''Breast Men'' is a

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

, semibiographical,

dark Darkness, the direct opposite of lightness, is defined as a lack of illumination, an absence of visible light, or a surface that absorbs light, such as black or brown. Human vision is unable to distinguish colors in conditions of very low lu ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

; it was written by John Stockwell and directed by Lawrence O'Neil for

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

Plot

Dr. Kevin Saunders (played by

David Schwimmer David Lawrence Schwimmer (born November 2, 1966) is an American actor, director and producer. He gained worldwide recognition for portraying Ross Geller in the sitcom '' Friends'', for which he received a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Prime ...

) and Dr. William Larson (played by

Chris Cooper Christopher Walton Cooper (born July 9, 1951) is an American actor. He has appeared in several major Hollywood films, including '' American Beauty'' (1999), ''October Sky'' (1999), '' The Bourne Identity'' (2002), '' Seabiscuit'' (2003), '' Ca ...

) pioneer the usage of

silicone A silicone or polysiloxane is a polymer made up of siloxane (−R2Si−O−SiR2−, where R = organic group). They are typically colorless oils or rubber-like substances. Silicones are used in sealants, adhesives, lubricants, medicine, cooking ...

breast implant A breast implant is a prosthesis used to change the size, shape, and contour of a person's breast. In reconstructive plastic surgery, breast implants can be placed to restore a natural looking breast following a mastectomy, to correct congenital ...

s. Larson comes up with the idea of the breast implant. Saunders tries to dissuade them, 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 Narcissism is a self-centered personality style characterized as having an excessive interest in one's physical appearance or image and an excessive preoccupation with one's own needs, often at the expense of others. Narcissism exists on a co ...

interested in developing and implanting the exaggeratedly larger-sized types of implants popular with a mostly erotic dancer and female porn star clientele. Doctor Larson, Saunders' 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' Corvette crashes into a mack truck, killing him.

Historical accuracy

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

base to various types of illnesses and

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

s (culminating in the

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respon ...

'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.

Production

Much of the filming was done in

Galveston, Texas Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Galvesto ...

, and includes numerous interior and exterior shots of historic Star Drug, a drug store and soda fountain with a distinctive vintage ceramic

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...

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 The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) is a public academic health science center in Galveston, Texas. It is part of the University of Texas System. UTMB includes the oldest medical school in Texas, and has about 11,000 employees. In Febr ...

campus.

Cast

as Dr. Kevin Saunders *

as Dr. William Larson *

Emily Procter Emily Mallory Procter (born October 8, 1968) is an American actress and activist. She played Ainsley Hayes in the NBC political drama ''The West Wing'' (2000–2002; 2006) and Det. Calleigh Duquesne in the CBS police procedural drama '' CSI: M ...

as Laura Pierson *

Matt Frewer Matthew George Frewer (born January 4, 1958) is an American-Canadian actor, singer and comedian. He portrayed the 1980s icon Max Headroom in the 1985 TV movie and 1987 television series of the same names. He became prominent when playing role ...

as Gerald Krzemien *

Terry O'Quinn Terrance Quinn (born July 15, 1952), known professionally as Terry O'Quinn, is an American actor. He played John Locke on the TV series ''Lost'', the title role in '' The Stepfather'' and ''Stepfather II'', and Peter Watts in ''Millennium'', w ...

as Hersch Lawyer *

Kathleen Wilhoite Kathleen Wilhoite (born June 29, 1964) is an American actress and musician. She made her feature film debut in ''Private School'' (1983) before having a leading role in '' Murphy's Law'' (1986), followed by supporting parts in '' Witchboard'' (a ...

as Timmie Jean Lindsey * John Stockwell as Robert Renaud * Lisa Marie as Vanessa *

Louise Fletcher Estelle Louise Fletcher (July 22, 1934 – September 23, 2022) was an American actress who portrayed the antagonist Nurse Ratched in '' One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (1975), which earned her an Academy Award for Best Actress, a BAFTA Award, ...

as Mrs. Saunders * Michael Cavanaugh as Harry * Michael Chieffo as Dave *

Leigh-Allyn Baker Leigh-Allyn Baker (born March 13, 1972) is an American actress. She had recurring roles on ''Charmed'' and as Ellen on ''Will & Grace'', and a starring role as the matriarch Amy Duncan (Good Luck Charlie), Amy Duncan on the Disney Channel sitcom ...

as Implant Removal Patient *

Fred Willard Frederic Charles Willard (September 18, 1933 May 15, 2020) was an American actor, comedian, and writer. He was best known for his roles in the Rob Reiner mockumentary film ''This Is Spinal Tap'' (1984); the Christopher Guest mockumentaries ''Wai ...

as Talk Show Host *

Lyle Lovett Lyle Pearce Lovett (born November 1, 1957) Lyle Lovett Pageat Allmusic – Lovett's Genre and Styles. Retrieved February 2, 2007 is an American singer, songwriter, actor and record producer. Active since 1980, he has recorded 13 albums and relea ...

as Research Scientist *

Rena Riffel Rena Riffel (born March 5, 1969) is an American actress, singer, dancer, model, writer, producer, and director. She is known for her supporting roles in films such as ''Showgirls'', ''Striptease'', and ''Mulholland Drive''. ''Showgirls'' Riffe ...

as Swimming Pool Girl * Tim Payovich as David Schwimmer's Buttocks

Reception

The film was released to mixed reviews.

References

External links

* * * {{Rotten-tomatoes, breast_men 1997 television films 1997 films 1997 comedy-drama films American comedy-drama films HBO Films films Galveston, Texas 1990s English-language films Films scored by Dennis McCarthy Films shot in Houston Films produced by Gary Lucchesi Medical-themed films American drama television films 1990s American films