Musical Review: The Producers

So, I could have reviewed American in Paris last week, except it had no validity as a musical. I was hard pressed to find a song that was actually relevant to the events that were going on around. It was an okay movie, but Gene Kelly should have gotten out of his little "Let's just tap dance all the time" phase. Even though I like tap dancing. Now I have a review for you of my favorite musical which I recently rewatched on DVD with my sister. The Producers. Before you shoot down the review because it's my favorite musical, I also recently learned that besides being the 20th longest running show on Broadway (And in the 21st Century no less), it won every single musical Tony that year, besides Best Revival and Best Female Lead (Since there isn't one, only a "featured"). That adds some validity to my rating. So without any more stuff: The review.

Plot: 20/20
I would be hard pressed to find ANYTHING in this musical that is filler. Every scene is essential to the plot. And how original the plot is to. A has-been Producer and his accountant realize that they could make more money by producing a flop than a hit, so they set out to get the worst play, director, cast, and anything else that will ensure their failure. Of course, this isn't as easy as it sounds. Just hearing the plot setup was enough for me to watch this movie. Just a note though, the movie is basically a filmed version of the stage production with better sets. So some stuff will seem to be over the top and hammy. Especially the first scene in the office.

Characters: 15/15
Every character in The Producers is a riot in themselves. And that's saying something considering all of the large parts in this musical. Besides Leo and Max, you have Ulla, Roger, Carmen, Franz as fairly large parts. Even some of the one shot characters seem to have very strong connections to the plot. As a female, I would feel bad about the lack of women roles, but oh well. It's hard to imagine that such unrealistic over-the-top stereotypical exaggerations can simultaneously seem so realistic.

Dialogue: 14/15
The dialogue is filled with dry jokes, clever puns, and references to things. I took off a point for the office scene at the beginning. Maybe it was poor translation from stage to movie, but it's almost unbearable for me to watch between "Opening Night" and "We Can Do It", since "King of Broadway" was a deleted scene, so I won't count that in the chronology.

Music: 20/20
The music is by far the best part of The Producers. I can listen to the whole soundtrack in order and frequently do, due to it's quality melody lines, great lyrics, and strong pit parts. Every song is catchy and good, two elements which aren't always present. There are about 20ish songs in this production, and only the rare repetition of themes. One of the best moments, however, is in the song "Betrayed", where Max Bialystock summarizes the whole musical up to that part in the space of about thirty seconds. Just the shock running down my spine from witnessing this feat was impressive. Not to mention that the songs are very well tied to the musical. You could sing a bunch of the songs standalone, but there would be no mistaking where it came from.

Adaptation: 10/10
This musical is an adaptation of a movie. A rather outdated boring movie. Well, it isn't that bad, but it shouldn't even be a question which one is better. This is the only reason why I don't completely bash adaptations. Retains most of the best lines from the movie and cuts the crap (LSD guy...).

Curtain Call: 5/5
The credit music added three MORE songs of original material. That's pretty intense for the CREDITS.

Theme/Underlying Social Message: 7/7
The only real underlying social message that you can get from this is that Max and Leo pick Springtime for Hitler because it's sure to offend people of all nationalities, religions, and creeds. The Producers itself could almost fall under the same category. A lot of the self referential humor make the musical almost a parody of itself.

Other Opinion Category: 7/8
That first office scene...

Total: 98/100

Well worth a watch. Just don't watch it with someone who will be offended easily.