Showgirls

Showgirls is a film directed by Paul Verhoeven and released in 1995 by MGM. It starred former teen actress Elizabeth Berkley (Saved by the Bell) as a drifter who wanders into Las Vegas and climbs the social ladder from stripper to showgirl. The film was slated to be a huge success for the film studio, its directors, and stars (Charlize Theron and Jenny McCarthy were among the actresses who tried for the lead role). Significant hype about the film's gratuitous amounts of sex and nudity preceded the film's release. In the U.S., the final released film was rated NC-17 for "nudity and erotic sexuality throughout, and for some graphic language and sexual violence."

Plot

Sexy and mysterious (if temperamental) Nomi (Berkley) hitchhikes into Las Vegas, but everything she owns is stolen by her driver. While Nomi is vomiting on the side of a car, the car's owner, Molly, a seamstress, confronts her. After talking and discovering Nomi does not have any family, Molly takes her in, helping to get her a job as a stripper at the seedy Cheetah Club. One night Nomi accompanies Molly backstage at Goddess, the Vegas show at the Stardust where Molly is costume mistress. Nomi meets Cristal Conners (Gina Gershon), the irritable star of the show. When Nomi tells Cristal that she, too, is a dancer, Cristal tells Nomi what she does is akin to prostitution.

Related Topics:
Las Vegas - Seamstress - Stripper - Stardust - Gina Gershon - Prostitution

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The next evening Cristal and her boyfriend (and entertainment manager at the Stardust) Zach (Kyle MacLachlan) visit the Cheetah where they pay Nomi US$500 for a lap dance. Nomi is furious at having proven herself to be the prostitute she was called, but later discovers Cristal has set Nomi up for an audition as an ensemble dancer in the show Goddess. When Nomi gets the job, she quits her stripping gig. Soon Nomi is flirting with Zach, and eventually, in an attempt to get ahead, Nomi pushes Cristal down a flight of stairs and injures her badly. Nomi ends up getting Cristal's lead in the show.

Related Topics:
Kyle MacLachlan - US$ - Lap dance

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

However, at the opening night party, Molly is brutally raped by famous musician Andrew Carver and his two security guards. When Nomi confronts Zach, she is told that they will give Molly some money to "open a little dress shop," and essentially keep her quiet. Their primary interest is in protecting their high-profile celebrity client. He then confronts Nomi with the truth he has discovered: that she is actually a runaway and former prostitute who has been arrested several times. Nomi, confronted with her shameful past (but also frightened at who she has become and what lies ahead), flees Las Vegas (but not before attacking Andrew Carver), hoping to try her luck in Los Angeles instead.

Related Topics:
Rape - Los Angeles

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~