The Full Monty

Rating:
Summary: Overlooked British Comedy Is A Real Gem
Review: Last year's cinematic underdog was the real deserving film at the Academy Awards. This comedy about a group of unemployed steel workers who decide to stage a strip show to raise money succeeds because it never lets the comedy mask the real desperation of these peoples' lives. Ostensibly the film is a breeze, the six actors who play the would-be strippers display perfect comedic timing. Robert Carlyle convinces as a scrappy down-on-his-luck ordinary Joe who can't realize he's his own worst enemy. Tom Wilkinson, who plays a laid-off foreman, starts off as a lower-middle class goon but - and to the film's credit - develops into a fully-fledged and sympathetic character. And Mark Addy, as the "fatty" who's thoroughly embarrassed by this scheme mixes toughness and vulnerability well. Far better and cannier than the big-bloated boat epic which swept the awards, "The Full Monty" is a comedy born of resilience in the face of despair. The film never sinks into pathos and clips along like the great old Ealing comedies. It was the best English-language film of 1997. END

Rating:
Summary: I Live in the house where it was filmed!!!!!!!!!!
Review: hey guys! i'm actually from Britain and firstly I'd like to say thanx to every1 who saw the film bought it or loved it! it's nice 2 know that the work of the british film making industry is not going unnoticed overseas!
i loved this film and moved house around a year ago! it wasn't until a neighbour had informed us that our film was actually used in the film and was included in the final cut!
the parts involving my home are quite long ones so watch put for them! here goes:
1, when they're practising in the lounge and are all stood there in their boxers feeling a bit shameful! 2 guys then come in and attempt to reposess his tv! they pick it up and turn round to find the rest of the lads stood there with no clothes on and i believe their words are 'put down and piss off'!
2, the second place where my film is featured is when robert carlyle and the fat guy are stood outside playing with the knomes in their ex-bosses garden! this was again my front garden which i have to admit is now a knome-free zone!
3, the third place where my house is featured is when they are in a bedroom and one of them is laid on a sunbed and i think carlyle enters with a pack of red leather thongs for them each to wear!
i know this isn't really a review so here's a quick synopsis!
the steel industry becomes non existant and all workers are made redundant. in order for carlyle to maintain contact with his son he has to provide for him which involves getting money! however not being work fans he entails his friends and they become strippers in order to make a few bob! the film follows the planning the set backs and they're eventual success! a gr8 film, great plot, great characters, great storyline and no matter how many times you see it you'll always notice something new and it'll never fail to have you in tears! enjoy USA!

Rating:
Summary: Still one of the funniest films I've ever seen.....
Review: Gaz (Robert Carlyle) and Dave (Mark Addy) are a pair of unemployed Yorkshire steelworkers with problems. Gaz is about to lose custody of his son, Nathan, for non-support and Dave believes he's about to lose his wife after he sees her at a local club ogling the Chippendale's.

Schemer Gaz comes up with a plan to get back their money and their self-esteem. They can be strippers, too. It doesn't matter if neither is that attractive or can dance, they can learn. Of course, Gaz has to up the ante by declaring the act will be 'the full monty.' (Nude)

How these two recruit a teacher and a team of fellow dancers is a laugh-a-minute ride. How they relate to each other and grow, brings a brief tear to your eye. Dialog, acting and setting are fascinating. The soundtrack is also great disco fun.

Rating:
Summary: You can leave your hat on....
Review: Just about the time you think no one is capable of making a fresh and original comedy anymore, along comes something like The Full Monty, to surprise and delight you with wit and subtlety and insight.

