Starring Robert Carlyle, Mark Addy, Steve Huison, Tom Wilkinson, Lesley Sharp. Directed by Peter Cattaneo.
Sheffield, England used to be a thriving industrial city pumping out steel, but now the steel industry is laying off much of its workforce. A bunch of ex-steelworkers are still unemployed, and spend their days going down to the unemployment office to collect their pogey and hang out with their friends. Gaz (Carlyle) has a young son who is living with his ex-wife, who has left him for a guy whose making money. Gaz owes her 700 pounds, and she is threatening to take full custody of their son if he doesn't pay up. One afternoon, he and his friend Paul (Addy) notice a long line of women, and find out they are paying 10 pounds ($17 U.S., $23 Cdn.) to see the Chippendale dancers. So Gaz and Paul decide to form a stripping troupe to make some quick money. They get their ex-foreman Gerald (Wilkinson) to join them and teach them dance steps, as well as interview some other unemployed men to join their troupe. After much practice, bonding, a police bust and some second thoughts, the boys work towards their day in the sun.
The Full Monty is a comedy, but there are virtually no jokes. The humour is found in the characters' reactions to their everyday lives. The film is a surprisingly thoughtful look at what happens when society finds its working men useless and expendable, and what it does to their self-esteem. In this part of Sheffield, the women are often the only ones with a job in the family, and it is difficult for the men to find their place and become useful when no meaningful employment is anywhere on the horizon. Gerard doesn't even tell his wife he's lost his job, until the repo men come and take their furniture and home away. Paul's wife is concerned that Paul has given up, and she doesn't know how to help him regain his confidence. The plot of the film avoids any formula, and takes its often suprising turns with charm and feeling, with a very light touch on the sentiment. Even though the actors' accents are thickly British, they are generally understandable, and do not detract at all from the film. The Full Monty will send you home with a smile on your face.
