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One of my favorite movies of all time is The Birdcage (1996). My mother, sister, and I used to watch it annually and we have tried not to overwatch it so as not to get tired of it. That has not prevented us from referencing it all the time or nearly memorizing it. So, the question is: why did we love it so much? There are many answers. To begin with, I will explain the plot.
- Spoilers -
NOTE: all photos found on Google Images
Armand Goldman (Robin Williams) owns a nightclub drag show in South Beach, Florida, called The Birdcage. The movie opens with the drag queens singing "We Are Family" and dancing in colorful costumes. Armand lives in the apartment above with his long time lover (and star of the show) Albert (Nathan Lane). They also have a gay "maid" named Agador played by Hank Azaria. Together they have raised a son named Val, Armand's biological son, who returns home for a break from college to tell them he is getting married. They are shocked because he is only 20 years old and they have not met the girl yet. Meanwhile, the young lady in question named Barbara is also breaking the news to her parents up in Ohio, where her father Kevin Keeley (Gene Hackman) is a Republican senator and her mother Louise (Dianne Wiest) plays something of a support role. Their home is much more tasteful, even colonial, in comparison to the Goldman residence, which is filled with naked depictions of Neptune and tropical wallpaper.
Barbara is unsure how to break it to her parents that Val's parents are a gay couple, and that one of them is a drag queen. Instead, she makes up a story about Armand being a cultural diplomat and says that his "wife" stays at home. She also changes their name to the less Jewish "Coleman." The Keeley's are taken aback, but decide to sleep on the matter and decide how they feel about it later. Soon after, Senator Keeley discovers that a senator he has been working with to found the Coaltion for Moral Order has just been discovered dead in the bed of an underage, black prostitute. His wife Louise points out that Barbara's marriage might help separate the family from the crazy media frenzy and the family packs up to sneak off to Florida to meet Val and his parents.
Val explains the situation to his father Armand, essentially saying that they must tone down the gayness. While Val does not feel ashamed of his upbringing, he worries that Barbara's parents will not take it well. At first Armand is very angry, but after thinking it over he decides to go along with Val's plan. The only problem is that Albert is something of a drama queen with trust issues, as well as so efeminite there is no way of hiding his homosexuality for an evening. At first Val and Armand try to send Albert away, but he finds them out and a lot of time is spent getting him to calm down and accept the whole thing. Armand decides to pay Val's birth mother a visit in order to ask her about posing as his wife, which at first seems like a good idea, but Albert gets jealous. This results in Armand chasing after Albert again and presenting him with a palimony agreement to legally bind them as a couple, which Albert accepts. They return to the house, planning to call Val's mother to have her not come after all. Unfortunately, Albert is unable to pass as a straight uncle and when Val and Armand's reactions to his facade are negative, he once again flies into a fit. Val ensures that his mother is coming and they finish readying the house for the senator's arrival. Little do any of the characters know that the Keeley family's chaffeaur is being bribed by a gossip magazine to reveal where they are headed.
Kevin and Louise Keeley arrive with Barbara in Florida. Despite being painfully nervous, Armand manages to pull off his role as Val's stern, straight father. Agador the houseman also passes well enough as the butler in a suit. Even Albert helps the night along by appearing in convincing enough drag and acting as Val's mother, while his birth mother is stuck in terrible traffic. There are endless problems, yet everything seems to be going well enough, mostly thanks to Albert's bubbly hostess personality. Unfortunately, Val's birth mother arrives in the midst of all this and is let into the house by the Keeley's. This results in a confrontation and Val decides he can no longer hide the parents he is proud of. He pulls off Albert's wig and says, "This is my mother." In turn, Armand introduces Albert as his "wife," as they are now official partners. Then Armand introduces Catherine, "the lovely lady who had Val." On Val's side of things, his family is the happiest it has ever been.
On the other hand, Senator Keeley and Louise are disgusted by the whole thing, especially when they find out that the name is "Goldman" and not "Coleman." Having been jealous of "poor little Mrs. Coleman" all evening and feeling abandoned by her daughter as well, Louise bursts into tears. Kevin points out that he is in the middle of scandal while also standing inside the home of a gay couple. Barbara sadly leaves Val's side to go with her parents, but as they open the door they discover there are cameramen waiting for them, forcing them to stay inside. Not only has the gossip magazine followed them, but there are a dozen news vans parked on the street around the drag club. Under these odd circumstances, the families sit together wondering what to do.