The story of unemployed steel workers in Sheffield, England who decide to put on a male striptease show for one night to make some money is a simple premise that is beautifully realized because of the time the film takes to build our understanding of these men and their different plights and motivations. We come to know and care for them as they come to care for each other. The comedy grows from the characters and their personalities and their different reactions and situations. There is sympathy and sensitivity to their desperation: Gaz (Robert Carlyle), the ex-con hustler, desperate to keep a connection with his son; Gerald (Tom Wilkinson), the manager, desperate to hold onto his middle-class lifestyle; Dave (Mark Addy), chubby and insecure, desperate to hold onto his wife; and so on. Expertly played by these actors, new to American audiences in 1997, but now familiar, the laughter evoked is wry and humane and, in the end, joyful.

The film carefully builds the story with expert comedic setups (the auditions and rehearsals, etc.) of everyday men trying to do something they are seemingly unequipped and ill-prepared to accomplish, with touches of pathos as we see the troubles and strains in their personal lives. All this leads to the Big Night and a grand finale that is funny, heart-warming and beautifully filmed. A terrific little film with a lot on its mind, beneath the humor. Something to do with the dignity of work, of self-respect, and of the touching care one can find amidst people undergoing hard times. A gem.

Rating:
Summary: Five stars? This one gets a TEN!
Review: When you're out of work and owe back child support, have an aging mom to care for, credit card bills you don't want your wife to know you can't pay, and just feel less a man because you can't support your family, what do you do? You take it all off. Carlyle is disgusted when he finds his ex has gone to see some Chippendales, and even more disgusted when he finds out what the dancers make. He figures - hey, I can do THAT. What happens next, as he and his buddies begin their career as strippers, will leave you rolling on the floor. Take it off and give it up for the "FULL MONTY"!

Rating:
Summary: I Live in the house where it was filmed!!!!!!!!!!
Review: The Full Monty is hard to categorize. It is very funny, yet it is heart-wrenching in places, with great performances by all the actors. So let's not worry about what it is, because it will leave you laughing and smiling for days. Seeing this movie will also boost your optimism and make you charge ahead on those dreams you have had on the back burner. The funny scenes are absolutely hilarious. You will want to watch them over and over.

A motley group of unemployed British steel workers hatches a plan to be male strippers. Gaz, the main character, saw a group of Chippendales dancers pass through town on a one-time show with great success. Although his group lacks the looks and the moves, Gaz is not deterred. His primary motivation for this enterprise is to come up with child support money so he can spend time with his son.

The human interest story is what makes you root for these characters. There is strong language, a scene of attempted suicide, impotence, strong male sexuality, and a homosexual scene. The working-class accents are unbearably hard to decipher for the first fifteen minutes, but you get used to it.

The music is fantastic. This movie is so unique that I wish everyone would see it.

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding in every respect
Review: This is an exemplarary example of the kind of wry, sociologically observant humor that the English do so well (and that we do so poorly, if ever). A brilliant and touching portrait of Sheffield, out-of-work steelworkers, the English working class, gender relations, and much more. I've seen it perhaps a dozen times, and each time I not only have laughed at the same jokes, but have also noticed some nuance that I overlooked before.

Rating:
Summary: Lovable Lads; Lovable Movie; Sub-Par DVD
Review: Without re-hashing the plot, suffice to say that this is one of the more original and accomplished feel-good films you'll ever see. The story focuses on a bunch of lovable unemployed lads in Sheffield, England, following the collapse of the local steel industry (the film opens with one of those "Progress Is Today" film-reels we all watched in elementary school and sets a perfect tone for the rest of the film). Their rallying cry: an all-male strip tease. The set-up: minimal dancing talent and a low beefcake factor.

Instead of a bunch of caricatures, "TFM" gives us a fully realized ensemble, even with some touching scenes from the women who inhabit the fringes of the film. The dense accents give the flick a delightful authenticity , and the cast has some wonderful comic timing as well as the ability to pluck the heartstrings at the right moments.

"TFM" builds from a great premise to one of the best closing scenes in recent years -- you'll either be on your feet cheering or on the floor laughing, and maybe both.

The DVD offers good sound and picture quality, but there is a notable lack of extras. Still, better a good flick and no extras than a mediocre flick and a bunch of goodies.