To start off, this movie was not as bland as some have written. It's actually a fairly decent movie about relationships and how losing, or gaining, them affects our daily lives. The movie starts out with an elderly lady walking her dog which then gets stolen and she's crying out for her Buddy. The woman and her dog are a relationship, as throughout this movie we see her now and then watching TV (more relationships, if only fleeting) and it's obvious she is all alone and all she had was her dog. The main relationship in the movie is between Joe and Mary. They have been together for 6 years and are experiencing issues. The 2 actors worked well together and actually this was one of the better performances I have seen from both actors. I liked how Joe and Mary worked out their issues and knew when to back off. Then we have fringe relationships and shallow characters who only want one thing. In one case, the woman must be a real blonde (hence the title), and in the other, the character, played by Hannah, just wants sex. Another surprise was Denis Leary in the film and his character as the teacher of a self-defense and self-esteem class for women. All in all, everyone portrayed a character that was real and with plausible lives.

The best thing about this film is the acting - an astonishingly stellar cast most of whom are content to play very minor roles in the most understated way with no hint of showing off. A testament to the pulling power of a respected director instead of the usual Hollywood hacks perhaps. Catherine Keener is magnificent as always - see "Malkovich" and then this for an example of what acting is all about. Elizabeth Berkeley even gets a chance to show that once out of the clutches of Verhoeven she can actually act.

After de Cillo's Bunuel-esque flourishes in "Living in Oblivion" this quiet little comedy about artifice, authenticity and relationships was perhaps a slight disappointment, however this is no doubt due to approaching it with preconceptions. It's a quality piece of work throughout, an affectionate satire of the entertainment business, and a cautionary tale about not giving up what you need to get what you want. I liked it.

I heard for the first time about THE REAL BLONDE in May 2020 and when I looked at the cast I told myself that I knew I had to see it. Last March (after nearly two years) I finally saw it and while I didn't loved it, I still liked it for what it was.

Joe (Matthew Modine) is an aspiring actor that works as a waiter in a restaurant. His girlfriend Mary works as a cosmetician and supports him in money. Joe wants more to express himself than work a job with a salary, and is frustrated for not having accepted roles that were up to his standards. In the meanwhile his colleague Bob lands a role in a soap opera and has a fetish for blonde, leading to date a model and then dump her when he discovers her hair is dyed. Joe swallows his pride and meets agent Dee Dee Taylor (Kathleen Turner) that arranges for him to be an extra for the new Madonna music video while Mary goes to a self-defense and anger management class with an instructor (Denis Leary) that encourages her to express her anger. Bob has success with his soap opera and starts a relationship with real blonde Kelly (Daryl Hannah). During the Madonna video the director (Steve Buscemi) treats the extras like contest dogs and Madonna has been replaced by Tina (Elizabeth Berkley), and for an anti-semitic statement Joe is fired.

Dee Dee takes pity for Joe and arranges for him to play the part of a sexy serial killer in a play with Tina as her co-star, and he succedds and goes in bed with Mary after months. In the meanwhile Bob is negotiating a longtime contract for the soap while Kelly taunts him constantly, and Bob hopes to have Kelly's character killed in the show.

While the plot is a bit convoluted and the language a bit too adult in spots, it's still funny and managed to make me crack some smiles here and then. Matthew Modine gives a decent leading man performance and he actually surprised me, Daryl Hannah comes off good along with being gorgeous as the sultry soap opera star, while Maxwell Caulfield was a bit buffoonish with his fetish and needed a break. The supporting cast (Kathleen Turner as a pretentious but still warm-hearted agent, Christopher Lloyd as the head waiter and Joe's boss, Steve Buscemi as a loud video director, Elizabeth Berkley as a sexy Madonna double and part time actress, Denis Leary as the defense instructor) is a hoot and gives their best with the material given. The soundtrack was catchy, with not only Madonna's HANKY PANKY but also BE MY LOVER by La Bouche (a song I really love and now I can't associate it without thinking of this movie) and various other hits of the 1990s.

In substance, this movie is like a satire on the entertainment and fashion industry, and it does it in a nice and, I dare to say it, kid-friendly way. With a star studded cast, lots of great songs of the unforgettable 1990s and some funny moments, do you need more? Perfect for having some sort of voyage back in the 1990s even for folks who haven't lived them (like me that I am soon to be 24).