Themes: Assumed Identities, Prostitutes, Cons and Scams
Main Cast: Rob Schneider, William Forsythe, Eddie Griffin, Arija Bareikis, Oded Fehr
Release Year: 1999
Country: US
Run Time: 88 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
Yet another Saturday Night Live alumnus makes his bid for big-screen success as Rob Schneider, best remembered as the "Making copies!" guy, tackles his first leading role in this broad comedy. Deuce (Rob Schneider) earns a meager living as a professional fish tank cleaner until he's asked to housesit for a gigolo. Deuce mistakenly answers the gigolo's business phone and finds himself having sex with a woman he's never met and getting paid for it (not a bad deal, since women generally avoid Deuce like the Ebola virus). It's not long before Deuce learns that there's more to selling your body than one might expect: for example, being re-styled by your pimp or having to explain your new source of income when the owner of the house gets home. Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo was the first feature film produced by Adam Sandler's production company, Happy Madison; Sandler himself makes a cameo appearance, while Oded Fehr, William Forsythe, Eddie Griffin, and Marlo Thomas highlight the supporting cast. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Review
The Adam Sandler school of comedy may be considered absurdly lowbrow, but it is still astonishingly popular with the young generation. Sandler assumes the role of producer in Deuce Bigalo: Male Gigolo, a lewd, crude, and candidly rude comedy starring SNL alumni Rob Schneider. Fans of Sandler's madcap body of work will feel right at home with Deuce, a mildly funny and occasionally charming film with some memorable Farrelly brothers-esque moments. The narrative comes to life when Schneider cleverly confronts the dating scene and lampoons comedy conventions, most notably in a scene involving a narcoleptic date. However, a majority of the humor in the narrative consists of in-your-face flatulence, sex, and scatological gags. The film soon becomes a one-note affair of tired bathroom humor featuring an array of derogatory and stereotypical jokes involving the obese, the blind, and amputees. Rob Schneider has proven himself to be a successful comedian, but he simply lacks the charm of a leading man and has trouble carrying this movie. Still, the script by Schneider and Harris Goldberg does create enough laughs to make Deuce an inconsistently entertaining film that may please the dedicated Sandler aficionado. ~ Adam Goldberg, All Movie Guide
Gail O'Grady - Claire; Richard Riehle - Bob Bigalow; Jacqueline Obradors - Elaine Fowler; Big Boy - Jabba Lady; Amy Poehler - Ruth; Dina Platias - Bergita; Torsten Voges - Tina; Deborah Lemen - Carol; Bree Turner - Allison; Andrew Shaifer - Neil; Louise Rapport - Old Woman in Line; Adam Sandler; Ron Soble - Judge; Marlo Thomas - Margaret; Brenda Vaccaro - Uncredited telephone voice; Thomas Bellin - Elderly Couple in Car; Barry Cutler - Doctor Rosenblatt; Allen Covert - Vic; Caroline Ambrose - Mother; Norm MacDonald - Bartender; Charlie Curtis - Half-Dressed Girl; John Harrington Bland - Patient; Jackie Titone - Sally; Robb Skyler - District Attorney; Flora Burke - Elderly Couple in Car; Natalie Garner - Natalie; Karlee Holden - Megan; Shain Holden - Beautiful Porsche Woman; Chloé Hult - Amber; Elle Tanner Schneider - Girl of America; Pilar Schneider - Old Lady at Restaurant; Jason Wall - Bailiff
Credit
Michelle Archer - Associate Producer, Ellen Jacoby - Casting, Marcia Ross - Casting, Donna Morong - Casting, Gail Goldberg - Casting, Lisa Rochette - Casting, Adam Shankman - Choreography, Michele Wernick - Consultant/advisor, Harris Goldberg - Co-producer, Alex Siskin - Co-producer, Molly Maginnis - Costume Designer, Cara Giallanza - First Assistant Director, Eric Fox Hayes - First Assistant Director, Sean Hobin - First Assistant Director, Chip Touhey - First Assistant Director, Mike Mitchell - Director, Peter Lyons Collister - Second Unit Director, Bruce Hendricks - Second Unit Director, George Bowers - Editor, Lawrence Jordan - Editor, Doron Shauly - Editor, Adam Sandler - Executive Producer, Jack Giarraputo - Executive Producer, Michael Neale - Location Manager, Greg Lazzaro - Location Manager, Teddy Castellucci - Composer (Music Score), Michael Dilbeck - Musical Direction/Supervision, Wende Geikie - Musical Direction/Supervision, Jackie Dobbie - Makeup, Peter Mercurio - Camera Operator, John A. Connell - Camera Operator, Alan Au - Production Designer, Peter Lyons Collister - Cinematographer, Barry Bernardi - Producer, Sid Ganis - Producer, Stan Winston - Special Effects, Joe Foglia - Sound Mixer, David Kelson - Sound Mixer, Gary S. Gerlich - Sound Editor, Ai-Ling Lee - Sound Editor, Russell Farmarco - Sound Editor, Orada Jusatayanond - Sound Editor, David Luke Peifer - Sound Editor, Klaus Peintner - Sound Editor, Gregg Smrz - Stunts Coordinator, David M. Blitstein - Special Effects Supervisor, Karen Hughes - Unit Production