Why you can trust GamesRadar+ Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.
It just had to happen one day. After generations of mismatched cops, oddball crooks and incompatible cowboys, the Hollywood buddy movie roulette wheel finally had to turn up - - drumroll please - - stroke victim and drag queen. It was only a matter of time, folks...
Lethal Weapon with involuntary twitches, 48 Hours with sequins, The Odd Couple with a medical dictionary, Flawless is a horribly, well, flawed movie. From the kick-off, director Joel Schumacher (who else?) thrashes around trying to establish a consistent tone. Is it a gritty Serpico style-crime drama? A bout of camp Birdcagey nonsense? Both? Neither? This isn't a film directed so much as blindfolded and pointed downhill.
It's no mystery why De Niro's propping up this confused tosh. His last attempt at infirmity-mimicking (Awakenings) got him nominated for an Oscar and, with a string of recent mediocre efforts behind him, he's clearly labouring under the delusion that a meticulously reproduced catalogue of tics and spasms is the fast track back to acclaim. Wakey, wakey, Bob - the only academy likely to hand out prizes for his performance is the general medical council. The outside of Walt Koontz may be straight out of a textbook, but so's his bigot-forced-to-discover-his-humanity interior.
At least Philip Seymour Hoffman's drag queen with a heart of gold has a spark of life. Still, even a talent like Hoffman's can't overcome the difficulties of wearing a dress, full-make-up and a wig while trying to teach the world's greatest method actor to sing. Especially when said WGMA is mumbling every line in inaudible mimicry of a stroke victim.
You can almost hear a sigh of relief as the drug dealers barrel up, the bullets start flying and Flawless finally decides what it really is: a farce.
The lowest point in buddy movie history? Not quite, but you can see it from here. Just goes to prove that even the most talented actors still need a decent script, story and direction. One to quietly Tippex off the CV...