Albert suddenly has the idea to sneak the Keeley's out through the drag show. Going downstairs, the senator and his family are dressed up in sparkly outfits and ridiculous wigs that are so unexpected that they walk right by all the cameras. Even the chauffeaur does not recognize them. The song "We Are Family" plays them out. At the very end of the film, we see Val and Barbara's marriage. On the one side are the Goldman's colorful friends. On the other are the Keeley's tastefully dressed acquaintenances. Everyone eyes each other curiously, and the film ends with all mothers crying happily over the half Christian, half Jewsih ceremony.
The Birdcage is, essentially, a movie about unconventional families which, in reality, includes all families. The senator and his wife think of themselves as the prime example of family values while the night club owner and his "wife" representat the unorthodox liberal weirdoes out to destroy civilized society. The expectation is that one set of parents would produce a well rounded child while the other would raise someone that would grow up corrupted and who would corrupt others. However, we see early on as the audience that that is not true, for both families have produced intelligent children who end up meeting while attending university together. They share in each other's faults and strengths, no matter who their parents are. The Keeley's daughter Barbara admits to her parents that she has been sleeping with her boyfriend Val for a year, and Val in turn tells his father that he has proposed to a young woman despite being only 20 years old. They stand up to their parents' objections, providing examples of why they are responsible adults despite their youth. Namely, Barbara attests that they have both been tested for STD's and Val reminds his father that he already has job offers for when he graduates. Throughout the film we see them mostly observing their parents' craziness. They are most active as characters when they are manipulating their families. Barbara gets her parents to believe that she is not marrying the son of two gay men and Val convinces his parents to put on a show for the Republican in-laws. Neither of these choices are good, but they say that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Val cannot quite come to terms with his fiance's parents' role in society the same way that Barbara cannot be out and proud about Val's parents. Without even planning ahead or talking about it over the phone, they both feel that the families cannot meet each other as they are in day to day life, instead creating some sort of filter. While we, the audience, know that this will blow up in the children's faces at some point, we cannot deny that this deception was necessary to open the Keeley parents' minds as well as help the Goldman's through some marital and parental insecurities. Even the couple's smallest actions parallel each other: they laugh at the same jokes, they share looks, they instinctively go along with each other's improvizational actions.
So, the children are essentially the same; they are mirrors of each other's personality. Why is that? I believe it means that a child's parents do not dictate exactly how the child will come out. Two people from very different backgrounds can develop similarly as people and fall in love. The other reason is that the children are not really the focus of the film at all.
There are aspects of each family that are more conventional or unconventional than one might expect. The families are very different and are not meant to mirror each other at all they way their children do. Rather, they both break expectation in one way or another, different from the other. For example, the Keeley's take the news that Barbara has had premarital sex oddly well considering that the audience might expect a Republican senator to disown a daughter for such conduct. At the same time, the Goldman's objection to Val's marriage is not because they hope he will be gay; they know full well that he is not, although it saddens them. Instead, they worry that he is not ready or might be tricked. Albert's calling Barbara a "dormitory slut" reflects their worry that Val is jumping into things too quickly. Another striking contrast is how the mothers take the news: Louise Keeley thinks mostly of the social and public aspects of Barbara's marriage while Albert Goldman falls into hysterics over the loss of his baby boy. From a distance, you might think that a housewife sort of mother like Louise would gush over a baby book, but instead she directs almost all of her wedding-related dialogue towards her husband. There is no dress talk and no excited planning; the senator's reputation is top priority. The Keeley's, the couple that should be the most family-oriented, spends almost all of the movie worrying about their own well-being, even guilt-tripping Barbara into leaving her fiance at the end. Meanwhile, the Goldman's are the opposite, putting aside pride in order to help their son Val gain the blessing of his future in-laws. What we are supposed to take away from all this is that just because two sets of parents are wildly different does not mean that their children will also be. The next generation will find its own way in regards to sex, career, and other life choices.
One thing to note is that the message of The Birdcage is not that you should do whatever you want despite what your family says. Towards the end, there is a moment when Barbara gives in to her parents' wishes and plans to leave the Goldman house with them. The only reason she does not is that reporters show up at the door. This shows that Barbara cares more deeply for her family than she does for Val. Her parting words also reflect her respect for family: "I would have really liked to be part of your family." Her relationship with Val came from love, not rebellion. And Val, in turn, does not show any anger over her decision. Instead, he seems to accept it, and soon after takes her back without any hesitation; it does not even get a scene in the film. Their relationship, despite being the thing that brings these two families together, does not receive a lot of focus because family and long term relationships are the important thing. This is also why we do not see any of Val and Barbara's relationship in the early stages. The audience learns over the course of the film to trust that, as two well raised individuals, they know what is right for them and what they want in a life partner just as their parents did before them. The movie ends with the song "We Are Family" just as it began with it, emphasizing that the two families are capable of overcoming their differences for the sake of creating a new family in their children.
