sddavis63 If my memory is correct, when this movie was released it came across as something of a comedy - a funny look at the adult entertainment industry. If that's what it's supposed to be, it doesn't really work. It just isn't that funny. Setting that rather significant (since this is called a comedy!) failure aside, since I have no personal knowledge of the subject matter, I'll avoid comment about the authenticity of the story - which deals with the goings on behind the scenes in a Toronto massage parlour, except to say that - if this is true - the life is pretty dull. For over an hour, this movie really doesn't give us much of anything except some background knowledge of the main characters. Conrad is the newly hired manager of the massage parlour whose basic job apparently is to make sure the girls aren't giving "full service" - a euphemism for actual sex. As for the girls themselves, Betty's goal is to buy a parlour of her own so that she can run her own business, Cindy is an illegal immigrant to Canada working to support her family back home and Leah is - well, Leah is a somewhat strange, undefined character with a nipple fetish - true - who seems to be in the business because - well, because she's in it! I have no idea what her character was about. Those three may well be fairly reasonable composite characters who accurately represent the motivations of the women who get involved in this business.The movie meanders about and doesn't offer much until the "twist" reveals Conrad to be the bad guy. We should have gotten to that point sooner. The only thing truly interesting here was that part of the story - Conrad's secret plan and the revenge plotted against him by the girls. That plan for revenge was pretty good, and you're grateful when it comes out because basically up to that point you're wondering why you wasted your time with this. Had the story been more focused on the revenge, this might have actually been a fairly funny movie.The performances from the 4 leads were all OK, although I didn't think anyone came across as outstanding. All four characters were a bit shallow. Cindy was a sympathetic character, and so was Conrad for a while, although he turns out to be the bad guy of the movie. Given the subject matter, there's surprisingly little nudity (and what there is is restricted to one scene.) In fact, there's even a certain air of innocence around a lot of this. As for the overall quality of the movie, it's a low-budget effort, which shows, although you expect a certain griminess, I suppose, of a movie set in the context of a body rub parlour, so that's forgivable. It certainly says something, though, that this was released 8 years ago now and is still the only credit on writer-director Soo Lyu's resume and - given the normal lack of depth in the Canadian film industry - that it wasn't even deemed worthy of being nominated for any Genie Awards - the Canadian version of the Oscars. 4/10 - and I'm being a bit generous with that.

tedg Spoilers herein.Folded film: the performance of the movie and the performance of the girls in the movie. A simple fold, typical of a film school project. It ends with another fold, an additional performance.Another project that has an intelligent idea behind it, but without the skills to make it happen. Nice try. But should have switched it around so that Lindy was the redhead.Ted's Evaluation -- 1 of 3: You can find something better to do with this part of your life.

bbbl67 Seems to be a very true-to-life portrayal of life in a body rub parlor. The movie tries not to be judgemental about the work these women do, but does present it from their point of view. A lot of daily challenges, of going far enough without going too far, keeping it legal, etc.Don McKellar was brilliant as the nerdy manager of the parlor, who seemed to be in way over his head with this job. He gradually got very good at this job in a big way.There's a very twisted humorous ending that came out of nowhere. Extremely imaginative. It sort of kept true to the nature of these people, where nothing is as it seems on the surface.

mrchaos33 Rub & Tug is promoting itself as a real account of life in the seedy body rub parlors of Toronto. Director and co-screenwriter Soo Lyu spent a year researching the project, but there is none of the grit you would expect from a movie that explores the underbelly of the sex trade. Instead Rub & Tug is a starkly clean, sanitized look at three women who work in that hazy area between masseuse and prostitute - a sexual sitcom. There have been steamier episodes of Three's Company. Don McKellar as the conniving parlor manager acquits himself with his usual bumbling charm, although isn't given enough to do. The same goes for parlor employees Lindy Booth, Tara Spencer-Nairn and Kira Clavell, who fumble through the predictable material. Lyu imbues the script with the concept that sex workers aren't victims, and we shouldn't pity them. The trouble is we don't really care about these characters, so the whole thing falls flat.