THE PRODUCERS (1968) C widescreen 88m dir: Mel Brooks

w/Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder, Dick Shawn, Kenneth Mars, Estelle Winwood, Christopher Hewett, Andreas Voutsinas, Lee Meredith, Renée Taylor, Michael Davis

Conceived, written, and directed by Brooks, this is a preposterous, often wildly funny tale about an impoverished Broadway theater producer, played by the outrageous Mostel, who stages a ghastly play in the hopes of making his fortune by selling more than 100% of the show to investors. The show-within-the-film is called Springtime for Hitler. Wilder, as Mostel's mousy accountant, is terrific. Shawn, playing Hitler, is very funny, too, once you accept the premise of this lunacy. Brooks recently adapted THE PRODUCERS into a musical show for the 2000-2001 Broadway season. The production featured Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick in the leads, was a huge popular and critical hit, and won numerous Tonys.

From The Movie Guide: "THE PRODUCERS raised Mostel to new heights of zany appeal and made a star of Wilder, who proceeded to beat this kind of role into the ground in a series of subsequent films. Our favorite among the investors: Estelle Winwood, as 'Touch Me, Feel Me-' --- she takes the material and runs with it. Highlights: the opening number, opening night; 'I'm hysterical! I'm wet and I'm hysterical! I'm in pain and I'm wet and I'm hysterical!'"

THE PRODUCERS received an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay (Brooks) and was also nominated for Best Supporting Actor (Wilder).