Now that I have covered the message of the movie, I will delve into parts of the story I never noticed much when I was younger: Armand's difficult relationship with Albert, and Armand's cheating. While the message of the film is about family above all else, and perhaps forgiveness too, that does not mean that the relationships are always healthy. In fact, the two couples we spend the most time with are quite disfunctional in a down to earth sort of way. I will briefly explain this through the Keeley couple. Kevin and Louise are constantly bickering about something, yet there is a certain undeniable partnership behind it all. There is no part in the film that makes you wonder why they are together or if they should divorce because, at the end of the day, their temperaments are similar. The scenes that involve them sitting at the table watching television while their maid/cook is in the other room show a certain comfort in silence that comes from years of partnership. These silences do not last very long because this is a comedy movie, but they exist nonetheless. We also see that they are quick to come together after fighting, putting arguments aside for more relevent times when a crisis is at hand.
Now, Kevin and Louise Keeley have an interesting dynamic to watch, but it is not quite so complicated as that of Armand and Albert, which receives more attention. To start off with, I believe that Armand and Albert have been together for over 20 years. I think this due to my interpretation of the conversation Armand has with Katherine Archer, the biological mother of Val. She mentions how she cannot believe that it has been twenty years since she last saw Armand, and it seems like they have had little to no contact in all that time, yet she knows about Albert. While it is possible that Armand met Albert in the months following the inpregnation, I always understood the conversation to mean that Armand slept with Katherine out of curiosity despite being in a relationship. She showed up in his hotel room and he admits that he wanted to know what straight men are always raving about. Nothing more is ever revealed about Armand and Albert's relationship, only that Katherine knew—or knew of—Albert twenty years ago. I speculate that part of the reason Albert decided to stay with Armand after discovering his infidelity with a woman is that his maternal instincts wanted to help him raise Val.
So, following this interpretation, Armand has cheated on Albert at least once. This brings me to the point I would like to make about the relationships of the Keeley's and the Goldman's: they are full of faults. And the Goldman couple is especially so. Armand is a snob, a cheater, and a control freak while Albert is a diva who requires constant attention, affirmation, and praise. Before I get into Albert's faults, which are more obvious, I will delve into another two scenes that I think speak to Armand's primary fault: adultery. The first is early in the movie when Albert is first introduced and is having a meltdown about how he feels old, short, fat, and unattractive. Armand has to patiently deal with his ravings and figure out how to bring Albert out of this slump so he can perform. It turns out that this whole outburst was caused by and is meant to point out Albert's discovery of a bottle of white wine in the fridge. He points out that he and Armand only drink red wine, and insinuates that Armand is cheating. You have to understand that this is all meant to lead the audience on until the big reveal that Armand is going to have a secret talk with his son Val that night, who does not drink red wine, but there is a certain moment that has always caught my attention. When Albert says he "senses" that Armand is cheating, Armand looks genuinely startled. This could just be surprise that Albert would think that. However, I lean towards thinking that Armand really might be hiding something besides his evening with Val. This brings me to a scene later in the film that I think shows the audience a brief glimpse of Armand's lover (or one of the lovers he has had).
After he finds out about the remodeling of the apartment to suit the Keeley's tastes and Val's plan to have him go away for a few days, Albert walks off down the street in a huff. Armand chases after him, telling him he can stay and that he has the palimony agreement ready for them. Albert does not believe him, yet he reaches out to Armand rather than run away. He asks Armand to feel his pulse, to which Armand dramatically states that it feels very faint. Albert falls into Armand's arms in a dramatic half-faint, and Armand pulls him into a cafe. He calls "Waiter, water, right away!" and they sit. The attractive young waiter grabs a pitcher of ice water and brings it to them. "Thank you, Rodrigo. The usual," Armand requests, dipping a napkin into the water to cool Albert's face, to which the waiter responds, "Right away, Senior Goldman." There are then a few lines between the Goldman's about how the Keeley's are assholes, Val adores Albert, perhaps Albert can get by as an uncle at dinner, et cetera, before the waiter Rodrigo returns. As he puts the plates down, Armand watches him with a tense expression. Then Rodrigo turns to leave, giving a Armand a lingering look. When he is gone, Armand relaxes and the movie continues as the couple try to turn Albert into a straight-seeming uncle.