Manager, Rob Schneider - Screenwriter, Harris Goldberg - Screenwriter, Michael R. Delahoussaye - Second Unit Director Of Photography, Steven Poster - Second Unit Director Of Photography, Charles Cohen - Second Unit Director Of Photography, Michael R. Delahoussaye - Second Unit Camera, Charles Cohen - Second Unit Camera, John T. Van Vliet - Visual Effects Supervisor, Stacy Basil - Animal Trainer/Wrangler, Mark S. Weitz - Animal Trainer/Wrangler, Stan Winston Studio - Animatronic Effects, Kathy Nelson - Executive Music Producer, Stuart Grusin - Music Editor, Ralph Bertelle - Production Coordinator, Leslie Stevens - Production Coordinator, Wayne Morris - Production Supervisor, Tom E. Dahl - Re-Recording Mixer, Elliot Tyson - Re-Recording Mixer, Nancy Karlin - Script Supervisor, Gina Michel - Script Supervisor, Katie Waters - Script Supervisor, Gary S. Gerlich - Supervising Sound Editor, Elmo Weber - Supervising Sound Editor, Jordan Klein - Underwater Photography, Tom Mgrdichian - ADR Recordist, Jim Lapidus - Costumes Supervisor, Candy L. Walken - Key Hairstylist, David J. Blair - Key Hairstylist, Eric Fox Hayes - Second Unit Assistant Director, Sean Hobin - Second Unit Assistant Director, Jules Kovisars - Second Unit Assistant Director, Charissa Forth - Second Unit Assistant Director, Jason Brubaker - Storyboard Artist, Michael Cachuela - Storyboard Artist, Available Light Ltd. - Visual Effects, Buena Vista Imaging - Visual Effects, F. Beauchamp Hebb - Set Decorator, Erica-Madri Alexander - Foley Walker, Monique Reymond - Foley Walker, Buena Vista Imaging - Title Design, Jeri Baker-Sadler - Department Head Hair, Nena Smarz - Department Head Makeup
Deuce Bigalow (Rob Schnieder) is a diminutive fishtank repairman and 35-year old virgin. Deuce has no success in attracting women, so he tries to stay busy with work. On a house call, he meets male prostitute Antoine Laconte (Oded Fehr). Antoine is going on a business trip, and he asks Deuce to care for his lionfish and home while he's away. Deuce accidentally sets Antoine's kitchen on fire when trying to make a grilled cheese sandwich in the toaster, and smashes an expensive fish tank.
Fearing for his life, Deuce is forced to find a way to pay off Antoine for the damage. Low-rent pimp T.J. Hicks (Eddie Griffin) offers to help Deuce make enough money to buy a new fish tank, and convinces Deuce to take over the absent Antoine's role as a gigolo. Deuce decides to make the clients feel better about themselves, since he only desires to have sex with beautiful, sexy women. Deuce meets unusual clients but he still manages to get along with them by doing something that has never happened with them beffore; they include a woman who is narcoleptic he just "sleeps" with her, one who has fictional Tourette syndrome with coprolalia and she was afraid of socialising he takes her to a baseball match where the crowd starts cheering with her, another who weighs close to 750 pounds he starts playing games with her like hide and seek , which she seems to enjoy, and an extremely tall woman who at first rips off his clothes but he manages to make her happy by giving her a full body massage.
Deuce is pursued by Detective Chuck Fowler (William Forsythe), who demands Antoine's black book of clients and threatens to take Deuce to jail if he doesn't comply. Deuce falls in love with one of his clients -- Kate (Arija Bareikis), who has a fake leg. She breaks up with Deuce when she finds out that he was a prostitute hired by her friends.
Deuce helps Detective Fowler please his wife via stripping and erotic dancing, and the two make peace. Deuce is still taken into custody on prostitution charges, as Fowler needs someone to bring in. At the hearing, it is revealed that Deuce never slept with any of the clients except for Kate. Since Deuce gave back the money to Kate and was not paid for sex with her, he is cleared of all charges.
Using the money he made, Deuce restores Antoine's fish tank, albeit with lower-quality glass. Unfortunately, one of Deuce's friends accidentally kills the prize fish in Antoine's aquarium. Deuce buys a replacement fish and returns to Antoine's house just in time. Antoine is suspicious, but cannot figure out why. He taps the new aquarium and the glass shatters. Deuce then reveals his man-whoring escapades to the confused and angry Antoine. Outraged, Antoine tries to kill Deuce, but the overweight client shows up, comes between the two men (she is not killed because the arrow Antonio shoots at Deuce hits her breasts where she has a roasted chicken hidden), and saves Deuce's life. Antoine is then arrested by Detective Fowler. Deuce marries Kate.
Rob Schneider's mother appears in the film as the eye-patched woman he mistakes for his date in the Japanese restaurant.
The line "That's a huge bitch!" is shouted from off screen at Tina, the tall lady. This and other lines said during this scene were spoken by Adam Sandler, the film's executive producer.
Rob Schneider's daughter appears in the film as a kid selling knock-off Girl Scout cookies.
