Personne n'est parfait(e)

‘Flawless' is an offbeat story about Walter Koontz (Robert De Niro) an ex-cop who suffers a stroke and loses partial ability to speak. In an effort to regain some of his speech capabilities it is recommended to him that he take singing lessons. So he decides to ask his neighbor Rusty (Philip Seymour Hoffman), who is a female impersonator, to give him singing lessons. This is an unlikely pairing because Walter is a belligerent homophobe.

This film was written and directed by Joel Schumacher. His story, though peculiar, makes some powerful points. This is a story about hatred, bigotry and reconciliation. Walter learns through his disability who his friends really are, and who they are not. It seems that the people he hates treat him a lot better than the people he thought he loved. Ultimately, he is able to look past his prejudices to find the human elements that make him and Rusty not so different after all.

This was an excellent character study of both main characters, giving a lot of insight into the motivations and lives of each. Unfortunately, the story meanders too often to irrelevant characters and scenes that don't really contribute much (like the Gay Republicans). Schumacher would have been better to concentrate on the relationship between Walter and Rusty rather than digressing so frequently into Rusty's relationships with his friends.

De Niro was outstanding in this film. Not only was he excellent in the emotional portrayal of a man having to deal with a sudden debilitating stroke, but he was very realistic in his portrayal of the physical disability itself. The combination of his struggles to do the simplest of tasks and the obvious look of anguish and frustration on his face was poignant and affecting.

Hoffman brought a lot of emotional energy to his part, and his imitation of a drag queen was passable, though somewhat forced and unnatural. Wilson Jermaine Heredia, who played Cha-Cha, the winner of the Flawless contest, was a much more convincing queen.

I rated this film a 7/10. This is a good film that helps us understand that the remedy for the fear wrought of our differences is understanding, not hatred. In that respect it makes an important contribution. If cross dressing and blatantly gay themes put you off, perhaps you should defy your inclinations and see it.

This film may prove to be a little overly long, but is easily saved by it's two stars, Robert de Niro and Philip Seymour Hoffman. Especially the latter is GREAT!

If this film is deemed any competition to "In & Out", it beats this film by MILES! Don't miss it! And the soundtrack, especially the tango is alluring and seductive.

FLAWLESS / (1999) **1/2 (out of four)

By Blake French:

Somewhere in "Flawless" there is a very good movie, but it is shuttered by the awkwardness of a jumbled plot. There are two separate stories here, and although they are interrelated, either one by itself would be enough for a whole movie. Robert De Niro and Philip Seymour Hoffman make a chemistry-rich pair, both entertaining and amusing, and their screen presence is deserving of a lot of attention-it is tragic that not one but two different stories get in the way of their electric charisma together.

The first storyline details a homophobic former New York City security officer named Walt Koontz (Robert De Niro) who, at the beginning of the movie, has a stroke while rushing to a nearby crime scene. He is burdened with partial paralysis on the right side of his body and speech problems, which can be overcome with the help of his neighbor, Rusty Zimmerman (Philip Seymour Hoffman), a flamboyantly gay drag queen who often practices his musically vocal abilities with fellow friends in drag. Walt's physical therapist recommends singing lessons from Rusty.

The other story involves a criminal named Mr. Z and his attempts to find the incompetent people who stole a large sum of cash belonging to him. As Walt'z recovery continues, and the relationship between him and Rusty becomes more stable, various characters must react to the danger of Mr. Z and his clan of criminals.

What makes this movie so amusing is the interesting personality clash between the characters of Robert De Niro and Philip Seymour Hoffman. I just wish De Niro's character was more active; for much of the production he is nothing but a metronome who is unable to speak or even move much. Some of the elements involving the gay drag queens are hilarious and contribute to the movie's effective mood, and Philip Seymour Hoffman is so deliciously clever as Rusty that I would nominate his performance for an Oscar almost immediately. The dialogue is witty and intelligent ("I need some butch faggots over here."), taking advantage of the situations applicable and giving the movie a surprising emotionally gentle side.

Not much else of "Flawless" is gentle, though. The overwhelming majority of the movie is gritty, rough material intended for adult audiences only. The vulgarism and profanity seemingly never stop and the coarse atmosphere is prevalent. The film is shot in a grainy, high-contrast style, with excellent cinematography and mood development. None of this shocks us, however, since the film's director, Joel Schumacher, was behind such perverse movies like "A Time To Kill," "8MM," and "Tigerland."

"Flawless" has a lot of decent material but it just does not fit together because of the plot distractions. Too much plot has never really been an issue for Joel Schumacher; in "A Time to Kill" and "8MM" he found focus with a central character, here he finds likable traits in two main characters, but allows the plot to control their inspirational qualities. If Schumacher were to reexamine this script with a different perspective, perhaps cutting the Mr. Z plot entirely, maybe it would work more effectively. As it currently stands, "Flawless" is a movie in which the actors work hard to overcome a plot heavy script and they do reign victorious in a few battles, but eventually lose the war.

Flawless is the best movie Schumacher has ever done, when i first heard the plot, and the the bad reviews this movie got, i thought it was going to be a bad movie... anyways i saw it just because I'm a big fan of Mr.DeNiro, and believe me folks, this is a really good movie... with flawless performances... Robert DeNiro as a cop who had a stroke and couldn't move half of his body... well done... and Philip Seymour Hoffman as a transvestite who gave DeNiro singing lessons so he could recover himself of the stroke... this was also a great performance... i mean he could get to Mr.DeNiro's acting level in this film... this boy has a big future... he has already co-stared movies with actors like of course Robert DeNiro, Al Pacino (Scent of a woman), Tom Cruise (Magnolia) etc... of course this is his best performance... and yet the academy did not even nominate them for the academy award nor the film nor DeNiro or Hoffman... anyways... this is a two hour worthy movie... with a good plot, good sense of humor and flawless performances... so don't get yourself lead by others reviews and see it... you'll enjoy it. my rating 9/10.

I will start by saying RIP Phillip Seymour Hoffman - his acting talents were magnificent and we truly lost a special person. Every one of his films is acted with passion and dedication and "Flawless" is no different. He is special in this and his portrayal of the fierce drag queen is tender and heartfelt whilst also being fierce and powerful. Robert De Niro is of course brilliant in his role and really did an incredible job playing a stroke survivor - that is no easy feat and he has put his all in to every movement and every word spoken. This film should be watched for the acting talent and energy of these two actors alone as well as the character study of two very interesting people who find themselves with unique challenges to face in life. The cinematography is not top notch (the film was made in '99 so it does have a rustic quality) but it's perfectly fine. The focus here is on the characters, colourful and frantically trying to find connections in a difficult world. They are flawed in some ways through sheer stubborness or quick tempers but they aren't all that different when it comes down to it - they are both flawed in similar ways and maybe that's why their friendship works. It doesn't feel forced - it grows naturally and their chemistry is on fire. I loved this film - it depicts the world of drag queens wonderfully and the difficulties members of the LGBT community faced in the 90's. For the time it was made I applaud it - it hasn't tried to sugar coat anything and it has thrust us in to a layered and colourful and magical environment.

Loved it loved it loved it .

It's on Netflix UK right now so watch it.