This scene says a lot about both Albert and Armand. It is one of many scenes involving Albert's low self esteem, his dependence on Armand's reassuring words, and his inability to look outside himself about anything besides Val. (This not to say that Albert is unkind; there is a great part of the film where he goes shopping for dinner for Val and we see him interacting with people in the area. However, it is the sort of casual sweetness that I would expect from a little granny who could also have a high maintenance flair.) Almost every scene with Albert turns into a meltdown that must be fixed by a family member or an employee, the worst of which require Armand. In fact, these tantrums are the worst when Armand is there because Albert knows his mustached partner will labor to fix things.
Everything about Albert is out there in the open, which is why I am not going to explore his faults any further. Armand, on the other hand, has secrets that even the audience does not really see. There is a lot of evidence pointing to his focus on appearances despite being very proud to be a fifty year old, out and proud gay man and owner of a drag club. He puts on a smile for guests when he knows the kitchen staff are inadequate and sometimes drop food on the floor. He wears foundation to improve his complexion despite not being a performer on stage. Changing anything about his home pains him. Even though Albert seems like the partner more concerned about looks, Armand is just as frequently seen in flamboyant shirts or matching beachside shirt and pant sets. He is very good at acting like he knows about something, such as sports or Christianity, even when he knows nothing at all. So, is it really such a surprise that Armand would be able to hide an affair, or a string of affairs, without too much effort? With a suspicious partner like Albert, who has reason to believe Armand could cheat again (recall his possibly cheating with Catherine), he must be very careful. Whether he and Rodrigo are currently involved I cannot say, but I believe that at some point they have been together. There seems to be no other reason to justify that odd, lingering shot. In a movie as active, fast-paced, and intentionally shot as The Birdcage, why would they leave the camera on a random waiter for so long? For years I assumed that Armand knew the waiter's name was Rodrigo because the Goldmans frequented the cafe, but now I wonder if that is not the only reason for the familiarity, nor for the film's mention of it.
Does this mean that I think Armand does not love Albert? Absolutely not. I wholeheartedly believe that Armand wants Albert in his life and is not lying to him when he encourages him, props him up, or invites him to sign a palimony agreement. He has not spent twenty years with Albert just to keep a great drag queen for the star of his show. I would actually bet that it was his idea to make Albert the star, leading to his eventual success and local fame. Albert's drag persona is even named Starina, which Armand reminds Albert of when tantrums flare up. And in the end, Albert is probably fine with the way everything is. Armand is the director of their lives, the only person Albert really listens to (when he is calm), and Albert is the star on the stage of Armand's life. Albert draws his strength from Armand, and Armand gets his amusement from Albert. It is not the healthiest relationship, and these facts are not always obvious, but it is their relationship alone. I think that is why their "marriage" scene is so important. After so many years together that have taken so much energy and work, it is appropriate that the biggest moment of their lives as a couple should be quiet, calm, and accepting in a way neither of them are in any other part of life, even towards each other.
What does all this say about the film? For the most part, I do not think it changes anything, but it does flesh out the characters, even if only through speculation. It makes Albert's ridiculous behavior make more sense if he has frequently felt betrayed or felt unloved by Armand, and therefore constantly pulls stunts that require Armand's full and undivided attention. We know very little about Albert other than the fact he lives a lovely life as the star of a drag show with friends all through South Beach and a successful partner at home. His love for Val and his desire to have Armand's attention seem to be what drive him. Armand's proposal to Albert is especially sweet because, even if he is a cheater, he admits in a roundabout way that he wants to live his life with Albert so they can be buried together when they die. No matter how difficult Albert is or how unfaithful Armand can be, they have accepted the other as their beloved ball and chain. They want to be together for Val's wedding. They want to grow old together. They are devoted and in it for the long haul. And I think that their relationship is really the glue of the movie. As Val points out early on, he is the only member of his fraternity who does not come from a broken home, and the strange circumstances of his marriage are not going to be what breaks the Goldman's. Similarly, the Keeley's are quick to reunite after a heated argument over jealousy, because they too are in it for life.
The film ends with a shot of the happy couple, neither of whom was ruined by their upbringing.
