A Gigolo loses its mojo
AMERICAN GIGOLO, THE 1980 EROTIC THRILLER FROM writer-director Paul Schrader that made Richard Gere a superstar, opens with an indelible sequence. Gere, as high-end sex worker Julian Kaye, cruises the Pacific Coast Highway in a Mercedes convertible with the wind blowing through his lustrous hair as Blondie’s “Call Me” blares.
the 2022 Showtime that casts Jon Bernthal in the Gere role, faithfully updates the montage, preserving its undeniable theme song. Derivative but fun, the sequence is just about as good as the show gets. While the original film captured the zeitgeist of its era, all the series has going for it—besides a charismatic performance from its reliably great lead—is nostalgia.
