Just Can't Get Enough

I listened to the commentary and was surprised to learn that most of this story is taken from court records and FBI transcripts. Dialogue and all. This is a fairly entertaining drama about the owner and creator of Chippendales empire and the lengths he went to protect himself from what he felt were threats to his empire. If anything, you'll be amused by the stupidity of some of these based on real life character's actions. If you like your men cheesy and buff, your humor dark, and your music 80s, you'll like this film.

This one purports to examine the facts surrounding the sex and criminal scandals during the course of the successful rise of the Chippendale's male strip club and touring shows. If it gets the facts right, it certainly doesn't offer much more than that. It's way too conventional for a low-budget independent film and should have been more unbridled in it's depiction of the sleaze and corruption at the center of the operation (or "Sodom and Gomorrah" as one reviewer aptly puts it). Everything that was seductively addictive about the lifestyle depicted is presented with the clinical precision of a Lifetime movie of the week, complete with soap-operatic personal issues and misfiring attempts at humor. Sadly, it's not the lurid melodrama it wants to be or a startling new presentation of nostalgic debauchery. An antiseptic scandal sheet.

This sweaty, fun, rocking true-life story of the murder of the Chippendale Dancers founder gives us all the fleshy pizzaz that we never got in Mighty Mike (MM). Released straight to video in 2001, this dynamic indie production never got the exposure (pun intended) nor acclaim it deserved. This B-movie is brilliantly photographed, choreographed, edited with a cast of the most juicy males to ever strip before the cameras--and the major standout whose jaw-dropping sexiness will leave you breathless is the long-forgotten Jonathan Aube. I had never heard the name of this extraordinary Adonis. He has a sweet innocence and little boy charm that enhances the sizzle-quotient of his spectacular torso. Curiously, Aube never once drops his britches. We do see his magnificent chest but although his prancing cohorts live in their G-strings, Aube denies us the thrills of seeing him unclothed. Perhaps there was a stipulation in his contract that he would only go nude from the waist up. Still, what you see bared is memorable. I wonder if the producers of Magic Mike didn't borrow from this forgotten entertainment? In this movie, our adorable Chad becomes obsessively in love with the most colorless, sexless, dreary woman in the world. Naturally, she is horrified that he is a--stripper! At the end, just when the hunky Chad has agreed to strip as a replacement at his club (pant, pant!), his girlfriend appears again and says how proud she is that he's not one of those naked boys. Our hero is so shattered by her observation that he rushes to the toilet to barf. Then he dramatically puts his clothes on and announces that he is no longer a bad boy. He will now be a respectable businessman because he has an MBA! I wish that one day some bright, free-spirited film maker would remake this dazzling little gem, discard all the dialogue, throw in as much gratuitous nudity as possible and somehow induce our glorious Jonathan Aube to do a cameo as a mature, hunky strip boy--and watch the millions roll in! I'll be sitting there on the front row!

Not to be confused with the USA channel's "The Chippendale Murders" which obviously had more money to spend on production value. Given the fact that I worked ( believe me I'm not bragging) at Chippendales briefly back in 1983 -1984, I must say that although the story was close, it really missed the mark. It failed to capture the true meaning of what "IT" was all about. IT being CHIPPENDALES. The last true Soddom and Gomorrah.

The depiction of Somen "Steve" Banerjee (The Owner) and the way his character was written, failed to capture the inner demon lurking behind the soft and unassuming facade that he perpetrated so well. Although the acting was fair, the direction and writing did an injustice to the essence of what IT was ALL about. Maybe I should write the TRUE STORY.

It's a small budget that film makers take a long,long way! It's the amazing story of the Chippendale murders. The true story is brilliantly scripted and is in fact an entertaining black comedy. With outstanding performances from Shelley Malil, Peter Nevargic and JP Pitoc,you are transported to LA nightlife in the eighties and enthralled by the fact that all this really happened.

All in all you have here a really well written, well directed indie film that takes you on a trip through greed, sex, murder and dancing!

You also get to watch gorgeous men getting naked and strutting their stuff to an awesome soundtrack! Yeh!!!

It's a great watch!