Dancing at the Blue Iguana

I was very happy to see the ending credits. There was nothing absolutely unforgettable in this flick. The locations: a gloomy nightclub in LA, where the dancers don't even give a show. But, as the director would say, the choice was not made to shoot their art (à la "Showgirls") but to tell their life. Next, the story: Inexistent. We saw the private and desperate life of those women but there is no dynamic, no drama. It is like a collection of small vignettes. The more interesting are the Hannah's one, because she plays a naive dumb character. The acting: the choice for uncharismatic actresses but good improvisers is really interesting for the director, not for the audience. In conclusion, the real "Dancing at the blue iguana" isn't directed by Radford but by Hannah. Her documentary is a fine work and succeeds where the movie always fails. The direction has a good tempo, the real strippers are touching. Thanks to the DVD!!!!

I had skipped this title on cable even though I knew it was about strippers. I then saw a newspaper article about Sheila Kelly's * dance classes, book and video called the S Factor. Being a former * I was intriqued because I am interested in teaching women what strippers know. So when I had the chance I watched Blue Iguana wanting to see if the actresses nailed the dancing part. While they "got" some of the moves, I saw no truly impressive dancing. Tilly's brash in your dancing face style was realistic, showing one need not have dancing ability to play the crowd. The rest of the women showed no variety in their moves. I do think they were trying to show how drunk Angel was on a nightly basis. Only in the scene where the club is not open and she practices her pole work do you see a sober Angel dancing like she can. Contrast with her performance where she slides off the stage onto her head. I loved the way no one reacted and she just rolled back up there. Angel's dumbness is totally realistic. The dressing room dialog was very realistic. What did not ring true is Jasmine's boyfriend not knowing she is a * and walking out when he saw her dance. Most men would have stayed.

It is my understanding that the most of this project was done via improvisation which would explain for its peaks and drops. I would imagine that filming a project based on improv is difficult but at times this cast of actors make it look scripted. At best, Jennifer Tilly shows one how its done, at worse, you wish Darryl Hannah had a script. Here you are presented a few days in the lives of your regular ordinary everyday working strippers/dance gals at a club that is..where else but the Los Angeles San Fernando Valley. You get it all, the drugs, the cat fights, the sex and the overall portrayal that its just a job, a job that is like any other with all the same problems. The five main characters do it well. Jennifer Tilly is the best, Sandra Oh runs a very close second. I was a tad disappointed in Shelia Kelley's character, but Shelia did great with what she had to work with, and I felt the same with little Charolotte Ayanna's character portrayal as well. But Darryl Hannah, who's character was pretty developed more than all the others was pretty sad to watch under this method of outlined improv. The owners of the club were good as well with what they were handed, I just wish I could have known more about them and what made them tick to be at this club. One of the best scenes that makes this kind of dramatic acting inprov filming/work come together is the end with the */writer character played by Sandra Oh and the overglorified porno star who danced for the evening played by Kristin Bauer. This film had a few small holes here and there to me, but I really enjoyed watching the actresses and actors work with this kind of project on this kind of level..and if you watch some scenes real close, you can see that a few of the actresses and actors were surprised at the lines coming out of other actresses mouths which is what I believe this project was all about. Only on that level, I grant this film of a peek into the lives of these women -- as an overall success and I hope that other film makers explore the genre. It's brings alot of realism in a fictional background. A must see for anyone studying acting, a rare kinda find for us the regular film viewer, and for those who want to turn in to their cable sets in the middle of the night and watch a bunch of girls strip and dance -- well, that's there too, but Michael Radford lets you know, that is not what is important.

