Movie of the Week: Glengarry Glen Ross

Alexa: It’s often easy to tell when a movie is based on a play. The story is likely confined to a few locations, and probably driven by dialogue over action. Sometimes this approach feels like nothing more than a stilted, filmed version of the stage. But in the case of David Mamet’s adaptation of his Pulitzer Prize-winning play “Glengarry Glen Ross,” the intimacy of a stage production translates to the screen seamlessly thanks to thoughtful editing and a resolute focus on some powerhouse performances. This brilliant depiction of a real estate office’s high-stakes sales culture offers so many intriguing layers to explore, but the stellar cast and their expertly crafted characters make this movie a classic. It’s a master class in impactful delivery and nuanced character development, with each salesman often teetering on the edge between sympathetic and infuriating. (Except maybe Alec Baldwin - he’s just plain terrifying). The film’s depiction of their plight feels contained without veering into claustrophobic, commanding your attention right up until the credits roll.

Joel: Alec Baldwin’s performance is often the thing that people want to talk about when they talk about this movie. The whole “coffee is for closers” sequence is the part of the movie that's really ingrained itself into pop culture. Which makes it all the more interesting that the scene and Alec Baldwin's character didn't even exist in the stage version of the show, but was instead introduced in the movie to help extend the runtime a bit. Fortunately, David Mamet who wrote the original stage script was also the one to adapt the play for the screen so this new scene feels like it fits right in with the tone of the rest of the film.

Because the film is adapted from a stage play (and a pretty fantastic stage play at that) it's really an opportunity to let the acting of the cast carry the story and the emotion of the film, and this is a cast that really rises to that challenge. There's not really a weak link here as each actor is able to craft a unique and compelling character, bringing them to life over the course of the film. The cast is able to take hold of your emotions and carry you through the entire run time. Seriously, I wanted to make a quick mention of the stand out performances, but it just ended up being a cast list.

This movie is a great example of how to take a stage play and adapt it for the screen. There's no point in trying to disguise that it was originally written for the stage. The scenes are all very long and dialogue heavy. It's pretty easy to see where intermission is supposed to go. But that doesn't detract a bit from the quality of the end product. Instead the movie becomes the definitive version of the story.

Chris: Coming into this movie being completely of it as well as the play that it's based on, there were a few moments where suddenly some pop culture references suddenly made sense. Obviously the entire movie hinges on this incredible ensemble they have for a cast because this movie is 100% dialogue driven and if the cast doesn't work, this movie doesn't get far at all. Typically when you say a movie is dialogue driven, the movie tends to feel slow and prodding but truthfully, the dialogue was so quick and compelling that the movie was over and it felt like I had only been there for a half hour. I believe that might be my only complaint, I wanted the movie to be longer.

Jason: Well look who it is! And what a movie to jump in on! To be quite honest, I had no idea what I was getting into with this film. I had never even heard of it. When I found it on Netflix and read the cast list, I just jumped in. Jack Lemmon, Al Pacino, Kevin Spacey, somebody was doing their job! And as much as I enjoyed their performances, I didn't really get into the story very much. I don't know much about the world of sales and I know even less about high stakes property investment. There was a lot of angry yelling and they said the word “leads” a bunch of times. I enjoyed Alec Baldwin’s diatribe/motivational speech at the beginning. I have heard the “coffee is for closers only” line before but didn't know where it came from. Getting to the end, I have some questions. Like where did Moss go? Shelley rats him out at the end but he is nowhere at that point. And did Williamson actually leave the contract in his office or did he make that up just to get Shelley to confess? And what about George? Why was Moss trying to convince him to help burglarize the office when he already had Shelley on the line? I suppose it really doesn't matter and I suppose that's the point after all.

I could definitely tell that this was originally a stage play. It had the flow and cadence of the theater. It’s neat that the playwright also did the screenplay. I feel that added a lot of verisimilitude to the dialog and drama. I would appreciate seeing the original play to compare the two.

So overall, I don't like being yelled at about things I have no knowledge of. And that is how I felt for the duration of this movie. Are we doing star ratings or whatever? I give this one ⅗ Kevin Spacey vests. Now I have to go because I'm being forcefully told to go get lunch…