Antonius Block In a word, ugh. Don't waste your time with this film. It has a low-budget, indie feel to it, which could have been a big positive, but the acting is shockingly bad. Gary Lockwood is wooden and Alexandra Hay is awful, and on top of that, the script is sleepy and uninspired. The soundtrack and brief appearance from the band Spirit is as well. There is a moment at which Lockwood gets a draft notice that feels real and of interest, bringing back a difficult period in America, but it's quickly snuffed by the lethargy of Lockwood's attraction to a model (Anouk Aimée) who can be paid to pose for risqué photos. It's quite tedious to see Lockwood slowly tooling around in his convertible in scene after scene, though it is of some interest to see street scenes in 1960's Los Angeles, and that's the best thing the film has going for it. Otherwise, director Jacques Demy even finds a way to make scenes with two beautiful stars, Aimée and Lockwood, boring. Whew.

Danny Blankenship This film often airs from time to time late night on TCM's and I must say that "Model Shop" is one of the better and more underrated films of the late 60's. It's in a way a love story however it's not without an emotional struggle of decision and choice in a time of an uncertain world.Set in Los Angeles, California Gary Lockwood is a young man named George Matthews and he's a little hopeless as he's broke and about getting ready to be drafted into war. As his only fun is the sunny California beach and taking cool rides in his nice car. On the side he has a sexy colored bra wearing girlfriend Gloria(Alexandra Hay)who he really wants to leave.Now if you think that's enough on Gary's plate wait till he meets Lola a well to do French divorcée and it's like love at first sight he's fallen for her in uncertain times . It's now choices and decisions and as in life Gary will have to live with the consequences good or bad. Overall well done film for the late 60's really an underrated B classic.

JasparLamarCrabb The empty lives of a would-be architect and a bored French woman collide in Jacques Demy's American film. It's not dull, but it's not easy to sit through either. What the viewer is expected to get out of this is anyone's guess. Gary Lockwood carries the film as a kid about to be drafted and Anouk Aimee plays the French woman. They're fine but Aimee's command of the English language is pretty distracting. She's very distant and it's impossible to tell if that's the actress or the character she's playing. She is of course stunning (and never looked more like Sophia Loren). The film, set in Los Angeles, makes good use of the Sunset Strip. With the terrible Alexandra Hay as Lockwood's frustrated girlfriend and Severn Darden, who has one creepy line of dialog.

Poseidon-3 Two somewhat lost souls are studied in this ambling, low-key film, covering a 24-hour period. Lockwood plays a 26 year-old architect student who's left his job because things aren't happening quickly enough for him and he's disenchanted with the time it takes to really make a mark in the field. He lives with his actress girlfriend Hay who, while maybe not soaring to the top, is at least on a track to someplace, unlike him. With money scarce, his car is about to be repossessed unless he can cough up $100. Aimee plays a remote, austere French woman who catches his eye and who he practically stalks in order to meet. Their simultaneously simple, yet complex, existences collide briefly with each giving the other a portion of what's missing in his or her life. Lockwood (who's looking very fit and hunky here) tries to give his often-expository dialogue a realistic, unaffected touch, but often he's defeated by the contrivance and occasional pontificating nature of his lines. He's understated to the point of near disinterest at times. However, he's intriguing enough to hold attention most of the movie. Hay is clearly trying, but she just doesn't have the acting skill or ease of manner to put her character across without seeming forced and unnatural. Top-billed Aimee, who actually has a smallish role, is appropriately jaded and mysterious (and compelling looking), but is almost a little too vague to really grab hold of the viewer. This was director Demy's only Hollywood film and his lack of grasp with the language translates to his cast. It's clear that he didn't have the security with English in order to help his actors massage the dialogue and make it sound as comfortable and as dynamic as it needed to be. Too frequently, lines are delivered with the wrong words emphasized and this bleeds away some of the impact of them. The film does afford a priceless view of Los Angeles in the mid-60s and fans of vintage automobiles ought to have a field day ogling the many, many cars of the era that Lockwood drives alongside in his frequent sojourns on the road. Music in the film vacillates between songs by the group Spirit and classical selections, all of which, in a very odd decision, appear to come from the very same radio station in Lockwood's car!! Cultural touchstones such as rock music and underground/independent newspapers (as well as a seedy model-for-hire joint) provide some moments of interest amid the soul-searching and almost dreamlike meandering of Lockwood. This is definitely not a film for everyone, but for those inclined it's worth a look.