Review – Flawless

Is there such a thing as a “situation drama”? If so, this is a flawless example of the genre. The main plot is an opposites-attract buddy relationship between a macho man ex-cop (Robert DeNiro) who suffers a disabling stroke and his drag queen neighbor (Philip Seymour Hoffman) who gives the gritty old guy singing lessons to help him recover the ability to speak. So it goes without saying that the bulk of the movie is devoted to the cop overcoming his prejudices and bonding with his flamboyant tutor. And because all that’s not quite enough to carry a movie for the full running time, there’s a stupid subplot about a dope dealer looking for some stolen money, and several other half-baked mini-dramas thrown in for good measure. Though most of the gay jokes fall flat, every once in awhile one of the drag queen crowd will come up with a good line; my personal favorite was one of the supporting actors referring to the DeNiro character as “Mr. My Left Foot.” But I guess it goes without saying that if the highlight of the movie is a drag queen making disability jokes, the rest of the production is mostly missable. See if desperate