The Client List

For the ultimate girls' night, rent the Lifetime movie The Client List starring one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood, Jennifer Love Hewitt. It was extremely successful during its initial airing and spawned a television spinoff (but with new characters and supporting cast members), and Jennifer was even nominated for a Golden Globe. It was very well-deserved - she did a lot more than just prance around in lingerie. Complete with a fantastic Texas accent, she shows frustration, desperation, disgust, self-loathing, fear, and sorrow. She doesn't usually take on roles like this, so it's really great to see her show her acting chops. Finally, she's more than just a pretty face.

But what a face! One wonderful thing about Jennifer Love Hewitt movies is you know she's always going to look beautiful. She'll be all dolled up in makeup and false eyelashes, show off her gorgeous, thick, wavy hair, and wear beautiful, figure-hugging clothes - unlike some beautiful women who continually grunge themselves up in their movies (Keira Knightley, I'm looking at you). So in The Client List, you'll see her parade in a series of low-cut summer dresses, and yes, also cute lingerie sets while she works at her "massage parlor".

Another refreshing aspect of this movie is the way it doesn't glamorize prostitution. Richard Gere is not one of Jennifer's clients. She services middle-aged, unattractive married men, and she hates every aspect of her job except the cash salary. There's nothing worse than Hollywood encouraging impressionable young girls to make the wrong choices, and this movie shows that Jennifer's last resort is a bad one. This is a cautionary tale, not a charming how-to guide of how to become Mrs. Wall Street. I would definitely recommend this movie to watch with a bunch of your girlfriends or sisters. It's fun, smart, and girly without being unrealistic.

This past summer I must say it was a pleasure to view this Lifetime original movie starring sweetheart and the cute Jennifer Love Hewitt. Over the years many movies have been made about prostitution and escorts this was a watch for the fact that it had Jennifer Love Hewitt in the role of a working girl which was a little uncommon since she takes mostly sweetheart and nice roles.

Anyway this film captures the current times of the recession well as many are struggling with these economic times. It's story was based on actual events it occurs in a small Texas town Jennifer Love Hewitt is Samantha Horton a young woman who's married with small children. And you guessed it tough times have come her husband is laid off and the mortgage payment and making ends meet each month becomes harder and harder. Eventually it's foreclosure time.

Then one day Samantha sees an ad advertising for work as a massage therapist, Samantha arrives at the establishment only to soon learn that these group of girls do a little more than massages. This is a private house of sex call it a massage parlor, in call service or a house of escorts it's pleasure for money. Samantha becomes a top notch girl earning plenty of money to save their house and she pays the bills and spends a lot on material things.

Yet as with pleasure their is a price to pay as soon guilt and shame is felt by Samantha it starts to break down her family life and her body takes a tired toll. Even though some of the finest and most well to do Texas men are clients eventually the playhouse of passion and erotic lust is busted and Samantha's days as a sex worker are over. Really this was a life wakeup call as Samantha had to take a fall from the lifestyle to rediscover family, love, and faith.

Really good TV movie that proves sex sells and that many live secret lifestyles and it shows many will go to desperate measures to make ends meet. Jennifer Love Hewitt is a delight to watch the scenes of her in sexy lingerie especially seeing her in a black bra was an eye candy treat and it was nice to see an appearance from Cybill Shepherd as Love Hewitt's mom. "The Client List" is one TV movie to watch.

Client List, The (2010)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

Incredibly silly drama from Lifetime about a Texas mother of three (Jennifer Love Hewitt) who finds herself about to lose her house after she's laid off and her husband is injured on the job and can't find work. She goes to work in a massage parlor but soon learns that the best way to get tips is through prostitution. When it comes to any made-for-TV flick you just know there are going to be certain amounts of melodrama but this film here must think its viewers are some of the dumbest people in the world. There are so many problems with this film's screenplay but the final twenty-minutes are rather insulting. Again, some might say I'm a man and this movie wasn't meant for me but I honestly don't see who could watch this ending and feel good about anything they've seen. I'm not going to ruin anything but this film is so full of sugar that the entire thing seems like a bad school play without a single thing going for it. I think one of the biggest problems with Hewitt who just isn't believable in the role. Not only does her Texas accent go in and out throughout the film but there wasn't a single second where I believed she was a mother of three. She didn't look like someone from a small Texas town and the screenplay doesn't do her any favors by having her shout she's too pretty to be poor. With dialogue like that it's impossible to feel sorry for her or her situation and it doesn't get any better when the screenplay tries to make her out to be some sort of victim in a world of bad men. Hewitt does come off well in the more sexual side of the role but the drama falls flat on its face and really kills anything the film is going for. Cybill Shepherd plays her mother and pretty much just sits around throwing out bad one-liners. I'm not sure if it was because this was made for the Lifetime Network but it seems that even in the most dramatic moments there's enough time to throw out penis jokes. I'm really not sure what could have saved this movie but a little bit of honesty probably would have gone a long way. The husband's reaction, the poor ending and how they try to turn the event into some new sensation just never works and in the end there's really not much this film has going for it. I'm also not quite sure what the filmmakers were trying to say in the reasons the character did what she did as there are thousands of people in the same situations and they're not inviting in hundreds of men.

Samantha Horton (Jennifer Love Hewitt) and Rex (Teddy Sears) are struggling facing foreclosure. Former beauty queen Samantha uses everything in her arsenal to keep afloat. Rex is a former star running back who can't even keep his construction job with his bum knee. Then she gets a job at a massage parlor in the next town, but she soon finds out that she could earn more if she does more.

It's a Lifetime movie of the week. It's not that I have any moral objection to the characters or the story. I just find it very boring. I guess some may find the subject matter titillating or controversial. It's not much of either. It just seems that the struggle for Samantha is mostly one of image. Maybe a short scene in the beginning showing the couple at the top of the world would be very helpful.

I must say that I found this movie highly amusing and entertaining. Americans are bound to criticise it but the concept of the story strikes at the heart of family life and when the chips are down and you are broke, a woman will do anything to feed her children and keep the family home. That is what Samantha does in the story line and full credit to her. the film is good in my opinion because it treats the subject in a light hearted way (a bit like Stepford Wives if you can imagine) and is an eye opener for us all, there is no bad language and actually no sex either, given the nature of the film. It is not a compelling film and of course it is a wee bit predictable but it should be seen and enjoyed.