Review of Glengarry Glen Ross (1992) by Simon G — 26 Oct 2009

A film peopled almost entirely with unlikable characters, but since that was Mamet's obvious intent, such criticism seems irrelevant. The dialogue, which is such an integral and powerful component of the film, reminds me a lot of dialogue in Woody Allen or Tarantino films: instantly ear-catching and for the most part natural sounding and realistic, and yet every character is so noticeably talking with the distinctive voice of the writer, they all kinda start to sound the same.

The movie doesn't really work as a serious drama, because in places the plot seems unbelievable. But I sense Mamet intended this to have an almost surreal dream-like/nightmarish quality, with a vaguely film-noirish edge- an unsettling and cold-blooded mood which perfectly matches the hollow heartlessness of certain elements of the modern marketing world. In which case it works very well.