Danny Blankenship This film often airs from time to time late night on TCM's and I must say that "Model Shop" is one of the better and more underrated films of the late 60's. It's in a way a love story however it's not without an emotional struggle of decision and choice in a time of an uncertain world.Set in Los Angeles, California Gary Lockwood is a young man named George Matthews and he's a little hopeless as he's broke and about getting ready to be drafted into war. As his only fun is the sunny California beach and taking cool rides in his nice car. On the side he has a sexy colored bra wearing girlfriend Gloria(Alexandra Hay)who he really wants to leave.Now if you think that's enough on Gary's plate wait till he meets Lola a well to do French divorcée and it's like love at first sight he's fallen for her in uncertain times . It's now choices and decisions and as in life Gary will have to live with the consequences good or bad. Overall well done film for the late 60's really an underrated B classic.

tentender I note the many laudatory reviews here and the general tone of those on amazon is similar. I'm sorry, but don't make me laugh! This is a stinker from the word go, that is unless you want to overlook the two most basic elements of film story-telling, to wit: (1) a coherent and preferably imaginatively dialogued script and (2) competent acting. As a follow-up to the brilliant "Lola" and the virtually undisputed masterpiece "The Umbrellas of Cherbourg" -- in the sense that all three films have characters in common -- this is shocking. I think perhaps it will suffice to say that Jacques Demy (who is not only director but co-writer) was not quite comfortable with the English language at the time he made this, his only American film. The same can obviously said of Anouk Aimee, giving a perfectly ludicrous performance (the "model shop" scene, especially, where she gets into supposedly alluring poses for her client's camera must be seen to be believed). Alexandra Hay, however, has no such excuse. She is simply dreadful. As George Cukor unflinchingly said of co-star Aimee, "The lady simply can't act." But I have given this film two stars, and there are two reasons. One: co-star Gary Lockwood (really the top star, though second billed; there is not a frame of the film in which he does not appear), though not a very skilled actor, tries his best, and watching his stuff flop around in his tight jeans (no underwear, as is made clear when he puts his pants on in the first scene) is at least something to concentrate on. He also has a very, very cute butt and looks damn good with his shirt off as well (two scenes). If that is enough for you, then you may enjoy this film. The other reason is that an excellent late 60's rock band, Spirit, not only wrote the soundtrack (supplemented by a number of Classical selections), but appear in the film in one brief scene. They can't act, either, but it's a nice documentary moment, catching them just as they were making their mark. It's rather endearing. My final complaint: Sony's insulting packaging -- super ugly, too.

thewileyz I am watching this movie as I write this. Having not grown up in the sixties, this movie does not make me wax nostalgic as it seems to have done for other reviewers, and I can only compare it to others movies I have seen on TCM. There were some good movies made in the sixties, but unfortunately this is not one of them. The acting is awful. I mean painfully awful. There is barely a plot. This movie is one big cliché. I could get past the lack of plot if I at all cared about these people. They are so obviously acting that it is impossible to suspend disbelief for even a moment. It seems more like a college project than a sincere effort at cinema. STAY AWAY!!!!!!!

writers_reign Jacques Demy has one hell of a sense of humor; he took Anouk Aimee to California and signed up a team of Sequoias to play opposite her, in support of Gary Redwood (oops, sorry, Lockwood). This has to set some kind of record for the most wooden screen acting EVER. By comparison Lola, the earlier Demy film featuring Aimee as the same character, was a masterpiece to rank alongside Citizen Kane. Actually Lola was a pretty good 'small' movie and it's nigh on impossible to believe that Model Shop is the work of the same man. Aimee is, of course, a fine actress and was well established at the time she made Lola but here it's a case of one filet mignon and a handful of low-grade hamburgers. Don't waste your time.