Woody Blues
Film: Fading
Gigolo
Cast: John
Turturro, Woody Allen, Vanessa Paradis
Directed by: John
Turturro
Duration: 1 hr 30 mins
Duration: 1 hr 30 mins
Rating: * * 1 / 2
Based on a premise that might
seem a little outlandish, writer/actor/director John Turturro manages to craft a
film that is somewhat in the Woody Allen mould. And since Allen himself plays
one of the central characters in film, it can be assumed that the master writer
provided some inputs to the script and even the way it is shot, Turturro
perhaps wanted to pay a tribute to Allen.
There are bits and pieces that you like and some of it is pedestrian. Turturro plays Fioravante a florist
and Allen has Murray (Woody Allen) runs a bookstore. They don’t exactly have a hefty
bank balance and the plot takes a turn when Murray’s dermatologist (Sharon
Stone) confides him about having a ménage a trios with her friend (Sofia
Vergara). So now who will be the third person with the ladies ? Mr. Fioravante
of course and he even gets a tip for it although the thought of a woman like Sharon Stone paying
John Turturro will give a lot of self confidence to lesser
mortals.
Murray becomes the pimp and
Fioravante the stud even though his services go beyond the obvious. For one, he
is a good listener and pays details to all those things that make a woman
happy. When a Jewish Rabbi’s widow (Vanessa Paradis) comes on the scene and
gets friendly with Fioravante, the neighborhood bloke who keeps a close eye on
everything gets interested.
The plot does get a little
preposterous at times but also gets back on track quickly. While Turturro may
not look like a stud he pulls it off with a charm. As for Woody Allen, you like
him because he is Woody Allen and not because he does anything sensational in
the film. On the whole, Fading Gigolo is watchable but not memorable.
Published in The Navhind Times on 18th May 2014
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