The Producers/YMMV

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


  • Adaptation Distillation: As funny as LSD was, the hippie jokes wouldn't translate as well to a modern audience. Plus, the Roger De Bris character from the original film was rather undeveloped since they couldn't get away with as much gay humor in the 1960s. Having De Bris play Hitler solves a lot of problems and makes the later versions even funnier.
  • Crosses the Line Twice: more like "crosses the line infinity times."
    • Springtime For Hitler does this itself, much to Leo's and Max's dismay.
  • Dude, Not Funny: The production's use of Hitler and WWII for comedy.
    • Of course that's the point. In-Universe, Max tries to invoke this and make the show flop, but instead succeeds via Crosses the Line Twice. And in Real Life, Mel Brooks has said he wanted to make the Nazis look so absurd that no one could ever take them seriously again.
  • Ear Worm: Springtime for Hitler.
  • Hilarious in Hindsight: John Barrowman's appearance in the 2005 movie makes more than a passing resemblance to a certain albino Prussian.
  • Ho Yay:
    • If there were any more sexual subtext between Bialystock and Bloom, they might as well be making out on-screen.
      • In the original movie, they do actually kiss, albeit on the cheek.
  • It Was His Sled: Pretty much everyone knows how this one turns out; hell, we even named a trope after it.
  • Memetic Mutation: "That's our Hitler!" to the point where it was used on an episode of House.
    • From the original: "Will the dancing Hitlers please wait in the wings? We are only seeing singing Hitlers!"
    • "That's it baby! When you got it, FLAUNT IT! FLAUNT IT!"
    • "I'm in pain! I'm in pain and I'm wet and I'M STILL HYSTERICAL!"
    • "Don't be stupid, be a smarty, come and join the Nazi party!"
      • Especially because in both movies and the show (including touring productions), the line is always a recording of Mel Brooks' voice.
    • "You are the audience member! I am the author! I outrank you!"
  • Retroactive Recognition: In the original film, "Eva Braun" is played by Renee Taylor, who's Fran Fine's mother in The Nanny.
  • So Bad It's Good: Springtime For Hitler's opening musical number. Passes through into So Bad It's Sidesplitting.
  • Stop Helping Me!: Max to Leo at the trial (whose "defense" of Max begins with a list of all of Max's faults) in the both movies; Max then says again to the off-key chorus of old ladies at the trial in the musical remake.
  • True Art Is Incomprehensible: The "song" LSD "performs" during his Hitler-audition.
  • The Woobie: Leo Bloom is a meek accountant who is nearly driven to a nervous breakdown each time his new partner tries to rope him into his scheme. While Gene Wilder makes him sympathetic, it's only until the Broadway play when it is explicitly stated that he has low self-esteem and feels that he never amounted to anything, and only makes it more heartwarming when he loosens up later on. "I Want To Be A Producer" ends with a truly awesome and heartwarming note!

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