Kinda spoilery... not really.
For my presentation I watched La Cage aux Folles and its American remake, The Birdcage to see the cultural nuances throughout the movies. The original La Cage aux Folles was made in 1978 and The Birdcage was made in 1996. The plots of the two movies were basically the same. The script was repeated almost line-by-line between the new and old versions, except of course, for a few things added and taken away.
The basic plot of the movie is there are two gay nightclub owners, Renato/Armand and Albin/Albert who need to act straight when Renato/Armand's son, Laurent/Val plans to marry a girl with conservative parents. The father of the girl is the vice-president of the coalition for moral order, so of course he wouldn't be thrilled if he found out the boy's parents were two gay men. The girl and her parents are invited to dinner and hilarity ensues.
Overall the tone of the movie was different between the two versions, as the American version was much more flamboyant and slapstick. The character for Albert in The Birdcage was much more hysterical than the Albin in La Cage aux Folles. The comedy in the French version was much more subtle in general. These are both pros and cons. While some might think the American version is too outlandish, others could complain that many of the jokes in the French version are hard to pick up for someone who's not French.
There are also little differences, such as the French cuisine. In the French version, Albin talks about wanting to get lobster, but it was too expensive, so he got sole instead. In the American version, Albert opted for pork roast instead of filet mignon.
The French version was slightly more abusive. In the beginning scene, in both versions, Albin/Albert tells Renato/Armand to hit him. In the French version, Renato actually does. Also, in La Cage aux Folles, Renato refers to Laurent's fiancée as a whore several times before he actually meets her.
In the French version, there was also a whole extra twist: It was Albin and Renato's 20th anniversary on the day of the dinner, so Albin was doubly upset that they had to go through that on this day. At the climax of the movie, when their whole plan starts to fall apart, the dancers from La Cage aux Folles make a surprise entrance with a cake singing `Happy Anniversary' to Albin and Renato.
The biggest difference in this movie is the end with the wedding. Americans always need a happy ending, so at the end of The Birdcage it was just a happy wedding scene chock full of jokes. In La Cage aux Folles, Albin just complains that Laurent's mother is at the wedding and, in my opinion, ruins the whole ending.
It's hard to say which movie is really better. Some parts of both movies were better than others, but in general, I think I like the American remake better. It has more contemporary humor that I understand. Maybe if I learned French well enough, I'd someday like the French version better. I think it's worth it to see both, at least to understand some of French culture better.
For my presentation I watched La Cage aux Folles and its American remake, The Birdcage to see the cultural nuances throughout the movies. The original La Cage aux Folles was made in 1978 and The Birdcage was made in 1996. The plots of the two movies were basically the same. The script was repeated almost line-by-line between the new and old versions, except of course, for a few things added and taken away.
The basic plot of the movie is there are two gay nightclub owners, Renato/Armand and Albin/Albert who need to act straight when Renato/Armand's son, Laurent/Val plans to marry a girl with conservative parents. The father of the girl is the vice-president of the coalition for moral order, so of course he wouldn't be thrilled if he found out the boy's parents were two gay men. The girl and her parents are invited to dinner and hilarity ensues.
Overall the tone of the movie was different between the two versions, as the American version was much more flamboyant and slapstick. The character for Albert in The Birdcage was much more hysterical than the Albin in La Cage aux Folles. The comedy in the French version was much more subtle in general. These are both pros and cons. While some might think the American version is too outlandish, others could complain that many of the jokes in the French version are hard to pick up for someone who's not French.
There are also little differences, such as the French cuisine. In the French version, Albin talks about wanting to get lobster, but it was too expensive, so he got sole instead. In the American version, Albert opted for pork roast instead of filet mignon.
The French version was slightly more abusive. In the beginning scene, in both versions, Albin/Albert tells Renato/Armand to hit him. In the French version, Renato actually does. Also, in La Cage aux Folles, Renato refers to Laurent's fiancée as a whore several times before he actually meets her.
In the French version, there was also a whole extra twist: It was Albin and Renato's 20th anniversary on the day of the dinner, so Albin was doubly upset that they had to go through that on this day. At the climax of the movie, when their whole plan starts to fall apart, the dancers from La Cage aux Folles make a surprise entrance with a cake singing `Happy Anniversary' to Albin and Renato.
The biggest difference in this movie is the end with the wedding. Americans always need a happy ending, so at the end of The Birdcage it was just a happy wedding scene chock full of jokes. In La Cage aux Folles, Albin just complains that Laurent's mother is at the wedding and, in my opinion, ruins the whole ending.
It's hard to say which movie is really better. Some parts of both movies were better than others, but in general, I think I like the American remake better. It has more contemporary humor that I understand. Maybe if I learned French well enough, I'd someday like the French version better. I think it's worth it to see both, at least to understand some of French culture better.