Start the Revolution Without Me

Director: Bud Yorkin Bud Yorkin

Overview

Two French peasants are mistaken for a pair of aristocratic nobles in this historical situation comedy. Happy to be taken for nobles, the pair soon struggles to escape the guillotine in the wake of the French Revolution's blood purge of the upper class and royalty.

Product Details

Release Date:	10/25/2011
UPC:	0883316397237
Original Release:	1970
Rating:	PG
Source:	Warner Archives
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[monaural]
Language:	English
Time:	1:31:00
Sales rank:	6,366

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Gene Wilder	Claude/Philippe
Donald Sutherland	Charles, Pierre
Hugh Griffith	Louis XVI
Billie Whitelaw	Marie Antoinette
Jack MacGowran	Jacques Cabriolet
Victor Spinetti	Duke d'Escargot
Orson Welles	Narrator
Helen Fraser	Mimi Montage
Ewa Aulin	Christina
Harry Fowler	Marcel
Rosalind Knight	Helen DeSisi
Murray Melvin	Blind Man
Ken Parry	Dr. Boileau
Jacques Maury	Lt. Sorel
Maxwell Shaw	Duke DeSisi
Graham Stark	Andre Coupe
Barry Lowe	Sergeant
George A. Cooper	Dr. Duval
Michael Rothwell	Paul Duval
Denise Coffey	Anne Duval

Technical Credits

Fred Freeman

Lawrence J. Cohen

Norman Lear	Executive Producer
Bud Yorkin	Producer,Director
Fred Freeman	Screenwriter
Lawrence J. Cohen	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

Start the Revolution Without Me has developed something of a cult following in the decades since its release, comprised largely of fans of stars Donald Sutherland and Gene Wilder and of the anarchic, anything-goes farcical style of mid-'70s Mel Brooks. Like those Brooks films, Revolution is very silly and very frenetic; also like (some of) those Brooks films, Revolution doesn't always know when to pull back. There are some things, such as the ball at the palace, that work tremendously well; there are, unfortunately, many others that simply fall flat. This becomes increasingly the case toward the end of the film, which simply peters out. Many will feel that Revolution has built up sufficient good will before this so that they won't mind, but others will become increasingly irritated with Revolution and feel that it promises much more than it delivers. Whatever one's reaction, most viewers will find the stars well worth watching and will be delightfully surprised by the wonderful comic performance of Hugh Griffith as Louis XVI. There's also some opulent visuals, which tend to work against the actual comedy but are quite attractive on their own terms. Bud Yorkin's direction is as uneven as the film itself; again, those who are "tuned in" won't mind the lapses.