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Breast Men

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Breast Men
Film poster
Written byJohn Stockwell
Directed byLawrence O'Neil
StarringDavid Schwimmer
Chris Cooper
Music byDennis McCarthy
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducersGary Lucchesi
Guy Riedel
CinematographyRobert M. Stevens
EditorMichael Jablow
Running time96 minutes
Original release
NetworkHBO
ReleaseDecember 13, 1997 (1997-12-13)

Breast Men is a 1997 American, semibiographical, dark comedy drama film; it was written by John Stockwell and directed by Lawrence O'Neil for HBO.

Plot

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Dr. Kevin Saunders (played by David Schwimmer) and Dr. William Larson (played by Chris Cooper) pioneer the usage of silicone breast implants. Saunders comes up with the idea of the breast implant. Larson tries to dissuade him, but eventually comes around. Saunders and Larson gain immense financial success as cosmetic breast augmentation surgeries rise in acceptance and frequency in American culture, but follow different life paths thereafter: Dr. Saunders becoming a narcissist interested in developing and implanting the exaggeratedly larger-sized types of implants popular with a mostly erotic dancer and female porn-star clientele, often having sex and doing drugs with them. Doctor Larson, Saunders's former mentor and business partner, is portrayed as continuing to pursue a more serious, clinical approach (e.g., reconstructive breast surgeries for female breast cancer survivors, etc.). Complications arise with the implants and the doctors are sued, leading to their fall from grace. Larson dies in his home of a heart attack and Saunders's Corvette crashes into a Mack truck, killing him.

Historical accuracy

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The film very loosely tracks the history of the real-life breast implant phenomenon, from its radical introduction through its incredible popularity, through the controversial link of its silicone base to various types of illnesses and cancers (culminating in the Food and Drug Administration's moratorium on use of silicone in breast implants, leading the industry to use saline implants, instead). The story is interspersed with interview snippets of women from the 1970s who underwent breast augmentations with varying degrees of success, including their likes and dislikes about them. The interviews are marked by the fact that they show only the interviewees' nude breasts and torso.

In reality, silicone implants were developed by Texas-based plastic surgeons Drs. Frank Gerow and Thomas Cronin.[1]

Production

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Much of the filming was done in Galveston, Texas, and includes numerous interior and exterior shots of historic Star Drug, a drug store and soda fountain with a distinctive vintage ceramic Coca-Cola sign displayed over its front door. Star Drug burned in 1998 but has since been rebuilt. Limited footage is shown, as well, of the University of Texas Medical Branch campus.[2]

Cast

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Reception

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The film was released to mixed reviews.[3][4][5][6]

References

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  1. ^ "Breast Implant Chronology | Breast Implants on Trial | FRONTLINE | PBS". PBS.
  2. ^ Rauzi, Robin (1992-01-09). "The Silicone Folly - Los Angeles Times". Articles.latimes.com. Retrieved 2012-09-02.
  3. ^ Bruce Fretts (1997-12-12). "Breast Men Review". EW.com. Archived from the original on July 20, 2008. Retrieved 2012-09-02.
  4. ^ "Empire's Breast Men Movie Review". Empireonline.com. 2006-12-05. Retrieved 2012-09-02.
  5. ^ Heckman, Don (1997-06-22). "'Breast Men's' Light Treatment Misplaced - Los Angeles Times". Articles.latimes.com. Retrieved 2012-09-02.
  6. ^ "Breast Men - TV Reviews - TV & Radio - Entertainment". smh.com.au. 2007-08-13. Retrieved 2012-09-02.
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