Flawless (DVD)

Walt Koontz (Robert De Niro) is a hard faced emotially locked up security guard who reluctantly enlists the drag queen next door (Philip Seymour Hoffman) to help him rehabilitate his speech. This is a film I love, and I will tell you why. To begin with, it stars Robert De Niro giving a brilliant performance. By the time this came out in 1999, you just know the weight that De Niro carries behind him in terms of acting talent; you know the mafia links and the Scorcese work, and he brings all that with him to this film. His character is tough and full of inner strength, which is the perfect juxtaposition to Rusty (Hoffman). The second great thing about ...  Read the complete review

Robert DeNiro plays an ageing former security guard who lives in a run-down apartment house peopled by some weird and interesting characters. Philip Seymour Hoffman is cast as the drag queen across the courtyard who taunts the homophobic DeNiro who amuses himself by paying for women he meets at a dance hall. Then DeNiro has a stroke. When he is released from hospital his helplessness makes him contemplate suicide. His physical therapist recommends singing lessons to help his slurred speech. He gets the help of a neighbour, with whom he had been at odds with, a drag queen named Rusty Zimmerman (Philip Seymour Hoffman).Busty Rusty as he is called at the ...  Read the complete review

"Flawless" was released to some success in the USA in 1999. It's been out here since November, but as the emptyness on this board notes most probably won't have heard of it. It's a buddy movie about a drag queen and a homophobic security guard who suffers a near-paralysing stroke. It's written in the style of a GCSE drama piece and directed by Joel Shumacher, he of "Batman And Robin" fame. Not exactly a mouthwatering prospect, you say? Perhaps you are wondering why it got a release at all. Well, because it stars Robert De Niro and Philip Seymour Hoffman, and they are two of the finest actors working in film today. De Niro ...  Read the complete review

I hadn't heard anything about this film before I watched it. It was the only thing left at the video shop and it had Robert Deniro in it which made it all the more appealing......but also made it seem like it wasn't that good as how come I hadn't heard of it?? and the answer is I don't know why I hadn't heard of it before. The basic plot is a retired cop (DeNiro) who lives in a rundown apartment hates his loud, garish gay neighbour (Hoffman)... and the feeling is mutual....then Deniro suffers a stroke whilst trying to stop a criminal gang killing one of his neighbours.....it all revolves around money....but the major part of the plot of when ...  Read the complete review

I couldn't wait to watch this film. Robert De Niro(perhaps the best actor alive?) and Phillip Seymour Hoffman(one of the best actors around)in a film together. It should have been great. It's not. There is no doubt that the actors are class, but the plot is cliched and much too familiar. I'll give a brief plot overview, because I don't like giving too much away. De Niro plays a security guard who is grunpy and prejudiced against most people, he suffers a stroke and loses his ability to walk properly and speak properly. After rejecting many offers to help him pull his life back together from friends and medical staff he finally seeks help from his ...  Read the complete review