Dancing at the Blue Iguana
Dancing at the Blue Iguana
R | 12 October 2001 (USA)
Dancing at the Blue Iguana Trailers

A non-glamorous portrayal of the lives of people who make their living at a strip club.

Reviews
Breakinger A Brilliant Conflict
SparkMore n my opinion it was a great movie with some interesting elements, even though having some plot holes and the ending probably was just too messy and crammed together, but still fun to watch and not your casual movie that is similar to all other ones.
Neive Bellamy Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.
Catherina If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.
Michael Clark For Fans Of: Strippers? Date Night: No Art Factor: None Fun Factor: None Emotional Factor: None Intelligence Required: None Essential Viewing: No The Plot: Strippers deal with everyday life My Take: This was terrible. Bad acting by some decently big names (Sandra Oh, Daryl Hannah, Jennifer Tilly, Kristin Bauer). The script was as boring as you can get. And it's a movie about strippers! I mean, you would think that it would at least be a bit exciting, but oh no, not at all. The direction gave the entire movie a late night skinamax feel that came off as cheesy. I would not recommend this hookers with hearts of gold tale to anyone (unless you are really into seeing name actress nudity).
lastliberal It is amazing what you come across at 2am when you have trouble sleeping. The fact that this film is directed by Michael Radford (Il Postino) is an indication that it might be more than just a T & A film. It is, after all, about pole dancers at a strip club.Yes, it is loaded with T & A. Charlotte Ayanna (Jawbreaker) dances in just a thong. TV regular Kristin Bauer (Everybody Loves Raymond, Just Shhot Me) goes even further. Even at 40, Daryl Hannah shows her stuff and it is hot stuff, indeed. Just a photograph in Mike Myer's hands in So I Married an Axe Murderer, Shiela Kelley practiced at many bikini bars before she showed her stuff here. Even Grey's Anatomy's Sandra Oh gives us her first notable skin scenes. Lastly, Jennifer Tilly is un-Bound, and gives a show to remember.If they gave an Academy Award for this category, it would be Breast Picture, hands down.But, there is more. This is not Showgirls. There is actually a handful of stories going on as we examine the lives off the stage. Sandra Oh gives a super performance. I wasn't too thrill by Daryl Hannah as she acted as if she had an IQ of 30. Jennifer Tilly was just plain impressive and well worth the time.
stonedonkies Some minor spoilers in here...With a score of only 5.8, I think Blue Iguana is destined to be lost in the attic of the indie film world. Personally, I think it was a moving and compelling portrait five refreshingly real people, and I didn't even know it was improv until I saw the credits. The pace will be a little slow at times for some viewers--I won't lie about that. But there's a grace to each scene, and a lack of artifice that scripted action and dialog can bring. The scene with Sandra Oh and Kristen Bauer in the dressing room is astonishing because I don't think there's a single cut or a bit of camera movement for what felt like ten minutes--but it's still gripping.Not each scene works smoothly, and the individual plot lines of each character sometimes get a little bogged down, but I'm glad I spent the two hours or so winding my way through this film. My main gripe is that Sheila Kelley's (Stormy's) involvement wasn't as well integrated into the film as others, and she could have been completely cut out of the film, in my opinion, without losing the story's power. That always seems to be a pitfall when you do a ensemble cast piece.
triple8 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.
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