American Gigolo: A Review

AMERICAN GIGOLO

There are all types of lust. There is lust of the flesh. Lust for power. Lust for money. Lust is not a crime but can be a motive for one. American Gigolo blends all these lusts and desires into a taut drama that has a sliver of heart within its dark core. 

Julian Kay (Richard Gere) is one of Los Angeles' most popular male escorts. He is the height of masculinity. He wears the best suits. He drives the best and most expensive cars. He has a very posh apartment. He is also very much alone.

"Julie" squires all sorts of older women willing to pay heavily for his services. He is so good at being an escort that while he has a madam in Anne (Nina Van Pallant), he pretty much freelances. He is so successful a rent boy that he hits on Michelle Stratton (Lauren Hutton), whom he initially mistakes for a Frenchwoman who might be lonely. 

Julian does have some rules: no kink and no gay sex. He, somewhat reluctantly, agrees to fill in for another escort as a favor to his frenemy Leon (Bill Duke), who does go for both kink and gay sex. This client is Judy Rheiman (Patti Carr), whose fey husband (Tom Stewart) likes to watch. Julie tells Leon that he is displeased about having been put in that situation. Leon is pretty dismissive of Julian's complaints.

One person who is not dismissive of Julian is Michelle, who pursues Julian but whom Julian does not charge for his services. Eventually, Julian falls in love with Michelle. Unfortunately for him, she is married to the ambitious Democratic candidate for Senate, Charles Stratton (Brian Davies). More trouble comes Julian's way when he reads that Mrs. Rheiman has been murdered. Detective Sunday (Hector Elizondo) zeroes in on Julian as being the murderer.

Julian is being framed, but who could be behind both the murder and set-up? Why is he being made the fall guy? Julian begins to start searching out the truth and try to clear his name. However, his alibi won't admit to being with him, worried that the scandal will expose her extracurricular activities. Will Leon come to Julian's aid despite being contemptuous of Julian's haughty manner? Will Michelle risk her reputation to save the man that she now loves? Will Julian find himself losing it all?

Despite the salacious subject nature, American Gigolo is remarkably restrained when it comes to any portrayals of physical intimacy. In fact, there is very little sex in the film. A lot of American Gigolo is more by suggestion than exhibition. The closest to seeing anything tawdry is when Julian goes to the Rheiman home. Even here, there is very little flesh on screen and no actual intercourse. 

There is one explicit moment that shocked audiences at the time. This is one of the first times when an actor appeared in a complete stage of undress on camera. Even in this brief moment, the camera is not focused on Gere's revealing of himself. The entire sequence is handled with both taste and restraint. Still, it was a very daring moment and something that even now is extremely rare to see.

American Gigolo is really a neo-noir film, less about satisfying carnal pleasures and more about a man's well-built world crumbling. There is a mystery that catches an innocent man in its well-laid trap. There is the duped figure. There is the relentless detective who follows the clues to their logical but erroneous conclusion. One thing that is missing from American Gigolo is the femme fatale. Michelle is not a dangerous woman, at least not intentionally. Julian is in danger in part because of her. This danger, however, comes from her penetrating his heart. 

Paul Schrader, who both wrote and directed American Gigolo, drew great performances out of his cast. Richard Gere had made only a handful of films prior to this one with Looking for Mr. Goodbar and Days of Heaven being the most prominent ones. American Gigolo was his breakout role, and he gave an excellent performance in the film. Yes, Gere is very handsome, and the film does not shy away from admiring his physical beauty. However, we see the empty shell behind the Armani suits. "I can't be possessed", he tells Michelle. That is his mantra. He can give physical pleasure to women, but it is an empty pleasure. Julian is a master of sex, but not of love. We do see how he does begin to love, even if he still struggles with that.

Gere is quite strong in the film. He is cold and cool as this lover for hire. His emotional remoteness blends with his sordid profession well. His slow crumbling as the frame up job becomes more efficient and effective is at times sad to watch. Julian, at one point, tears apart his expensive vehicle looking for the planted evidence that he knows is there. His growing fear and paranoia, coupled with his growing awareness that he cannot save himself, makes for excellent watching.

As a side note, I wonder if others calling him "Julie" was a way to subconsciously diminish him. Here is this ultimate alpha male involved in a profession usually dominated by females. I found it curious that many called him "Julie", almost as if emasculating him to his face. 

I remarked that American Gigolo is a neo-noir, drawing on elements of film noir while making a more contemporary film. There is a scene where Michelle has followed Julian into a record store that I found reminiscent of a scene in Double Indemnity. I do not know if it was intentional or not, but here are these two figures, caught up in a crime, meeting in a public place. It is not exactly like in Double Indemnity in that Michelle has nothing to do with the crime, let alone instigate it. However, I think American Gigolo draws visually from Double Indemnity. 

With her cool looks and husky voice, I think Lauren Hutton is in the same sultry mold as another Lauren. Like Lauren Bacall, Hutton proved herself a capable and beautiful actress. She is the good heart in this cold film. American Gigolo is as much her story as Julian's. She has penetrated his heart, and she faces her own moral dilemma of saving him or saving her reputation. 

Elizondo brought some lightness to the somber proceedings as Detective Sunday. Initially appearing slovenly, we see how Julian's outward success has managed to rub off on even the hardest critics. Taking tips and advice on women from Julian at an informal questioning, we see Sunday later on well-dressed and groomed. It is a wry commentary on how aspirational Julian's life appears to outsiders. 

The film is very much a product of its time. The wardrobe and settings note the early 1980's. Of particular note is Giorgio Moroder's score, punctuated by Blondie's Call Me. The song captures the theme of American Gigolo: this lover available day or night. "He speaks the languages of love", Call Me's lyrics say, then proceeds to speak words soft and tender in Italian and French. In American Gigolo, Julian knows several languages and is learning Swedish for an upcoming client. The failure to nominate Call Me for Best Original Song is one of the Academy's greatest oversights. 

American Gigolo is a well-crafted, well-acted film. It is a sad film that reveals more than Richard Gere. It reveals that there is a difference between love and physical pleasure. It does end on something of a hopeful note even if justice was not initially served. In terms of the mystery both of the crime and of the heart, American Gigolo can be called anytime, anyplace, anywhere. 

DECISION: B+