First of all cudos to the people involved with this flick for trying something a bit different: it was almost entirely improvised, both by the actors/actresses and by the crew. So, that good idea aside, is it any good? Well, it's the complete opposite of Showgirls, so that's a great start! All exploitation aspects are kept to a minimum, of course to some degree such elements are inherent, unfortunately. Characters are incredibly well brought to life and explored, to the point where the stripping scenes become annoying and you just wanna get back to the protagonist's character arcs. Hey, I'm a red blooded male too, so if I'm saying this, well, that has to be testament to its power don't you think? I found it extremely refreshing how none of the sub plots are really finished off, you are NOT spoon fed. You are given enough information to fill in the blanks, and that's it. And you know what - that was nice, it was brave, and I appreciated it. A lot is conveyed subtly, with looks, or with how a person in the back ground is reacting. There's a couple of stripping scenes in which the came ra actually focusses almost exclusively on the girl's face. The first scene is very short, probably less than a minute. The chick's expression is amazing - like she's only hanging on to her sanity by a thread, so cold and broken, fantastically conveyed. The second intance is longer, and is genuinely heart rending. No words or additional explanation is required for either scene. Cinema at its best. Now for the faults. The characters are, superficially, cliches. You've got the stupid but nice *. The jaded and hard *. The new girl. The abusive rock star boyfriend etc. However, these things are easily overlooked as they are painted in such a realistic manner. As the aim here was realism I would NOT have introduced a character that was a contract killer! That said, the film almost makes up for this in *sploiler* the moment when he recieves a lap dance. Both * and killer just want to connect with another human being here, which they can't, and the scene is most poignant. Finally, the unremitting bleakness expererienced by all characters herein does not ring entirely true. I've been to strip clubs (admittedly in the UK so maybe it's a cultural thing) and the girls are usually bright eyed and chirpy, with plenty going on outside of their line of work. They were all making a bloody good wage too, which certainly seemed to put smiles on their faces! Again though, it was all done so well, with such heart and genuine depth, that I can't really complain. A much underrated movie.

SPOILERS THROUGHOUT: Dancing At The Blue Iguana is a beautiful melancholy gem of a film. It is a character study of several strippers and what their lives are like both at and outside of, the club. It stars Dary Hanna, Sandra Oh and Jennifer Tilly among others and they all give performances that are haunting, heartfelt and just fantastic. Not only was I very impressed with this movie, I thought it was excellent. Anyone expecting a variation on the movie "Striptease" maybe disappointed. This is a serious movie and while of coarse there are scenes where the girls strip, it's more about what happens in between that time when night falls and dawn breaks, and reality and the day to day struggles of life take over. It is slow moving, pensive and above all human. This movie has more humility in it's first 15 minutes then a movie like Striptease or Showgirls has through the whole thing. It's without a doubt, one of the best character studies I've ever seen. On occasion, when traveling through movie land, there are those occasional movies, (usually indie films though not always) , where you encounter movies that are less concerned with heavy handed theatrics and special effects, and much more interested in bringing you a dose of reality. I found Blue Iguana to be a wonderful haunting tale of life, love, loneliness, pain, and dreams. The whole cast was incredible and nothing, not one thing, ever feels forced. There are moments of surprising comedy such as an unforgettable moment between Hanna's "Angel" and a police officer. The movie is done in rather a fragmented way, there is a constant switching around from one story to the next but I found that appropriate to the movie. I liked, very much how all the girls played their roles, I did have a fondness for Angel, a sweet yet incredibly problematic girl, and Sandra Oh's Jasmine had the best scene in the movie, her "goodbye" dance to her new boyfriend who had not yet seen her dance, was incredibly powerful and flawless, as was the song selection. All performances were great. This is a must see for anyone who likes character studies and likes ones where the makers "keep it real." The only complaint that I have is the rather strange way it ended(and that it ended in two hours-it actually should have been longer) and the subplot involving the contract killer which I cannot decide if I liked or not especially since I still don't fully understand it in it's entirety but other then that, I have no negatives at all. This isn't for everyone, it's slow moving nature may turn some people off, but for those who do like these type of movies, I've no doubt you'll find it an exceptional film. My vote is 9 of 10.

