MOVIE REVIEW: The Full Monty

The Full Monty is just, like, one of the best. Movies. Ever. It's an especially good one to watch in the midst of a recession, we find, because of the overall message of the film: Times might be really tough and life might kind of suck, but in the midst of it all, there are people who, in the immortal words of Tom Jones in his tender ballad "You Can Leave Your Hat On," give you reason to live.

One of the best scenes in the movie is this one, when Gaz watches his mates, who are standing in line at the unemployment office to receive their dole checks, start absentmindedly grooving to Donna Summer's "Hot Stuff" when it comes on the radio. That is the moment when he knows that his racy scheme to earn enough money to pay his in-arrears child support is actually going to work. The smile of amusement and relief on his face is priceless. And Gerald's trench coat-swinging turn isn't bad either.

The language used by these ex-steelworkers isn't exactly pristine, but somehow doesn't sound as jarring when rendered in the soft slur of a Yorkshire accent, but be warned anyway. The language plus some other choice scenes make this a grown-ups only kind of show. And by the way, there is no actual full monty in the show, but there are a thousand laughs and a few tears, but only the happy kind.