"The Ladies Man" has broken a stigma among many a Saturday Night Live movie (excluding "Wayne's World") because it doesn't completely and utterly suck.
The Ladies Man - R
Starring:
Tim Meadows, Will Ferrell and Tiffani-Amber Thiessen
Directed by:
Reginald Hudling
Now playing:
Showplace 12 West
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Tim Meadows revives his cognac-swilling role of Leon Phelps, more commonly referred to as "The Ladies Man." Leon's living the good life; he's got his own raunchy, late-night radio call-in show in which he dispenses ill-conceived love and sex advice (most of which amounts to having sex in a very uncomfortable place ... no, not the back of a Volkswagen), a phat houseboat that's been dubbed the Skanktuary, a ghetto-fabulous bar tended by Billy Dee Williams to chill in, and lastly, and certainly most importantly, a bevy of "skanks" at his disposal.
What little story there is goes a little something like this. Leon gets both he and his kindly/attractive producer, Julie (Karyn Parsons), fired from their respective gigs after repeated FCC warnings. Leon quits searching for a job and starts seeking out a golden "skank" whom he could latch onto for money, food, a roof and, of course, lovin'; in essence, a Sugar Mama.
Meanwhile, a group of men headed by a none-too-subtly gay Greco-Roman wrestler (Will Ferrell) are searching for Leon, feeling wronged by the sexual acts he committed against their wives, daughters and sisters. The group's ultimate goal is to castrate Leon with a set of bolt cutters.
Meadows shines in the role of Leon Phelps. If you've dug his work in the skit on SNL, as this reviewer has, you'll really like his work in the flick. The material isn't always up to snuff, but Meadows is consistently very funny.
The supporting cast isn't half bad either. After all, in what other film are you likely to see a cast comprised of "Fresh Prince of Bel Air" refugee Parsons, ex- "Saved by the Bell" starlet Tiffani-Amber Thiessen, Lando freakin' Calrissian and a randy/scary Julianne Moore donning a clown suit?
While not a great movie, "The Ladies Man" is certainly a funny and entertaining one, worlds better than "It's Pat," but not quite up to par with "Wayne's World."
