Toy boy

I thought this movie to be a comedy, as it was labeled such, so I was sort of waiting for a movie to make me laugh. The movie "Spread", however, is not really a comedy, more like a drama. But it wasn't a bad movie at all.

The story was nice, and it was a story that you easily could get yourself into and follow it. The story was going forward at a brisk pace and you wanted to see where the story would take you. I like the aspects of human behavior and how we treat other people and how it was portrayed in the movie. The director managed to hit that one straight on the head.

The cast in the movie was good. Ashton Kutcher did a good work as the lead role of Nikki. He has that boyish charm to him, and that worked well in this particular movie. But, the one carrying the movie would be Anne Heche in the role of Samantha. She did a phenomenal job in that role. I am not usually a big fan of her, but in this movie she was brilliant. And the chemistry between her and Nikki was really well acted out in a believable and good manner. And Margarita Levieva, playing Heather, was also quite good, and this is the first time I have seen any of her work.

Now, what didn't really go well with me was all the sex scenes. Well, I know it was important for the movie, but I just found it a bit too much. There was too much focus on those scenes, and I found it a tad over the top. But hey, I wonder if the movie would have been the same had they left them out. So just a little heads up for those haven't' seen the movie yet, there is a lot of adult situations in the movie.

The movie did get around a couple of interesting questions along the way. And a movie that leaves stuff for afterthought is one of the better kind of movies, entertainment and debatable at the same time. However, for me, this movie is not the type of movie that has enough value for a second viewing. It is watched once, then bagged and tagged.

Spread tries to be hollow, vacuous, shallow, and then tries to be more and cannot make the spread.

The story of the gigolo who wants more than possessions when he meets a girl who doesn't fall for his routine might be OK but the arc is seriously lacking in places and what we get is a jump start stop of a movie that takes us on a road to nothing.

Ashton's performance is fine but he cannot compete against the weak storyline: the dialog is actually passable but the plotting is kind of weak.

Yes this is a movie where woman have the power and about how times have changed for guys. And yes it's true, good looks alone won't cut it, but it is just passable as film.

If you like the actors or the theme you may enjoy this; we found it hovered uneasily between the disillusionment of the American dream and a redemption tale - which it ain't....

For 75 years we have seen talkies about young handsome and pretty hopefuls who come to Hollywood and lick their way to the top of something only to find they shoulda stayed home. This film isn't a talkie so much as a screwy. From DAY OF THE LOCUST and A STAR IS BORN and others, notably American GIGOLO we cinema-goers have sought the sight of these pretty prostitutes doing their thing..... and this time we have Ashton Kutcher (and Anne Heche) fully nude for your viewing pleasure. Exactly how much of a pleasure is doubtful, but this film SPREAD which he co produced is mostly all for and about him. Other viewers might be hard on this film (unlike Ashton, I am sure) and the material is familiar, but the production values and his unflinching willingness to get his gear off a lot is clearly to refresh the tired storyline and the awful personalities of the parasitic behavior on screen. Kutcher is quite good as the toy boy involved, and Heche is the hot momma host and their interaction (so to speak) works. There is a lot of nude on screen sex in this film all photographed lushly in semi tropic patio heaven. It's fun and trashy and well made and you get to see bits of everyone not normally in the sunlight. SPREAD, like Kutcher is nice to look at and quite familiar but ultimately empty. There is a better version yet to be made of this idea that these 20 something nightclub people who are good looking realise they are just delivery staff. As they say, be nice to those who you meet on the way up....

Not much of a Kutcher fan here, so obviously my expectations for this movie were quite low to begin with. I have to admit I was a little surprised to find that I actually enjoyed the plot and that it's apparently more than just nudity, once you get underneath that layer. Ironically one of those movies that make you rethink parts of your own life, and what really matters. I am a sucker for happy, sappy endings, but in its own way I think this ended perfectly.

Spread is an unusual little film. I say 'little', as it's essentially a low budget character-driven drama that is some how being commercially packaged as a rom-com. A quick glance at the credits reveals that this isn't your average Kutcher vehicle: it's directed by Scotland's David Mackenzie of "Young Adam" and "Hallam Foe" fame.

Make no mistake, the Kutcher we see at the start of the film is very familiar: arrogant, uptight and utterly beautiful. But as the run-time flies past, we somehow warm to his character even though he's getting more sex than most of us will get in a lifetime. And here's the good news: Kutcher's performance is fairly astounding. He manages to reveal the humanity in his deeply flawed character with notable subtlety and a distinct lack of cliché. Kutcher's (many) sexual relationships portrayed in the film are brutally realistic: the modern and perhaps unromantic realities of casual sex are not dressed-up in any cheap Hollywood moralising. This is also evident in the overall tone of the film: there are many moments that could have descended into schmaltz, but a sharp edge it maintained on just about every line of dialogue.

Kutcher fans: beware. This is a real departure for the actor, but thank goodness: it's a movie with all the superficial gloss of Hollywood and all the invention of an indie flick.