Nice effects though.

hyped garbage

Great Film overall

Boring

At the centre of this movie is the happy/sad/loving/tempestuous/touching relationship between Albin and Renato, achieved by the wonderful rapport between the two leads. Musical score adds to the story-telling. Triomphe!

This French farce lacks the energy and whimsy of the 1996 Mike Nichols remake, "The Birdcage." Perhaps it's a cultural difference, but the original "La Cage aux Folles" seems to take itself too seriously, and moments that were uproarious in the Nichols version aren't very funny here. I suppose some might say that Americans need their humor to be broader and more obvious in order to appreciate it, but whatever.It's hard to understand now how bold this subject matter -- transvestites, openly gay lifestyles, etc. -- was for 1979, and that probably has played a large role in the life this film has had since (thanks largely also to the hit Broadway musical based on it).I bet people who saw the original first like it better than "The Birdcage," and vice versa.Grade: B

I first saw the remake Birdcage many years ago, and only last night got around to see La Cage Aux Folles. I liked it a lot. I can only imagine it's impact back in 1978. (I also appear to be in the minority since I also liked the campy/funnier version of Birdcage with it's disco soundtrack).I think what I liked best about the French version was the role of the mother. She was unapologetic about not wanting to raise a child. In this day and age of slow moving public acceptance of gay couples (and hopefully one day gay marriage), I found this challenge to the stereotyped notion of motherhood to be more (refreshingly)shocking than the gay issue. I barely remember how they explained the mother in the American version, I believe the parents had been married and were divorced and the implication was that the mother was in the sons life (I might be misremembering). Not all women have this maternal "instinct" that society insists they have. I was happy to see a successful career woman with no regrets for her choices.I'm glad that they tried to hit on gender issues, class, race AND issues of sexuality, instead of just focusing on one to the exclusion of all others.p.s. it reminded me a of Ang Lee's Wedding Banquet - I wonder if he was influened by this film or maybe trying to appear straight to appease traditional parents a common issue that many people have had to address.

"La cage aux folles" is a brilliant comedy. It is the film upon which "Bird Cage" with Robin Williams is featured. One should not miss this classic expose of trans sexual entertainment. The novelty of such sexual innuendos was rare in 1978 when this picture was released. If is followed by an equally funny comedy, "La cage aux folles II", another film to be added to the must see category. One does not even require the translations across the bottom of the screen. One can simply enjoy the artistic perfection of pure cinematic comedy as presented visually. The French subtitles are well adapted. The scenery is clever. The cast is perfect. Don't miss this great comedic success.