"I want everything I've ever seen in the movies!"

Rating: 7/10 (8 June 2018)

The execution is often over the top and the comedy acting may have an outdated feel, but you have to admit the concept is outrageous. No, not the idea of producing a play that will intentionally flop, but the entire theme of 'Springtime for Hitler'. That is just so outlandish that it would have to work, and to a great extent it did. The choreography and costuming in the play was great, and as hideous as it might seem, the Hitler tune is catchy and stays with you a while after the film is over. The only thing that didn't make sense to me was why Leo Bloom (Gene Wilder) offered shares in the play at twenty five, fifty and a hundred percent to Max Bialystock's (Zero Mostel) ardent female admirers. Profits if any would have been distributed on a proportional basis of ownership, so no need to despair on that point.
But that's not the sentiment the film makers were going for. If the producers were to go broke, they had to go broke in a big way. And on the flip side, why would having a hit on your hands be such a big problem? Just take that lemon and make more lemonade with it. Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder have good chemistry as the scheming producers, backed up by an eccentric cast of characters led by Dick Shawn, Kenneth Mars and Lee Meredith. Meredith's Ulla might have been better named Ooh-la-la, or is that inappropriate to say these days? In any case, this was a funny film that was probably better received back in the day, but still holds up well enough for fans of the principals.
Say, did I get this right - Max bought two hot dogs from a street vendor for half a buck? Now that's outrageous!