FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM (DVD/WS/1966/TRAILER/COLL BK) DVD

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
Director Richard Lester uses the Burt Shevelove/Larry Gelbart/Stephen Sondheim Broadway musical hit as a launching pad for some of his wildest slapstick gaggery. Zero Mostel repeats his stage role as Pseudolus, the cunning Roman slave who'll do anything to win his freedom. The plot hinges on three Roman houses next door to each another. One is the home of Pseudolus' masters: the philandering Senex (Michael Hordern), his domineering wife Domina (Patricia Jessel), and their handsome but empty-headed son Hero (Michael Crawford. The second house is a brothel belonging to unctuous procurer Lycus (Phil Silvers). The third house has long been empty, in that its owner, the senile Erronious (Buster Keaton), has gone on a long journey to find his children, who were kidnapped in infancy by pirates. Other principals include Pseudolus' fellow slave, the aptly named Hysterium (Jack Gilford); vain warrior Miles Gloriosus (Leon Greene), who marches triumphantly into Rome declaring "I am a parade!"; and the virginal Philia (Annette Andre), a resident of Lycus' "domicile" who is loved by Hero but who has been promised in marriage to Miles Glorious. There are also acrobats, transvestites, a phony funeral, and an outsized climactic chase. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Cast Zero Mostel as Pseudolus Phil Silvers as Lycus Buster Keaton as Erronius Jack Gilford as Hysterius Michael Crawford as Hero Annette Andre as Philia Patricia Jessell as Domina Michael Hordern as Senex Leon Greene as Miles Gloriosus Inga Neilsen as Gymnasia Myrna White as Vibrata Lucienne Bridou as Panacea Helen Funai as Tintinabula Jennifer Baker as Geminae Susan Baker as Geminae

Crew Syd Cain - Art Director Ethel Martin - Choreography George Martin - Choreography Tony Walton - Costume Designer José Lopez Rodero - First Assistant Director Richard Lester - Director John Victor Smith - Editor Stephen Sondheim - Composer (Music Score) Trevor Crole-Rees - Makeup Jose Maria Sanchez - Makeup Tony Walton - Production Designer Nicolas Roeg - Cinematographer Melvin Frank - Producer Cliff John Richardson - Special Effects Gerry Humphreys - Sound/Sound Designer Leslie Hammond - Sound/Sound Designer Melvin Frank - Screenwriter Michael Pertwee - Screenwriter Ken Thorne - Additional Music Larry Gelbart - Play Author Burt Shevelove - Play Author Stephen Sondheim - Lyricist

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
Merging director Richard Lester's 1960s verve with old-fashioned Broadway and vaudeville entertainment, the movie version of the stage hit A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is an engagingly frenetic slapstick musical. Though the number of winning Stephen Sondheim songs is scaled back, stars Zero Mostel, Phil Silvers, Jack Gilford, and Buster Keaton pile on the schtick as Mostel's labyrinthine scams lead to nonstop mugging (except from Keaton), sexual shenanigans, hilarious one-liners, an elaborate chariot chase, and (naturally) hairy men in drag. Lester packs the screen with visual jokes and historically accurate Roman trappings; any residual staginess is mitigated by cinematographer Nicolas Roeg's and editor John Victor-Smith's New Wave flair for jump cuts and variable camera speeds. Broadway veteran Mostel is in peak form, especially when he goes toe to conniving toe with courtesan merchant Silvers and gauzily woos Gilford with a rendition of "Lovely," while Keaton remains a scene-stealer in one of his last films. A crowd-pleaser if not a Sondheim purist-pleaser, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum maintained the age-old attraction of "Comedy Tonight." ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
 

Ken Thorne: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie, Best Adapted Score (winner)

Golden Globe, Best Picture - Musical or Comedy (nominated)

General Specifications: Language Options: English, Spanish Subtitle Options: French, Spanish Sound Processing: 2: PCM stereo 5.1: 5 full-range channels. Includes 3 for the front speakers, 2 surround channels for rear speakers, & 1 low-frequency effects (LFE) channel to carry deep bass effects Additional Features: Collectible booklet Original theatrical trailer MPAA Rating: NR DVD Discs Included: 1 DVD Sides: 1 DVD DVD Region Code: 1 Content Length: 97 min   DVD Chapters: Scene Selections 0. Scene Selections 1. Title/Intro/Credits [3:18] 2. Pseudolus the Slave [2:40] 3. Message to My Love [1:56] 4. Impervious [1:44] 5. Fair Trade [1:45] 6. Perfect Woman [6:57] 7. "There She Is!" [2:09] 8. I'm Lovely [5:03] 9. Erotic Pottery [1:05] 10. An Honest Virgin [2:54] 11. Everybody Ought To Have A Maid [5:53] 12. Gaggle of Geese [4:04] 13. Claiming the Maiden [2:39] 14. Trading Places [3:31] 15. Bring Me My Bride [8:16] 16. Roman Pleasures [3:37] 17. Madame Returns [2:49] 18. Flying Exit [3:42] 19. Anybody's Body [4:10] 20. "Monstrous Fate" [2:13] 21. Passion Potion [:49] 22. Fire Pyre [5:25] 23. Alive! [1:19] 24. Gladiator Training [4:20] 25. Hero the Hero [1:29] 26. Chariot Chase [6:13] 27. A Comedy Tonight [4:29] 28. End Credits [2:07]