|
|
VHS : A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (Widescreen Edition)In association with Amazon.comstarring: Zero Mostel, Phil Silvers, Buster Keaton, Michael Crawford, Jack Gilford directed by: Richard Lester  List Price: $14.95 Price: $0.95 You Save: $14.00 (94%)Prices subject to change. Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Binding: VHS Tape EAN: 9780792837565 Format: Closed-captioned, Color, HiFi Sound, Letterboxed, Widescreen, NTSC ISBN: 0792837568 Label: MGM (Video & DVD) Manufacturer: MGM (Video & DVD) Number Of Items: 1 Publisher: MGM (Video & DVD) Release Date: January 06, 1998 Running Time: 99 minutes Studio: MGM (Video & DVD) Theatrical Release Date: October 16, 1966 Sales Rank: 39112 Related Items:
Editorial Review: Amazon.com: "Something familiar, something peculiar, something for everyone: a comedy tonight!" Those words from the opening song pretty much describe the menu in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, a frantic adaptation of the stage musical by Larry Gelbart and Burt Shevelove. The wild story, set in ancient Rome, follows a slave named Pseudolus (Zero Mostel, snorting and gibbering) as he tries to extricate himself from an increasingly farcical situation; Mostel and a bevy of inspired clowns, including Phil Silvers, Jack Gilford, and Buster Keaton, keep the slapstick and the patter perking. The cast also includes the young Michael Crawford as a love-struck innocent. This project landed in the lap of Richard Lester, then one of the hottest directors in the world after his success with the Beatles' films. Lester telescoped the material through his own joke-a-second sensibility, and also ripped out some of the songs from Stephen Sondheim's Broadway score. The result is a pixilated romp and very close to the vaudeville spirit suggested by the title--though anyone with a low tolerance for Zero Mostel's overbearing buffoonery may be in trouble. Oddly enough, amidst all the frenzy, Lester creates a grungy, earthy Rome that seems closer to the real thing than countless respectable historical films on the subject. --Robert Horton Average Rating:
 Rating:  - Richard Lester ClassicI love Richard Lester's style of direction( Hard Day's Night, The Ritz, Three Muskateer's etc). Zero Mostel in a role that rivals his performance in the Producer's will have you rolling on the floor. Phil Silvers is at his best as a wheeler dealer. The Roman Empire lasted in spite of the shenanigans here. A story of mixed up love and misdirection. Will they pull it off or will they fall to the conquerer who raped Thrace thrice? Anyway it's a very funny movie at a greta price. Rating: - a classic stage playThis is a fun adaptation of a great stage play. While I think that "A Funny Thing..." is better on the stage, still this DVD will bring much enjoyment. Rating: - Non-stop Laughs, Sight Gags, Slapstick and just plain fun!A funny thing happened on the way to my cable "on demand" service. I saw this title in the listings, but for some reason kept skipping over it. I had heard of the Broadway version, and generally am disappointed in movie remakes of stage musicals. Then I thought of the fantastic few movie musicals I loved and found better than the stage versions: "Cabaret", "Evita", the amazing "Chicago", "The Phantom of the Opera" (yes, I loved it as much as the Broadway version) and "Sweeney Todd". Historically, ... Read More Rating:  - Not too many things funny happen . . at allI must say, I've seen this story played out in the theater twice in my lifetime, thus far. And in both occassions, I loved it! The theater productions offered more in the way of humor, satire and coordinated slap-stick. So it was with some disappointment that I wrote this critique. Where as I knew many of the actors in the movie and have come to enjoy many of there other work, this movie lacked the timing needed to make it work. I'm not sure exactly . . . but it seem watered down. See this in ... Read More Rating: - My Favorite MovieI have loved this movie since I saw it as a child. The Comedy, the Singing, Phil Silver's Glasses in Roman times. Zero, Jack, Phil, Buster. Need I say more? And a very young Michael Crawford. Great comedy. Great Singing. I can watch this over & over. Browse for similar items by category:
|
||