Upon first impression, Dancing at the Blue Iguana might appear to be just another "T and A movie," like Showgirls. After all, isn't Dancing at the Blue Iguana about strippers and "pole dancers," and doesn't it contain copious amounts of female nudity, just like Showgirls? Yes, on both of these counts. However, merely to conclude from this that Dancing at the Blue Iguana is just another "skin flick" is mistaken, and misses the fact that there is something much deeper going on here. This is more a film about the troubles and unrealized hopes of its characters (who happen to work in a strip club), rather than about their bodies. In short, there is a sadness, poignancy, and desperation, which exists at the heart of Dancing at the Blue Iguana, which gives it a dramatic power not found (nor attempted) in a superficially similar film like Showgirls (which, arguably, just is a "T and A movie"). This film was directed by Michael Radford, who is most famous for his work on Il Postino. The script and the characters in the film grew out of an improvisational workshop which Radford conducted with his lead actors. They each had to research their characters and come up with a storyline for them. Although the acting done in the film is improvised, it sounds polished and believable, and gives the film a raw, edgy feel. The actors for the most part create interesting and sympathetic characters. I'll mention two characters that I liked most. First, Darryl Hannah plays "Angel," a character who is naive and innocent at heart, even though she's a *. There is a scene in the film in which she gets herself arrested by a cop, and how she gets arrested I will not disclose, but suffice it to say that it is ironic, funny, and sad. Second, Sandra Oh plays "Jasmine," a * who is secretly a poet at heart. She regularly attends a poetry reading and at one of those meetings, she gets involved with its organizer. He thinks that she is a great poet, and perhaps can even get published. She initially has reservations about their relationship, because she is a *, and she fears that he won't accept her because of that. He assures her that it doesn't bother him. Skipping forward, there is a scene between them which is my favorite in the film. He decides to visit the club where Jasmine works ("Blue Iguana") after she repeatedly failed to return his calls (and why she doesn't do so is wisely left understated by the film). She comes out and does one of her dance routines. He sees her for the first time for who she really is, a *. And although he doesn't say a word, his expression tells all: I do not approve of that. The sound track for this scene is Moby's song "Porcelain," and it feels like it was written specially for this scene. During the song's refrain ("So this is goodbye..."), he eventually gets up and leaves, obviously full of disappointment. Meanwhile, Jasmine continues her dance to a crowd of cheering audience, and although her face might remain expressionless, her eyes betray her true emotion: during her pole dance, tears flow down her cheeks. That scene really stayed with me for some time after the film ended. The girls that work at "Blue Iguana" are strippers, but they're people, too. And just like the rest of us, they seek true love, but are often left disappointed, and they have hopes and ambitions, which they often do not follow through. Watching Dancing at the Blue Iguana, I was reminded of a beautiful point that Roger Ebert made in his (print) review of Sid and Nancy, back in 1986: "If a movie can illuminate the lives of other people who share this planet with us and show us not only how different they are but, how even so, they share the same dreams and hurts, then it deserves to be called great." Dancing at the Blue Iguana is such a film, and it deserves to be called great.

This movie is a film that has a lot of heart to it in a industry where most women are viewed as tramps and bimbos this movie actually shows that strippers have their ups and downs just like women in every other profession. The plot may have lacked at times as other commenters have stated but at least this film is a breath of fresh air from many of the typical strippers being stalked and killed and explotative Cine-* films out there. Strong performances from Sandra Oh and Jennifer Tilly and up and coming actress Charolette Anyanna is a stand-out as well. Please before you judge this film too harshly look at the other films that represent strippers in cinema as nothing more than T-n-A and you'll realize this movie is just trying to show them as women with the same joys and heartbreaks of life as everyone else.

I saw this on cable and would have been sorely disappointed if I had viewed it in a theater. It's not a very satisfying film because it's so monotone and devoid of energy--all strippers are depressed, self-hating junkies who grow more pathetic as they age. Even the facial expressions are frozen in a way that's more typical of 40-something actresses than of silicone-enhanced 20-something dancers. The movie is ostensibly about strippers, but it's really about five actresses working overtime to create their characters and show that, despite their age, they can take their clothes off with the best of them. It's hard for these well-known TV and movie actresses to submerge themselves in their roles, and apart from Kristin Bauer who plays * star Nico (an allusion to Warhol's Queen of heroin), none of them really succeeds at it. We're supposed to be applauding them for having the courage to strip bare in front of an audience, but it's clearly an ego trip for these women to show off those personally-trained bodies in which mainstream Hollywood has lamentably lost interest. What would have been truly courageous, I think, would have been to use talented unknowns in the lead roles, but that too poses the risk of leaving the audience with five characters in search of a coherent storyline. The problem may be too many story lines that go nowhere--notably, Sandra Oh as a talented poet whose verse is good enough to get her a university fellowship, but who seems not to know it. She meets a college instructor, and there's a flourishing romance, until he realizes how uncomfortable he is with her stripping and bails from the relationship. The break-up is established through a long, mournful scene in which she dances in the club, knowing he's present in the audience. The camera never really strays from her face, which makes for claustrophobia rather than intensity. Another subplot that fizzles involves Daryl Hannah's seeming rendezvous with death in the former of a stalker who sends her expensive presents. What happens when they get together is both ambiguous and anticlimactic. Sheila Kelley's character is so underdeveloped that it could have been omitted it entirely while Jennifer Tilley's repulsive punk dominatrix suggests she's way over her head. I can't help comparing this film to HBO's plucky "G String Divas," a documentary in which the women were no more likable but far more interesting. A number had university degrees, and several saw themselves as entrepreneurs stashing away cash to beat the system. There was a contemptuous, carnival-like atmosphere in which the men were there to be fleeced and discarded. Some women had kids; some were lesbians; some were bisexual and involved in complicated relationships. At the end of the day, it seemed like a business rather than the sado-masochistic playpen for decaying flesh that "Dancing at the Blue Iguana" makes stripping out to be.

