The Full Monty

 

Starring:  Robert Carlyle, Mark Addy, Steve Huison, Tom Wilkinson, Paul Barber & Hugo Speer

Year:  1997

Running Time: 95 minutes

It's hard to believe that The Full Monty, the unlikely hit British comedy about a group of unemployed steel workers turned male strippers, turns 25 next year.  It's also hard to believe, as Paul O’Callaghan from BFI points out, that a movie with "no major stars, a first-time director and a title that was essentially meaningless outside of Britain, became a major international hit and Oscar winner".   I recently rewatched the film and I think it is the idea of a bunch of average-looking underdogs overcoming their circumstances, self-doubt and body issues to achieve their goals and their moment in the spotlight that resonated with audiences when it was released and indeed two decades later.

The film is set in the town of Sheffield in Yorkshire, once a thriving steel town that is past its hey-day (like so many of the disillusioned men in the town).  Enter Gary (Gaz) and Dave, best friends who steal...steel for an extra buck, usually enlisting the help of Gaz's young son, Nathan.  Gaz laments his life with his other friends at the local job centre, describing these men as "obsolete, dinosaurs, yesterday's news".  

A Chippendales show in town gives Gaz the idea of stripping for money, especially since he is about to lose custody of his son because of his failure to pay child support. While debating the possibility of becoming strippers, he and Dave encounter Lomper, save him from a suicide attempt and three of them become friends.  The trio then enlist the help of their former straight-laced foreman, Gerald, who hasn't told his wife that he's been unemployed for six months, to help them with their act's choreography.  

After auditions, Horse (who as it turns out is not named because of an endowment) and Guy (who can't sing and can't dance but who does take the gang's collective breath away when he drops his pants) are added to the act.  The group turns to the classic Flashdance for inspiration but soon realise that they have a long way to go before they can take to the stage and take their kit off.  They also have to deal with body image issues and the reality of being objectified by an audience of women.  They persist and soon their act "Hot Metal" is advertising all over town, promising to go all the way - i.e. the "full monty".

While there are plenty of humorous and touching moments, it is not a laugh-out-loud film.  Their awkwardness is endearing and their individual journeys to self-acceptance are heartwarming.  The film could have done without the homophobic comments at the beginning but I guess it was a reflection of the toxic masculinity that pervaded the mining town.  The film does go on to explore the interrelationship of fragile masculinity, sexuality, male impotence and mental health.

The film also boasts a fun soundtrack filled with disco hits and toe-tapping tunes including We Are Family by Sister Sledge, You Sexy Thing by Hot Chocolate, Hot Stuff by Donna Summer and their big stripping number, You Can Leave Your Hat On by Tom Jones.  

It is a feel-good movie that provides some chuckles from start to finish.  To quote Roger Ebert: "It's bawdy, but also gentle and good-hearted, and I felt affection for the characters".