State and Main
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Movie Reviews of State and Main
Movie Review: Boy, Can Mamet Write! If Only All Directors Could!
Summary: 5 Stars
In all too many films, I find myself let down because the writing is so bad. Some of the very worst are by directors who also want to be writers but who can't really write. When I find out who they are, I thereafter avoid their films. I never trouble myself with thoughts like these in seeing a David Mamet film though since he is first and foremost a writer. As usual, he brings his superb screenwriting skills to this vehicle, which he also directed, and turns it into pure gold. He places William H. Macy front and center as a film director who is trying to bring a film in on budget in New England although disaster looms on every front. I frankly never thought Macy could be a funny, ha-ha kind of actor but he is absolutely hilarious as this director with a bunker mentality. I also never thought Philip Seymour Hoffman could play a romantic lead but in this film he does so admirably with Mamet's wife, Rebecca Pidgeon. Hoffman is the writer on the film and Pidgeon becomes his muse and support system in one as she takes over his heart. Alec Baldwin plays himself as an obnoxious movie star and is also perfect doing so. He brings the chief conflict into the film, the prospect of the film's being shut down because of his penchant for bedding underage girls. Perhaps the most brilliant casting of all though is David Paymer, as producer Marty, who is perfect in every scene as the Machievellian man who will do anything to reach his end goal, bringing the film in. This film reminds me of Preston Sturges' "Travels of Sullivan," a masterpiece of screwball comedy. Mamet is not really known for comedy but rather for incisive drama. You'd never know that, however, from seeing this film. You'd think he'd been doing comedy all of his life. The only other comic film of his that I can recall is "Things Change," also a superb film. All of Mamet's work is a must-see for me and I am rarely disappointed with the results.Movie Review: Witty and Smart
Summary: 5 Stars
"State and Main" is a David Mamet movie, and it shows. While more light-hearted than most of the his other works, it shares their stylized writing, understated cinematography, and brilliantly cynical humor. The movie follows the misadventures of a Hollywood film crew as they try to make a movie in small-town America, spinning locals and movie people alike into a whirlwind of hilarity.Featuring an ensemble cast of excellent actors (Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Rebecca Pidgeon, David Paymer, William H. Macy, Sarah Jessica Parker, Alec Baldwin, Clark Gregg, and Julia Stiles, among others), "State and Main" relies on their energy and fast-paced paced interaction to keep the laughs coming. The characters they play are caricatures (the noble writer, the slick director, the skirt-chasing actor, the greedy producer), but they are nevertheless believable. The very absurdity of the characters is entertaining, but the humor is intelligent - there's nothing slapstick about this.
In fact, if the movie has a weakness, it is this very intelligence; at times, the writing seems a little self-conscious, the smartness a little stilted. Nevertheless, I'd much prefer a comedy to be too smart than not smart enough, and "State and Main" leans that way if it leans at all.
Aided by a punchy soundtrack, the film gets off to a quick start and maintains its pace throughout. The dialog has a staccato rhythm, and the lines are delivered with beautiful comedic timing. The underlying themes of second chances and the transience of the American Dream are clear, but unobtrusive.
I truly feel that this movie is an underrated masterwork, and I recommend it wholeheartedly to anyone who likes to laugh. I've watched "State and Main" at least five times, and it remains funny and engaging on each viewing - something I find very rare in a film. Buy this movie today, or rent it, or borrow it - you won't regret it.
Movie Review: The Only Second Chance I Know...
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a comedy with wit and heart. When the cast and crew of a Hollywood film are run out of one small town for the "fetish" of the lead actor (Baldwin) they must quickly relocate to yet another SmallTown USA.
They are assailed almost immediately by the townfolk, who want a part in the film. The director has his hands full meeting and greeting people, trying to get the movie made on time (and within the budget). The actors are struggling with their own moral dilemas (Baldwin is flirting with disaster in the form of an adoring fan who's just a tad underage and Sarah Jessica Parker doesn't want to show off her breasts in a contractual nude scene because she's found religion). And the poor writer, whose art is being torn apart by actors, producers, and necessity of sets, is just looking for a typewriter to complete the rewrites they're demanding of him.
His quest leads him to a local bookstore, where he finds not only the typewriter, but love, as the woman working the counter turns out to be as intellegent and well read as she is beautiful.
Crisis after crisis ensues, with everything happening around the intersection of State and Main.
When Baldwin is caught with his underage fan, all seems doomed, as the writer is confronted with the moral dilema of having to testify against the star and cancelling the production (and blacklisting himself in Hollywood forevermore) or lying, and losing the affections of the woman he loves.
It all boils down to a surprise ending, that I cannot reveal. All I can say is that this is a film with a great deal of thought behind it, and a brilliant satire of the Hollywood world.
Movie Review: A Perfect Comedy
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie hooked me from the very start. The tone was quick and self-assured. I love that. Getting the action going is the only thing to do with a movie like this. Even scenes that seemed like nothing more than introductory exposition (a truck bumping over a pot hole, a close-up of a tourist brochure), turned out to be setting up some of the movie's later business.
And what a cast involved here to handle that business! These are gifted performers at the top of their games. Wow!
While the material plays with a lighter touch than many of Mamet's famous works, there is no reason to question the genius.
This is a thoroughly splendid movie.
I was especially amazed by the performance of Philip Seymour Hoffman. Here he plays the screen writer and his role is the closest thing like a romantic male lead in the movie. After seeing him play Scotty in "Boogie Nights", I'm amazed that this is the same person. This guy is one heck of an actor.
As she's been in everything I've viewed, Rebecca Pigeon is wonderful. Every time I see her perform, I feel like I know the person she has portrayed. She is brilliant.
I could single out each performance in this movie for high praise. So lets just say that they are all exceptional!
Why can't more movies be like this?
Movie Review: Wonderful and Hilarious
Summary: 5 Stars
"State and Main" is a throwback to the often gentle but hilarious satires of the 50s and 60s--you know the ones where the bucolic splendor of small-town America is thrust into chaos by the arrival of out-of-towners. Like "The Music Man" and "The Russians are Coming! The Russians are Coming!", David Mamet's sendup is witty and affecting, though many of his famous four-letter-word sensibilities still pepper the mix. The terrific ensemble cast includes Alec Baldwin, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Rebecca Pidgeon, William H. Macy, and Sarah Jessica Parker, and the story revolves around a frenetic movie crew struggling to turn a dramatic disaster into a box-office winner. Along the way, they brave graft from the locals, the Machiavellian efforts of a producer, and the peccadilloes of a star that deserves to be locked up. Despite some raunch and cynicism, Mamet somehow manages to splash a sweet gloss on it all, particularly with a refreshingly watchable romance between Hoffman and Pidgeon. Look for some great sight gags, too, and, of course, Mamet's penchant for rip-snortin' dialogue. About the only complaint I have is that Ricky Jay didn't have more to do.