SIX MEN. WITH NOTHING TO LOSE. WHO DARE TO GO…
Robert Carlyle had two huge hits coming out in 1996 and 1997, films that really launched his international career. Trainspotting was celebrated right from the start, and so was The Full Monty… but everything was not peaceful behind the scenes. When Fox Searchlight saw the first cut of the latter film they were not happy at all and wanted it released straight to video. Carlyle thought the movie was dreadful and has said that producer Uberto Pasolini begged the studio for a second chance, hiring a new editor to try to save it. Director Peter Cattaneo has denied this.
In any case, the film was eventually released and became a huge success, ending up a Best Picture nominee at the Oscars. Carlyle couldn’t believe his eyes.
Forming a male striptease group
The movie begins with an actual promotion film from 1972, City on the Move, that was originally meant to present Sheffield, an industrial hub, as an attractive place for tourists. Fast forward a few decades and reality has caught up with the city. The steel mills have shut down and unemployment is widespread. Things are becoming desperate for Gary Schofield (Carlyle), which is why he becomes open to the idea of forming a male striptease group. Shaped as he is by the macho ideals of his working-class background, he initially considers Chippendales something to be sneered at… but the financial appeal of the concept does not elude him. Together with his friend Dave Horsefall (Mark Addy), Gary begins to look for potential strippers.
Two similar films
You’d be forgiven if you had just seen Brassed Off in 1996 and felt a sense of déjà vu – that film was set in more or less the same place and also had a group of unemployed workers pouring their time and passion into something else that gives them meaning. Brassed Off had coal as a dying industry; in The Full Monty it’s steel. The reason why the latter took off and became such a worldwide phenomenon is likely its infectiously positive attitude. The men who form the striptease group are just regular blokes, often struggling with their self-image; the shame which prevents them from telling their wives and neighbors about what they’re doing is relatable and depicted with great warmth and humor.
Especially Addy and Wilkinson stand out among the cast, the former overweight and really embarrassed about joining the group, the latter a former foreman who’s now just another unemployed fellow among the men he once used to boss around.
Throughout the film, there are little opportunities for the filmmakers to say something about lots of issues.
There are moments here that are also touching and that’s how The Full Monty operates; throughout the film, there are little opportunities for the filmmakers to say something about lots of issues, from unemployment to homosexuality. Yet, it doesn’t feel all over the place. The film’s undeniable feel-good attitude is reinforced by the soundtrack, which is packed with the right pop and disco tunes for a number of great scenes, perhaps most memorably the one where the strippers-in-training stand in the unemployment line and discreetly start dancing to Donna Summer’s ”Hot Stuff”. There’s no doubt that this selection of golden oldies dominates the soundtrack to a much greater extent than Anne Dudley’s Oscar-winning score.
Who was first? The Full Monty became the subject of controversy after its premiere when two playwrights, Anthony McCarten and Stephen Sinclair, sued the producers for having infringed on their play ”Ladies Night”, which had a similar story. The lawsuit was settled out of court. McCarten later came to write several successful films, but I guess he and Simon Beaufoy can always fight over whose cinematic breakthrough The Full Monty is…
The Full Monty 1997-U.K.-U.S. 95 min. Color. Directed by Peter Cattaneo. Screenplay: Simon Beaufoy. Music: Anne Dudley. Cast: Robert Carlyle (Gary Schofield), Tom Wilkinson (Gerald Cooper), Mark Addy (Dave Horsefall), Lesley Sharp, Emily Woof, Steve Huison.
Trivia: Danny Boyle was reportedly considered as director. Later a Broadway musical and a play. Followed by a miniseries, The Full Monty (2023).
Oscar: Best Original Comedy Score. BAFTA: Best Film, Actor (Carlyle), Supporting Actor (Wilkinson). European Film Awards: Best Film.
Last word: “After a while, you become really irritated that you’re not recognised as the person who wrote The Full Monty. Everyone goes on about how lovely the characters are. That’s because they were written! ‘What a clever title.’ Yeah, that’s because I made up the title! It’s odd. You just have to recognise that people don’t understand about screenwriters. People don’t believe that films are written, somehow.” (Beaufoy, The Independent)
