The Ladies Man Review
by Chad Polenz (ChadPolenz AT aol DOT com)October 20th, 2000
The Ladies Man
Starring: Tim Meadows (Leon Phelps); Karyn Parsons (Julie); Will Ferrell (Lance); Billy Dee Williams (Lester); written by Tim Meadows, Dennis McNicholas, Andrew Steele; produced by Lorne Michaels; directed by Reginald Hudlin.
In describing a lot of this year's movies to my friends and family I've been using the phrase "It wasn't as bad as it could've been" quite a lot. It might be a cliche but that's probably the best way to describe the latest Saturday Night Live-sketch-turned-movie "The Ladies Man." Like most of the other films it has a funny premise but watching it you get the feeling it's just another cash cow flick no one put much effort in to.
Tim Meadows stars as Leon Phelps, a talk radio personality known as "The Ladies Man" because he has supposedly scored with a lot of women (we're talking Wilt Chamberlain numbers here). There's a sequence towards the beginning of the movie that explains how he came to be the man he is. It's kind of a cheesy spoof that seems like an idea Mike Myers might have used with his zany "Austin Powers" character, but here it's just too cartoony for the setting. It involves Leon being raised by the most famous ladies man of the 20th century (hint: his initials are H.H.) and somehow getting stuck in the mindset of the 1970s for rest of his life.
On SNL this character is good for a 5-minute sketch because the writers manage to pack in a lot of outrageous jokes and mini-stories in such a small space. Phelps is a buffoon and doesn't realize what a clown he is with his huge afro and leisure suits and annoying lisp and bottles of cheap wine at his side. On the big screen he's still a buffoon but he takes himself so seriously he's not a funny character - just a complete idiot who induces eye-rolling. He hosts a late-night call-in radio show where he attempts to help people out with their sex lives but ends up mostly bragging about his own romps. Considering the subject matter you could certainly draw a parallel between Phelps and Howard Stern. If only Phelps were more like Stern, at least he'd be a bit more real and true to himself instead of one-note caricature.
And just as one-dimensional a character as Leon Phelps is, so are all the other characters in the equally-flat plot. These people include Leon's modest producer Julie (Karyn Parsons) who doesn't have much ambition. Then there's Will Ferrell and Lee Evans as two of the husbands out to get revenge on Phelps because their respective wives both slept with him. They don't come across as real men at all, but cartoon characters. For antagonists they're not truly threatening and they're almost more likable the protagonist. Billy Dee Williams also has a small role as a smooth-talking bartender who narrates the film as if it were the original "Shaft" or something.
The story itself concerns Leon and Julie's hunt for work after they're fired for being fined yet again by the FCC. There's also a secondary plot wherein Farrell and Evans' characters form a support group of men scored by Phelps and want to track him down. For some reason the filmmakers use this plot point as an excuse for some "South Park"-esque musical routines but it has no satirical bite whatsoever.
Meanwhile, Leon gets an anonymous letter from an ex-flame inviting him to be with her and all the money she has. This leads up to a fine sequence of jokes as he goes through his black book trying to track down the mysterious woman. In the process there's a lot of sex jokes about how many times he's done what position with whom in some strange place at some strange time. Think of it as a mockery of "Dear Penthouse," but without the horniness. Phelps is a sex machine but the film's perception of sex devoids it of all eroticism, sensuality and intimacy. It's not even superficial in a pornographic way, it's equivalent to drinking a glass of water.
I'm going to spare you the detailed spoilers of how the film actually executes its story. It's about a ladies man who doesn't realize he's maturing and wants something more than just sex. You can take a wild guess what's going to happen with the pack of men out to get him.
As a comedy "The Ladies Man" hits and misses. Most of the jokes are from the sitcom school of one-liners and the SNL alumni school of pushing limits. There's one scene in which Leon and Julie's ex-fiance square off in a contest to see who can eat the nastiest bar food and ends on a disgusting note. Maybe it's an homage to the Farrelly brothers and Mike Myers but they know how to be gross and funny, this scene is just gross.
What it all comes down to is that there's really no characterization to any of the roles. They all come off as shallow and they have no motive for anything they do other than to make sure the story goes in the proper direction. The Julie character annoyed me the most. She's seemingly intelligent and a shy person, but she sticks with Leon through it all. She's like a wife that stays with the drunkard husband that beats him and all you do is keep wondering why. The screenplay is so weak and full of holes it's sad to think what the earlier drafts might have been like.
There's even more I could mention but I'll stop and just honestly tell you "The Ladies Man" isn't as bad as it could've been.
GRADE: C
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