The Men's Club

This movie is a bizarre mess. Long before Frank Langella wanders into camera range in women's make-up with a cigar, the blathering causes you to lose interest. Bewildering. Mind-numbing. Avoid this movie like the plague unless you are planning a triple feature with Showgirls and Battlefield Earth.

Well, at least it's different. This was apparently one of those "art house" type of films, as I cannot imagine anyone thinking it would be a commercial success. I didn't find it terribly bad, but certainly not very good, either. Direction, acting, photography were all OK. The script was what it was, and I can't think of any way to do it differently. One note for the ladies: there do exist a lot of guys who are faithful to their wives. Who want to be, and are. These might not be the best-looking ones, though. You make your choices, and you take your chances. Interesting, the conception of what goes on in high-dollar whorehouses. Having never been to one (in any price range) I've always wondered.

This might be worth watching if you've nothing better to do (or watch)

This sleaze-o-rama would have been a good theatrical play. But not a movie. I believe the cast made of the finest actors took the roles because the screenplay played like a play in their heads. On screen, it plays like a rather dull porn film because the actors talk too much. There's a beautiful closeup of Roy Scheider in bed with a prostitute. Turn it into a gif and throw the rest away.

This movie usually gets ripped to shreds by a lot of people. Given the offensive nature of some of the material, it's understandable. But truthfully, I enjoyed watching this movie because I really enjoyed watching this intriguing cast work together.

I first rented this movie because I couldn't believe what a cool cast was involved: Roy Scheider, Harvey Keitel, Frank Langella, Richard Jordan, and Treat Williams to name a few. Stockard Channing and Jennifer Jason Leigh also have supporting roles here, but it's basically the guys' show.

The movie is broken down like this: It introduces the characters, it shows the group of actors talking about their personal lives in a therapy type sitting at one of the character's house. And it all culminates at "The House of Affections" (you can figure out what that is).

What can I say, despite the fact that these characters often talk and act like jerks, I still enjoyed watching the cast work and even found a lot of it funny.

Having seen it several times, I can say it could've been edited much more tightly to convey its somewhat diluded message. But still, I enjoyed it and I think it's worth a rent for that cast alone. Just don't throw tomatoes at me if you happen to be offended. Call it a "guilty pleasure".

(1986) The Men's Club DRAMA

Adapted from the novel by Leonard Michaels also credited for adapting his own screenplay. The title "The Men's Club" is reference to former baseball player, Cavanaugh (Roy Scheider) and the friends he hangs around with, who are middle age, some are either married or have relationships with other women, holding with them their misogynistic views. Besides Cavanaugh, it also includes. Phillip (David Dukes), Kramer (Richard Jordan), Harold Canterbury (Frank Langella), Paul (Craig Wasson), Terry (Treat Williams) and finally, Solly Berliner (Harvey Keitel), when one of the group's wives breaks up with one of them- tired of her husband's infidelity. Cavanaugh rents out a brothel to vent out their frustrations.

Movie is outdated, but perhaps made during the time when both misogyny and sexism was a problem, when women were not paid as much as men.