Nothing much happens in this 'Glengarry Glen Ross.' The entire film consists of a group of desperate real estate salesman sitting around at the office, in a car, in a phone booth, at a bar; simply sitting and talking, and not doing particularly much. An early morning burglary occurs during the film, but we don't get to see that. The characters just talk. They get angry, they utter countless obscenities to express their frustration, and they each get into a highly-vocal confrontation with each member of the all-male cast at least once. Herein lies the film's brilliance.
If ever there was a film with the perfect ensemble cast, this one is it. Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Ed Harris, Alan Arkin, Kevin Spacey, Alec Baldwin Everybody involved plays their character to blissful perfection, and not an ounce of talent goes to waste. David Mamet's grittily realistic script is snappy enough to rival anything that Tarantino or the Coen Brothers have ever written, and the actors exploit this to its full potential. Watching these stunning performances is a simply mesmerising experience, and the running time flew by so unbelievably quickly that I came out wishing it had gone on for twice as long.
'Glengarry Glen Ross' covers two days in the life of a real estate salesman (or, more accurately, one night and the following morning). The film dashes about between the characters; people come and go as they please. As such, it is difficult to determine a leading character, though Jack Lemmon's Shelley Levene undoubtedly forms the film's backbone. In past years, "The Machine" Levene was a powerful force within the company, the most successful salesman for eight months of the year, three years' running. However, now he's experiencing what he describes as a "bad streak," and faces being fired if he doesn't accomplish anything profitable in the very near future. Being laid off would probably prove a relief for Levene, but his daughter is in need of an operation, and he needs the money to support her. Lemmon is absolutely perfect in the role, cutting effortlessly between despair and desperation, fear and elation. We are sympathetic towards his plight, but Levene ultimately embodies those qualities that we detest in a human being he will cheat, lie and steal, without even a moment's consideration for the wellbeing of his "victims." All that matters to him is getting clients to sign on that dotted line. This effectively describes every character in the film.
If watching characters simply talk to each other for 90 minutes can be this unbelievably captivating, then why do we even need anything to happen in our films?! Compelling viewing.
If ever there was a film with the perfect ensemble cast, this one is it. Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Ed Harris, Alan Arkin, Kevin Spacey, Alec Baldwin Everybody involved plays their character to blissful perfection, and not an ounce of talent goes to waste. David Mamet's grittily realistic script is snappy enough to rival anything that Tarantino or the Coen Brothers have ever written, and the actors exploit this to its full potential. Watching these stunning performances is a simply mesmerising experience, and the running time flew by so unbelievably quickly that I came out wishing it had gone on for twice as long.
'Glengarry Glen Ross' covers two days in the life of a real estate salesman (or, more accurately, one night and the following morning). The film dashes about between the characters; people come and go as they please. As such, it is difficult to determine a leading character, though Jack Lemmon's Shelley Levene undoubtedly forms the film's backbone. In past years, "The Machine" Levene was a powerful force within the company, the most successful salesman for eight months of the year, three years' running. However, now he's experiencing what he describes as a "bad streak," and faces being fired if he doesn't accomplish anything profitable in the very near future. Being laid off would probably prove a relief for Levene, but his daughter is in need of an operation, and he needs the money to support her. Lemmon is absolutely perfect in the role, cutting effortlessly between despair and desperation, fear and elation. We are sympathetic towards his plight, but Levene ultimately embodies those qualities that we detest in a human being he will cheat, lie and steal, without even a moment's consideration for the wellbeing of his "victims." All that matters to him is getting clients to sign on that dotted line. This effectively describes every character in the film.
If watching characters simply talk to each other for 90 minutes can be this unbelievably captivating, then why do we even need anything to happen in our films?! Compelling viewing.