Producers (The) (2005)

For all the hoopla and buzz over this movie update, I expected better. Sure, all the nice things people say about it are true: Nathan Lane mugs in rare form, Matthew Broderick holds his own as Lane's comico-neurotic foil, Will Farrell is creatively ... different, and Uma Thurman is a headturner. I just wasn't that impressed. Then again, Mel Brooks material is usually funny, just not that funny to me. I don't belly chuckle (as with Woody Allen's comedies), I go "Ehhhhh..." (as in so-so). And sorry, but I've never liked anything else Will Farrell has done (save Curious George). I guess I prefer a real musical drama or comedy to schmaltz. A parody that makes fun of other things succeeds better than one that parodies itself. Perhaps making fun of this show's tasteless premise is one thing, but including the show itself only smears the tastelessness too far. Maybe the jokes are just 40 years old. Two stars.