American Gigolo

Julian Kaye earns a comfortable living in Los Angeles by escorting wealthy older women, a profession managed by Anne and, on the side, by Leon, who runs a nightclub operation. Julian is polished and multilingual, and he keeps his feelings at a distance until he meets Michelle Stratton, the wife of a prominent politician, with whom he becomes involved without payment. After accepting an assignment from a wealthy businessman in Palm Springs, he learns that the woman involved has been found murdered. Detective Sunday questions him about his clients, and Julian, unwilling to expose them, comes to believe he is being set up. Michelle may be the one person able to help him.

Paul Schrader directed and wrote the film, which came after Hardcore and before Cat People among the 22 features he has directed. Richard Gere plays Julian, with Lauren Hutton as Michelle, Héctor Elizondo as Detective Sunday, Nina van Pallandt as Anne, Bill Duke as Leon James and Brian Davies as Charles Stratton. Jerry Bruckheimer produced for Paramount, and the film cost about 5 million dollars, returning roughly 53 million worldwide.

On IMDb it holds 6.3/10 from 32,000 votes, and on TMDB 6.2/10 from 747 votes. A critics' rating of 6.7/10 from 33 reviews places it somewhat above the audience scores.