Director: James Foley
Writer: David Mamet (Screenplay) David Mamet (Play)
Starring: Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Alec Baldwin, Alan Arkin, Ed Harris, Kevin Spacey, Jonathan Pryce
Plot: An examination of the machinations behind the scenes at a real estate office.
Tagline – Lie. Cheat. Steal. All In A Day’s Work.
Runtime: 1 Hour 40 Minutes
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Brilliant Drama
Story: Glengarry Glen Ross starts as we see how a real estate office is struggling to close deals, Blake (Baldwin) is hired to put down the firm law on the employees, office manager John Williamson (Spacey) tries to be strict with his staff as we see struggling aging expert Shelley (Lemmon), upcomer Dave Moss (Harris) the hot shot Ricky Roma (Pacino) and George (Arkin) that are given one week to make as many closes as possible.
As the pressure gets to the men things only get worse when the contracts are stolen which shows the true characters in the ruthless business.
Thoughts on Glengarry Glen Ross
Characters – Ricky Roma is the best estate agent in the office, he closes the biggest deals in the office which fills him with all the confidence in the world. Shelley Levene is the eldest member of the office, he has been down on his luck recently knowing this could be his last chance to keep his job. Dave Moss is the hot-head of the office that goes against the ultimatum about the jobs and comes up with a plan to make sure he gets the best leads. George is the timid member of the office but a fantastic salesman, he gets talked into Dave’s plan. John Williamson runs the office handing out the leads while making sure the teams get good sales. Blake is the man that puts the ultimatum down on the office, he is blunt when it comes to doing the deal.
Performances – The cast here is filled with award winners, the highest calibre of actor in the industry at that time. Pacino, Lemmon, Baldwin, Arkin, Harris, Spacey and Pryce are all fantastic it is unfair to single anyone out for more praise than any other.
Story – The story follows 24-hours in life at the office of a real estate agents as the are pressured into improve their sales which includes dealing with a robbery that throws everything up in the air. This is a character driven story as we see how people can react under pressure as it comes from a play and you can feel that about the story all the way through. The story doesn’t get over complicated as we see how things unfold and it shows the desperation man will go for his own greed.
Crime/Mystery – The crime that takes place is partly how the deals get done and how the contracts get stolen which leads to the mystery to just who is the person behind everything.
Settings – The settings are kept simple, the office, the bar and a house for discussions, this keeps everything grounded through the film from start to finish.
Scene of the Movie – Truth.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – Blake being in more scene would have been good.
Final Thoughts – This is a fantastic assembled cast that give powerful performances that just deliver from the first frame until the final frame, simple fantastic cinema.
Overall: Fantastic from start to finish.
Rating
