The Full Monty
Short description
Set in Sheffield, England, The Full Monty follows a group of unemployed steelworkers whose factory has closed and left the city short on work. Gaz, one of the former workers, needs money quickly or he risks losing access to his son, Nathan. When a touring male strip act draws packed houses of local women, Gaz persuades several of his friends, including the overweight Dave, the withdrawn Lomper, the former foreman Gerald and the older Horse, to put on a show of their own. Their idea is to go one step further than the professionals and strip completely naked. The problem is that none of them can dance, and their bodies are far from those usually seen on a stage.
Peter Cattaneo directed the film from a screenplay by Simon Beaufoy, with Uberto Pasolini producing. It was Cattaneo's first feature, followed much later by The Rocker, Military Wives and The Penguin Lessons. Robert Carlyle leads the cast as Gaz, supported by Mark Addy, Wim Snape, Steve Huison, Tom Wilkinson and Paul Barber among thirty credited performers.
Made for about four million dollars, the film took roughly 258 million dollars worldwide, a striking return for a British comedy of its scale. On IMDb it holds 7.2 out of 10 from around 119,000 votes, while on TMDB it sits at 7 out of 10 from a smaller electorate. A critics' score of 7.6 out of 10 from 55 reviews places it slightly above the audience rating on IMDb.
What's left behind the scenes
- Danny Boyle was offered the position of director for the film, but he declined as the script did not interest him.
- The film's title, using British slang (Full Monty), means 'completely' or 'fully'. This confused American studio executives who were unaware of this, as there was no character named Monty in the film.
- The working title of the film was 'Eggs, Beans and Chippendales'. Chippendales is a British term for a group of partially nude men who perform dances for female audiences in nightclubs.
- The six actors who played the main roles in the film actually performed a full striptease in front of 400 people. Director Peter Cattaneo described this as a 'no-doubles' deal between him and the actors.
- The scene with the character nicknamed 'Horse' in the phone booth was filmed three times. The first time, an elderly woman standing outside overheard the conversation. The second time, a group of partying girls were eavesdropping. After both versions were rejected, the scene was reshot, this time without any bystanders.
- During the filming of the final scene, the choreographer lay directly in front of the set, out of camera view, shouting instructions to the actors.
- The initial version of the film turned out to be too short, and three months after filming wrapped, a number of additional scenes were shot. This was done without the participation of Robert Carlyle, who was already engaged in another project by that time.
- Many American cinemas released special booklets for viewers prior to the film's screening, providing a translation of the British slang left in the American version of the film, in order to make the dialogue more understandable for the audience.
- In November 1998, Prince Charles restaged a scene taking place in a job center for national television, with the participation of young members of the British charity Prince's Trust.
- The success of the film led to the creation of a Broadway musical with the same title, with the characters and setting Americanized. The musical premiered in San Diego and debuted on Broadway on October 26, 2000, subsequently winning several prestigious awards.
- To date, 'The Full Monty', with box office receipts of £52,232,058 (11,096,718 tickets sold), remains the highest-grossing British film in the national cinema release.
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