Review of Nuts (2013) by Ralph R — 22 Mar 2008

I think this is Barbra Streisand's greatest acting put on film. It is raw, real, honest, humourous and heartbreaking.

There are many who play the "I don't believe Streisand as a hooker" card but I am fortunate enough to know both men and women who work in the sex for money industry and I am here to tell you that they are not all beautiful like the hooker in Pretty Woman. People who pay for sex are often not just paying for sex; they are paying for companionship, conversation, fantasy, and Claudia Draper (as played by Barbra Streisand) can offer any and all of these things.

The script, based on the stage play, is extremely solid ground on which to stand. Martin Ritt directs film and cast with dignity and respect and wonderful use of art direction and slow camera movements that capture that art direction. I especially love all his use of bright light on dark colours like the wood in the courtrooms or her elegantly furnished apartmenent, or even the top of Streisand's hair. This isn't a freight train of a movie, it is a quiet and intense drama that makes the audience sit still and listen and think. The entire cast is superlative but, really, Streisand is in top form here.

I am a fan!