A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM

Zero Mostel and Jack Gilford

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM (1966). Director: Richard Lester. Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. 

The slave Pseudolus (Zero Mostel) is hoping to acquire his freedom and comes up with a plan. His master's son, Hero (Michael Crawford), has fallen for a virginal courtesan, Philia (Annette Andre), just installed in Marcus Lycus' (Phil Silvers) brothel next door, and Hero will free Pseudolus if he arranges a relationship between the two. The problem is that Philia has already been bought by the egomaniacal Captain Milos Gloriosus (Leon Greene), who is on his way from Rome that very afternoon to claim his bride. Pseudolus schemes to get Philia away from Gloriosus even as his master Senex (Michael Hordern of Theater of Blood) schemes to get away from his termagant of a wife, Domina (Patricia Jessel).  

The first half hour or so of this adaptation of the Broadway musical A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is delightful -- although it takes too long for someone to finally sing a song -- with Mostel fully in charge of his material along with Silvers, Jack Gilford as Hysterium, Hordern and Jessel, and especially Greene as the captain. But after awhile this farce just becomes a bit labored, and the film completely falls apart with a tasteless scene in the arena and especially a drawn-out slapstick sequence that falls completely flat. Others have noted that the film has a typically sixties attitude towards women: they are either young beauties lusted after by ugly old men or old hags unworthy of consideration. One could also argue that anything having to do with roman slavery is not exactly a great subject for the comedic treatment to begin with. I think the main problem is that this is the type of material that works much, much better on the stage. However, the producers wisely kept on Mostel and Gilford from the Broadway production. Unwisely, because they thought big movie musicals were on their way out, they cut most of Stephen Sondheim's tuneful score. What remains is the lovely "Lovely," sung by Philia; the captain's song as he comes into town and the dirge he sings later on; the spritely "Everybody Ought to Have a Maid;" and the infectious opening number "Comedy Tonight."

Leon Greene and Zero Mostel

As the young lovers Michael Crawford (who would find fame on Broadway as The Phantom of the Opera) and Annette Andre fail to make much of an impression. British actor Leon Greene, however, makes quite an impression and went on to have many more credits, mostly in the UK. Buster Keaton [Backstage], in his last role as a man looking for his kidnapped children, is, unfortunately, not good at all. 

Verdict: Some fun to be sure, but it just becomes too silly. **1/2.