Bryan Kluger I never thought I'd see the day where Woody Allen would play a pimp who had a male prostitute played by John Turturro. Fortunately for everyone, that day has finally come, and I'm proud to say that I'm a big fan of the film 'Fading Gigolo'.We all know who Woody Allen is and most of us know John Turturro from a variety of acting roles he has done over the past couple of decades including Jesus Quintana ('The Big Lebowski'), Pete ('O Brother Where Art Thou'), Knish ('Rounders'), and of course Barton Fink. I could keep going, but you get the picture.In addition to these iconic roles, did you know that Mr. Turturro was a writer and director too? Well he certainly is, and with 'Fading Gigolo' you might just become a fan of him behind the camera. Turturro worked very closely with Allen on the script for 'Fading Gigolo' and it completely shows. If Allen were to pass away in the near future, Turturro could pick up right where Allen left off. The camera angles, the use of classical music, the writing, the dialogue, and comedy are all very Woody Allen- centric, but Turturro adds in a very nice and warm glow to the whole story. His magnetism and charm are powerful while Allen keeps bringing his unique brand of witty humor to every scene.Turturro plays Fioravante, a middle aged man who is a man of many talents, but lives alone. He seems like an excellent guy but is longing for someone to love. He works at an old book store run by Murray (Allen), and the two become close friends. It's never really revealed why Murray lives with an African American woman with four kids, but it makes for a great and endearing side story that is often comical. Looking to make more money, Murray sees that Fioravante has a way with women, as if they are drawn to him and his smile. They come up with a business to become pimp and prostitute. The scene where the two are trying to think of their "stage names" is hysterical. Let's just say that I'm going to name my first born Bookmaster Moe.One of Fioravante's first clients is a very wealthy, married woman named Dr. Parker (Sharon Stone), whose husband is never there and never pays any attention to her. Enter Fioravante, who knows how to treat a classy lady, but is still playfully shy and sweet. Word gets around the small community in New York, and Fioravante and Murray's new business takes off. Across town in a hasidic Jewish community, a woman named Avigal (Vanessa Paradis) is raising her kids alone, due to the death of her husband and is desperately wanting to re-connect with someone, but due to her strict religion, she cannot.The local security officer of the neighborhood, Dovi (Liev Schreiber with curls and all), has taken a strong liking to Avigal and has noticed that Murray has been to her house and that she has left her neighborhood to go places, which is out of the ordinary. Needless to say, he thinks something is fishy. It's with Fioravante and Avigal's sessions where the true nature of the movie comes out, which is learning to love again later in life and wearing your heart on your shoulder. And you don't get pleasure from just the physical aspect of love, but by being there and listening to one another. It might seem a little corny in a few places, but that taste never lasts long enough for it to stick around.The chemistry between Allen and Turturro is amazing, and you can tell that they are indeed friends on screen as well as off screen. And by the end of the film, you are ready to go on more fun adventures with these two guys. Turturro, as always, turns in a top notch performance as does Sharon Stone and a great cameo by the beautiful Sofia Vergara who gets into a couple of compromising positions. And Paradis shines throughout as a woman who is wanting to find love once again, while Schreiber is great as a hasidic Jewish cop. With the excellent classical score, the beauty of New York, a wonderful cast and crew, and hilarious dialogue, 'Fading Gigolo' is one charming and cute movie you don't want to miss.

Mike B Quirky stuff here!! If you like oddball, this movie could appeal to you.Well-written and great musical accompaniment. John Turtorro does a Woody Allen – and does it well! It's a great assortment of extreme characters – particularly the women, from Sharon Stone and Sofia Vergara who play unrepressed hotties - to Vanessa Paradis who plays a repressed Hasidic Jewish woman. So there is a lot going on – and it definitely gets your attention. And it's never predictable! And really I don't quite know the point of the film – religion represses women could be one. Be prepared there are a lot of surprising antics!

Alex Deleon On paper "Fading Gigolo" with a Dream Team lineup looks like a sure winner. An excellent New York actor, John Turruro stepping behind the cameras to direct both himself and Woody Allen in a Jewish tale seemingly tailor made for Woody's style of humor with backup support from actresses of no lesser stature than Susan Stone and French star Vanessa Paradis, plus Liev Schriver who seems to be in everything these days playing a tough neighborhood watch cop in Hassidic drag. The setting is the ultra orthodox Jewish section of Brooklyn and, while Turturro himself is not Jewish, his wife is and he knows the milieu So off I went with movie buddy and screen writer Jeff Shank to catch this picture first run at the elegant new Larmmle theater in North Hollywood. Result ~ less than overwhelming. And here is my immediate reaction ... Finally got out to a movie tonight. Saw the new Woody Allen --as actor only -- in "Fading Gigolo" a flick directed by and painfully starring John Turturro. Starts out pretty funny in the heart of the Hassidic Williamsburg district of Brooklyn with some classic Woody Allen banter but quickly settles down to a long tedious bore featuring a decidedly over the hill (but still not too bad looking) Sharon Stone as a single sex-starved middle-aged skin therapist and erstwhile French sexpot Vanessa Paradis as a peculiarly attractive Jewish widow with a headdress of false hair preserving her modesty. In "Gigolo" Turturro makes Allen over into a pimp and himself into the gigolo of the title that Allen is pandering for. Hard to see middle aged Turturro as a marketable sex object, but the women Allen picks out for him to service are no spring chickens either and find him more than adequately vigorous -- hence the justification for the title. John may be a little long in the tooth to gigolize, but he is after all an Italian stallion -- and that is the central conceit of this not very convincing tale. In passing the film proposes to paint a telling inside picture of this ultra religious Jewish community but succeeds only in presenting a ridiculous catalogue of some major actors in painfully misadjusted roles. "Gigolo" is clearly a well intentioned attempt at a pro-Semitic European type art film, but misses the mark by miles. Tururro tries for deeper meaning with long brooding closeups of himself designed to convey the profound internal conflicts of his gigolo character, but Antonioni this is not. Boring and misconceived all around. An embarrassment that only a Jewish mother could love -- especially if she keeps kosher and firmly observes the Sabbath. Resonates oddly with smarmy allegations of incestuous sexual child molestation raised recently by a stepdaughter of Allen's decades after the (supposed) fact, and his own vehement denial of same. Best scene: A closeup of the making of a classic New York Chocolate "A" Creme at an old time soda fountain counter -- the only scene with any real fizz. "Fading Gigolo". was viewed First run on May 15, 2013, .

SnoopyStyle Murray Schwartz (Woody Allen) is forced to close his rare books store which his grandfather started. His dermatologist Dr. Parker (Sharon Stone) tells him that she and her girlfriend Selima (Sofía Vergara)want to experience a ménage à trois. He tries to pimp out his friend part-time florist Fioravante (John Turturro). Fioravante agrees to a tryout first with only Parker. Avigal (Vanessa Paradis) is the widow of a rabbi who cleans Murray's kid of lice. Murray convinces her to try out Fioravante. Dovi (Liev Schreiber) is in the local Jewish neighborhood watch Shomrim who is jealously in love with Avigal.Comedy is subjective and I subjectively don't like it. I get where the jokes are suppose to come from but I didn't laugh. John Turturro hardly smiles and that gets tiresome. Woody is trying so hard that it borders on plagiarizing himself. None of these people are particularly likable. The only one is Avigal whose touching story almost works. The movie has a weird odd mixture that keeps it from being bland but it's just not funny.