Hombres de verdad

This has become well known from cable television. It didn't do anything in the theaters, but it is very funny. I don't know why this was not a hit. A wonderful spoof. I'm not a John Ritter fan, but he and Jim Belushi are really good together. Next time it pops up on cable check it out.

The laughing gas, that is... I can only surmise that the writers who worked on this film, faced with a creativity crisis – you know, one of those dark moments of writer's block – must have solved the creativity problem by consuming a few deep hits of laughing gas, and this movie is what resulted. (Unlike Bill, they DID inhale.)

I've seen this movie several times over the years, and I somehow always find myself enjoying the comedy in it, though I find it (the comedy) really rather hard to define. It's not really a "Laugh-yer-butt-off" kind of slapstick humor, though there is a goodly amount of slapstick in it. It's not really a "Laugh-at-the-funny-lines" sort of humor, though again, both Ritter and Belushi do have some very funny lines in it.

I think it's one of those movies that you must approach much as you do, say, a Monty Python film: you need to be in "that frame of mind," you need to straight away drop some of your defenses and your preconceived notions of what constitutes "funny". Otherwise this movie will quickly leave you, thoroughly unamused, by the side of the road, as it continues along its merry, twisted path. By the time the clown scene comes, well, you will not find it funny at all. By then you would probably get more comedic value out of switching the TV channel to Bill O'Reilly or Neil Cavuto.

What makes Real Men work for me is the combination of the bizarre, almost Twilight Zone-like storyline, and the excellent chemistry between John Ritter and James Belushi. The story premise is SO implausibly dumb it just constantly makes me laugh as the movie unfolds. Combine that with the acting and antics of Ritter and Belushi, which are just spot-on smooth as silk, and the whole thing just makes for compelling watching. As mentioned, the two leads have good lines, but I think their body language and facial expressions say as much in this movie (perhaps more) than the spoken word.

So, drop some of your defensive shields, get in a suitably zany mood, and watch this movie. (REALLY watch it, looking at some of the physical humor, the quirks of facial expressions, listening for some of the double entendres, etc. Then you might love this movie, as I do.)

I really like this film. It has a simple charm to it that wins you over. I remember the night I watched it - pouring rain like crazy, feeling bummed, and then this came on tv. It picked me right up, out of my low spirits, and what would have been a boring evening at home turned into some real laughs. I haven't forgotten that, and I won't forget "real men". It's really a sweet, funny film.

This forgotten about film is a little guilty pleasure of mine. I have seen this movie many times in my life and have always enjoyed it. Seeing the rating on this website, perhaps I shouldn't apologize, because it seems others have enjoyed it as well.

It's a strange and kind of ridiculous movie that if you are able to throw logic out the window for laughs and a little bit of action you might enjoy. Jim Belushi plays super-CIA agent Nick Pirandello. He's like half James Bond and half MacGyver. He has been sent out to number one find the map to where the aliens are going to meet the humans to save the humanrace and number two find the right man for the job. That man is Bob Wilson played by John Ritter. He looks like the man who was originally set up to do the job. All the while making sure the map doesn't fall into the wrong hands. I know, I know it sounds quite silly and yes it is. But both Belushi and Ritter are very good in their roles and work quite well together. Another good thing is the film doesn't let up or give you two minutes to breathe which works best for a film like this one.

In a small role is James Le Gros who plays a local toughie Buddy McGruder who has stolen Bob's son's bike. A very interesting note to me as well is there are a couple scenes where Ritter is being faced with clowns that he may have to fight. 3 years later he starred in Stephen King's IT about a crazed clown named Pennywise.

Very funny from beginning to end! I watch this movie over and over and enjoy it more every time. It's great to see the friendship and bonding develop between Belushi and Ritter as the movie progresses. And just when you think they have finally bonded, Ritter will make a run for it. and Belushi will convince him to stay. Some of the best scenes are when Ritter finally realizes his purpose, and the skills he has learned, and puts them to work, and when he finally realizes his mission and takes it seriously.

This movie is not only funny but also filled with lots of action.

Watch for the scenes with Belushi's "dad" and when Ritter clobbers the milkman.