dress is a delight to capture in view while she elegantly moves. Most of all, now I really wish to see the full stage of the Franz Liebkind's "Spring Time for Führer" or a furor play!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 December 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Producers: The Movie Musical

Filming Locations:

116th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$45,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$154,590, 18 December 2005

Gross USA:

$19,398,532

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$38,075,318

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, Columbia Pictures, Brooksfilms

Technical Specs

Runtime:

134 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1