5. “The Chippendales Murder” (2000)
TV movies are mostly excluded from this list, but an exception had to be made for “The Chippendales Murder,” not just because it features a great striptease scene, but also because it’s a true-life story about the most famous male revue of all. The tale of the founder of the act who eventually hired a contract killer to off his lead choreographer is such a salacious mix of true crime, sex, greed and murder that it was also made into another TV movie, the black comedy “Just Can’t Get Enough,” and was reportedly on Tony Scott’s development slate when he died. But that’s not even the end of it: Alan Ball has “I Am Chippendales” starring Ben Stiller lined up, which will give this story its highest profile airing yet. Meantime, here’s Victor Webster in a leather jockstrap and…are those stockings?
4. “The Full Monty” (1997)
Prior to “Magic Mike,” there really was only one “male stripper movie” game in town, and it was Peter Cattaneo‘s massive sleeper smash “The Full Monty.” An endearing, gentle comedy about a group of unemployed steel workers in the North of England who form an all-male striptease act, despite not really resembling the platonic ideal of physical perfection, it’s also surprisingly insightful about masculinity in crisis and how you might find self-worth in the oddest of activities. Far from the slickest or most arousing striptease on this list, the raucous climax of this film is still so infectiously joyous that it earns forgiveness for not showing us the full anything, despite the promise of the title.
3. “Pennies From Heaven” (1981)
So yes, it’s hardly the most revealing stripping sequence ever shot, but this Christopher Walken routine (which is a kind of dream sequence as imagined by the doll-faced Bernadette Peters) gives me a major thrill because it’s a.) some of the best choreography on this list —the only strip act that’s done as a jazz/tap routine for one thing, and b.) Christopher Walken. His dance background really shows itself to great advantage here, and his off-kilter, slightly creepy handsomeness means he could be sexy even if he’s gradually putting on his clothes, as opposed to taking them off. The film is uneven, but its musical numbers are a delight, particularly this one, which should be revelatory for anyone who’s only ever seen Walken dance in that Fatboy Slim video.
2. “Chocolate City” (2015)
It’s very possible that this film, overtly dubbed “The Black ‘Magic Mike’” might have passed you by —it was came out earlier this year but was buried in a tiny release and, bland as it is, has been quickly forgotten. But its blatant me-too status (emcee Michael Jai White introduces the act by saying “Y’all seen ‘Magic Mike”? We’re gonna add a little chocolate!” while Carmen Electra DJs) has its upsides, like the fact it contains similarly well-executed dance routines by a group of similarly extraordinarily hot men (Tyson Beckford, Robert Ri’chard, even Ginuwine, who gets to dance to a Ginuwine track and “real” stripper Bolo, from the clip below). Park any pretensions to seeing this movie for anything other than the dance/stripping scenes like this one, and it does the job just fine.
1. “Magic Mike” (2012)
The Steven Soderbergh-directed first film is not only one of the better films on this list, but it also has the best strip scenes, mostly courtesy of Mr. Channing Tatum. His dance credentials had already been firmly established in “Step Up,” yet he also brings an edge of self-aware irony to the routines that undercuts the kind of baby-oiled narcissism that can sometimes make male strippers seem so awkward. A distinct hit, grossing more than $113m off a tiny $7m budget, the movie also has the army-themed dance and Matthew McConaughey‘s solo, of course, but in this “It’s Raining Men” routine, “Magic Mike” gave the male stripper movie its defining, banner moment: its Odessa steps.
There are a couple of others that didn’t make the list —”Bhaji on the Beach” has a very tame culture-clash striptease scene; Jason Biggs is valiantly unsexy in the aforementioned “American Pie” sequence; and I can’t pretend to have watched 1988 Filipino gay stripper movie “Macho Dancer,” though here’s a pretty amazing-looking clip. Oddly enough, “Bachelor Party,” has a scene featuring male strippers, and TV movies like “Just Can’t Get Enough” (see “The Chippendale Murders” above) and “For Ladies Only” also feature a little ecdysiasm. TV shows are a whole other ball game, with almost every sitcom from the ’80s on going to the striptease well at some point or other. Got any more movie examples, though? We’re trying to be completist, in our very serious, academic survey, so do let us know in the comments.