Gigoló americano

Fresh off his eye-opening 1979 effort Hardcore, writer/director Paul Schrader struck again in 1980 with American Gigolo. This is the story of a high-end male prostitute (Gere) named Julian Kaye. Julian caters to the every need of several well-to-do older women whose husbands either are unable or reluctant to satisfy them. Julian is good at what he does, and he knows it. But that's his problem. His subtle arrogance is beginning to rub others in his line of work the wrong way. After he is framed for the murder of a kinky wife, Julian finds that none of his associates will help him clear his name. Adding to his misfortune is the fact that in order to clear his name, he will have to reveal much of what he does, as well as the identities of some of his powerful clients to the police. Either way he's screwed. He either goes to jail for the murder, or he never enjoys his profitable career again. The only person who seems interested in helping him is a state senator's wife (Hutton) who has fallen for him.

The film is really not bad. Maybe better than it deserves to be. Much of the credit goes to Richard Gere. Say what you want about the man's odd behavior off screen, but as an actor he is always top drawer. He plays Julian as a smug, intelligent, and sexually ambiguous young man. The performance keeps you guessing as much as the screenplay. Lauren Hutton is very beautiful and plays her part with classic sensuality. This woman never did that much after this, but she gives a fine performance here. Hector Elizondo is on hand as a sleazy detective, and look out for Bill Duke in an early role as a homosexual hustler at odds with Gere.

As for the direction, Schrader does what he can, but he is much better as a writer than a director. There is nothing overly creative about how much of this film is shot. George C. Scott tried to convince Schrader to stick to writing while on the set of Hardcore. American Gigolo is a much better film, so maybe Schrader took those comments to heart and made himself better. Still, the man is just not quite the director you'd hope. Some of the scenes are just a little too stale, with only the actors to breath life into them. One downfall might also be the conclusion. The film just kind of ends without a lot resolved, and a tough choice made by a major character just isn't given the proper motivation you'd think it would need. That said, American Gigolo is not a bad film at all. It was better than I expected, and it is a nice time capsule from 1980 Los Angeles. Give it a try. 7 of 10 stars.

The Hound.

As a gigolo Julian Kaye is the most stylish you can imagine. He lives in a tasteful apartment, minimalistic before minimalism became fashionable. His lady friends lavish him with expensive gifts. He wears only the best clothes, assembling outfits with good taste and knowledge of colours. He's also, smart, witty, charming and polyglot.

The perfect man? If you are rich, lonely and middle-aged. Julian prides himself of being able to pleasure women neglected by their men.

However, behind this glamorous facade, Julian is lonely and despised by his peers for his arrogance. When a rich, kinky wife gets killed in a kinky way, Julian becomes quickly suspect number 1.

In the meantime, he managed to start a "real" relationship with Michelle, the trophy wife of a politician. Will their love survive the storm?

Gere - allegedly chosen to replace John Travolta - plays the role of his life with deceptive nonchalance. He made it so simple, the public believed he was Julian and the critics always underestimated him as another pretty face.

It's a shame, because Gere is a talented actor who never received the praise he deserved. This movie is a modern, unmissable classic, ushering the materialistic Eighties with style, sophistication and an unforgettable soundtrack inclusive of Blondie and Moroder smash hit "Call me".

It's hard to precisely depict the impact of the smoky undertow of 1980s LA mores on the emotional and cultural landscape of the city, but Richard Gere's subversive topsy-turvy solo show comes close. Weird, well-shot and intriguing. The queasy feeling it leaves is hard to remove even days later. A/A-

It's important that Paul Schrader put 'American' in his title. This isn't just something to make it a title that is easily recognizable or to know what country it's from. It's about an American state of being, what it is to be a gigolo who likes swanky suits and fast cars and, well, the women he gets what he has to work for. But what happens when this man's reputation is called into question, or what kind of reputation a gigolo has? Politics also comes into it, not too oddly enough, as Julian (Richard Gere) catches the eye of a woman who is married to a Senator. That the movie is technically a murder mystery, sort of, as Julian is accused of killing a woman who he had seen previously as a 'fetish' customer, is almost besides the point. It is good for the plot, but what Julian has to focus on, the big question for him, is what is he doing with himself? How do other people look at him?

He makes himself a sex symbol, of sorts, as he works out religiously and always gets the best clothes (like a peacock perhaps). Schrader puts a lot of focus on the relationship Julian has with Michelle, who genuinely cares about him and is probably the only person he knows who is straight with him (certainly not the pimp played by Bill Duke, or his mentor who has her own gaggle of men and women to 'send out'). Of course sexuality plays into it, but I liked the fact that Schrader didn't focus squarely on it. He's interested in some of the mechanics of it (there's a scene where Julian/Michele do it, but it's shot much in the way of Godard's A Married Woman, lots of single shots of body parts, some flesh, but selective eroticism), and then, mostly, the consequences.

But, again, the look of the film should be an indicator. This is Los Angeles of 1979/1980, but it portends the future decade not just in the city but in the kind of middle-upper (or just upper) class lifestyle of expensive restaurants, good drinks, good clothes, and sometimes good women (or just lonely older women). Schrader even has a way of looking ahead to the future with Giorgio Moroder's score, which takes Blondie's "Call Me" and turns it into a synth score full of dread and mystery and drama. On top of how the look, its stylish exteriors and careful lighting (the Bruckheimer look before Tony Scott took it over with smoke machines), and the depth of the script, Gere is also fantastic here. He was on a roll right after Days of Heaven, and here he lights up the screen with charisma, pathos, intensity, and a sense of where to take the scenes where they need to be.

He, much like the environment around him, makes up what is the backdrop for a tale of morality in high society, hypocrisy where it may lay in the highs and lows, and what it means to fall in love. The only part it doesn't fully work is as a full-fledged thriller (again, the murder-mystery element is the weakest link), but everything else sparks the screen with interest and excitement.

This is one of Richard Gere's first lead roles in Hollywood, and he doesn't disappoint. The film gives a little insight, a preview even, of the seamier side of the 1980's. Beginning with the shots of Julian Kaye's (Gere) Mercedes convertible, glimpses of Rodeo Drives and Malibu (all with Blondie screaming "Call Me"!), the film manages to be more than just a whodunit. Perhaps the charm of the film for me is that we're never quite sure what to think of Kaye and his married lover (Lauren Hutton), but their quest for happiness with each other is believable. And though the detective plot-line of the movie is a little contrived, Detective Sunday and Leon provide good opposite poles of this Sodom and Gommarah-like portrayal of life in L.A. In fact, Julian's verbal sparring with Detective Sunday provide a light contrast with the realistic portrayal of a gigolo on the run.