Sunday - Movies

The Age

Thursday May 29, 2008

Scott Murray

American Gigolo (1980)

Showtime Greats, 10.30pm

Whereas Taxi Driver was greatly influenced by Robert Bresson's Diary of a Country Priest (see Saturday), American Gigolo draws primarily from Bresson's Pickpocket. This time, scriptwriter Paul Schrader (rather than Martin Scorsese) directs. The result is a hypnotic, pulsating tale of a narcissistic Los Angeles gigolo (Richard Gere) who finds himself suspected of a crime he didn't commit. While trying to extricate himself from a deadly trap, he must question the extent to which an individual is responsible for any situation they find themselves in. And what role can love play when one's profession is selling sex? (In Pickpocket, which is coming soon to World Movies, the thief allows himself to be caught so as to free himself from his destructive addiction and thus start along the path to redemption.) Inspired by Bresson but ultimately a deeply personal work, American Gigolo is an astonishingly assured film (easily Schrader's best), elegantly photographed by the underrated John Bailey and with a career-defining performance from Gere.

Anthony Zimmer (2005)

SBS, 9.35pm

See "Movie of the week", page 33. -- SCOTT MURRAY

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