Love Ranch (2010)

A drama centered around a married couple who opened the first legal brothel in Nevada.

Director:

Taylor Hackford

Writer:

Mark Jacobson

Stars:

Helen Mirren, Joe Pesci, Sergio Peris-Mencheta

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Helen Mirren	...	Grace Bontempo
Joe Pesci	...	Charlie Bontempo
Sergio Peris-Mencheta	...	Armando Bruza
Gina Gershon	...	Irene
Taryn Manning	...	Mallory
Scout Taylor-Compton	...	Christina
Bai Ling	...	Samantha
Elise Neal	...	Alana
Bryan Cranston	...	James Pettis
Rick Gomez	...	Tom Macy
M.C. Gainey	...	Warren Stamp
Gil Birmingham	...	Johnny Cortez
Emily Rios	...	Muneca
Melora Walters	...	Janelle
Raoul Trujillo	...	Hernan Prado

Storyline

In the mid-70s, near Reno, Grace Bontempo runs the Love Ranch, a legal brothel. Her husband Charlie, with big dreams, a felony record, and an aptitude for spending and infidelity, is the brothel's public face. On the day Grace's doctor tells her she has cancer in an advanced state, Charlie takes on new client, Argentine boxer Armando Bruza, Charlie's ticket to fame: he hopes to promote a fight with Ali. Because of Charlie's felonies, Grace is Bruza's titular manager. With the IRS and the church ladies circling the business, Grace takes the manager's role seriously and, along the way, Bruza charms her. Secrets play out: is there love at the Love Ranch? How will Charlie respond?

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Plot Keywords:

brothel | boxer | fight | argentine | cancer | 

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Taglines:

She Found Love In The Most Unexpected Of Places.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexual content, pervasive language and some violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 January 2011 (Netherlands)

Also Known As:

Havat ha'ahava

Filming Locations:

Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$60,353 (USA) (2 July 2010)

Gross:

$134,904 (USA) (23 July 2010)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Aramid Entertainment Fund, Film & Entertainment VIP Medienfonds 3 GmbH & Co. KG, Rising Star

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White (archive footage) Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This is Joe Pesci's first substantial role in a film since Lethal Weapon 4. Although Pesci did appear in the 2006 film, "The Good Shepherd", his role was only a brief cameo.

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Goofs

Love Ranch starts out in 1976, but the Reno Arch shown in the beginning of the film is the third Reno gateway and was not erected until 1987.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Grace Bontempo: Selling love will make your rich. That's what my mother taught me. Just don't put your heart in it.

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Connections

Featured in The Rotten Tomatoes Show: The Twilight Saga: Eclipse/The Last Airbender/Grown Ups (2010)

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Soundtracks

"One Night (With You)"
Performed by Elvis Presley

User Reviews

Engaging Story, Well-acted, High-concept Production Values

The film has two sags: One very early on in Act I and another late in Act II. In observing a small private audience that was viewing this film, they were all very much engaged in the drama and the action throughout, but they were nearly lost during the two sags. If it were not for those, the film might have attracted a larger audience.

This is not the story of the Mustang Ranch, per se, but rather the story an ambiguous love triangle. (I am thoroughly aware of the Mustang Ranch story, and know Joe Conforte's attorney and best friend, Virgil Bucchanieri, quite well). For example, the film does not use the gimmick of trying to exaggerate the characters that inhabit the brothel, and resists the temptation of trying to replicate the exotica of the Star Wars bar scene.

The real test for a film with this class of story arc is the degree to which we care about the characters mid-way through Act II. Do we care what happens to them in Act III? I and the other audience members all agreed that we did and we shed the expected tears in a tense moment between the dreamer, played by Joe Pesci, and the determined pragmatist, played by Helen Mirren, in the penultimate scene. None of the central or supporting roles were in any way "cardboard" characters.

The production values were quite high and the number of technical errors were minimal (three errors with production sound that really should have been fixed in post plus a couple of continuity errors). Music was very subtle to the point of vanishing at times. There was no attempt at creating a photographic theme: it was all shot color-balanced at neutral without any exaggerated focus-pulls, odd camera framing or moves (but a lot of crane rentals were involved), Pro-mist filters, or too many magic hour shots. That is, the cinematography did not draw attention away from the drama.

The film resolves unambiguously with a shock ending that is well worth waiting for. My final test of entertainment value is: "Are there any scenes in this film that I will remember and repeat in my mind's eye the next day?" I would say that there are such scenes, and I therefore give this picture a 7 out of 10.