"Blue Iguana" is yet ANOTHER 'serious drama' about a group of females working at a strip club, but fails as nearly every attempt before it has. If the filmmakers claim they set it in a strip club for any other reason than to get some T&A up on the screen, they are lying. There is NO other reason to set a film in a strip club other than for some T&A. As an earlier reviewer noted, they could have set this film in a hospital or restaurant and kept the same characters and storylines. Not that that would be a good thing. "Blue Iguana" features the standard * characters as a dozen other strip club movies; the only difference is that they are being portrayed by B-list semi-stars as opposed to C-list nobodys. As MLDinTN notes, "we got the dumb *, the tough/sensitive *, the wild *, and the young/naive *." That's pretty accurate. Then there's the stock * movie plot elements: there's the abusive boyfriend(s), the strung-out *(s), the gold-digging * hoping to meet the Knight-in-White-Armor that will carry her away from all the madness, and the owner who cares far more about making a profit than about the dancers who make the profit for him. Not that all of these characters don't exist in real life, it's just that we've seen them so many times before. MLDinTN also notes, "And none of them do much." I agree so wholeheartedly with that statement that I won't even bother attempting to sum up the "plot" any differently. I've seen at least three different documentaries on strippers that have a hundred times more going on in their lives than the characters in this film. They should have just made another one instead of this weak take on a seedy industry. Sandra Oh was good as the intellectual *. Robert Wisdom was good in his small role as the Blue Iguana's owner. All the other actors are amateurish at best. Jennifer Tilly and Daryl Hannah seemed to be doing impersonations of a manic-depressive Anna Nicole Smith, with Tilly being the manic half and Hannah being the depressive half. Both were ditzy druggies with whiny voices and a total lack of the powers of higher reasoning. None of the other dancers stood out. Finally, I've been to strip clubs before and I must say that the atmosphere in the Blue Iguana is far too downbeat and moody. Slow music and depressing, lethargic dancers do not mix well. None of the dancers would make more than $10 a night, and the Blue Iguana would be out of business in two weeks. So much for realism. RATING: 3/10--for doing the same old thing in a somewhat different way.

I would have thought there aren't many ways to make a serious movie about pole-dancers and be taken seriously. The list of *-specific life crises is depressingly short. Anything you present in such a movie, any plot twist or character interaction, could take place just as easily in a diner or a hospital or a homeless shelter or, for that matter, an insurance company. The only reason to set it in a strip club is to show actresses with their clothes off so as to draw in the geeks. The comedic possibilities are endless, on the other hand. There is a scene in this movie in which Jennifer Tilly's character is having a dominatrix session with some hapless male, and one of the other strippers, drunk and battered, walks in on it and refuses to go away and wait tactfully for the session to be over. Tilly alternates between stridently artificial abuse of her "slave" and sincere concern, mixed with exasperation, for the other woman in the room. It reminded me a little of the scene in Deconstructing Harry where Kirstie Alley, playing a psychiatrist, alternately delivers calm professional platitudes to her patient and screams obscenities at her philandering husband in the next room. The problem with Tilly's scene is that battered woman in the room with her. We aren't allowed to see any comedy in *that*. So, the movie tries to be taken seriously by being mostly grim and depressing. (Darryl Hannah's character is actually painful to watch.) But all throughout the movie one question kept tugging at my thoughts: "Why is this * film different from other * films?" The answer came at the start of the closing credits, when it was revealed that the movie was largely (totally?) improvised by the actors. That set me back. It accounted for the eerie feeling I had that I was watching some sort of documentary. The actors and the director deserve a lot of credit for trying something like this. The movie is definitely worth seeing.