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The Spanish Prisoner (1997)

post #1 of 3
10/17/09 at 5:32am
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This is an ok movie, but PG-rated Mamet just feels awkward to me. The contrast might be particularly unflattering having just watched his awesome movie Homicide right before this, but this just feels neutered to me, lacking the edge that I love most about Mamet.

Steve Martin is fun in this movie and Campbell Scott is a pretty good lead, but Rebecca Pidgeon sinks it. Her continued career is one of the most compelling arguments against nepotism ever put to film.
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post #2 of 3
10/17/09 at 9:11pm
First time I saw this I was pretty blown away, but I find that it has diminishing returns. That being said, I love the fact that the hero of the film is a completely weak moron, who survives and is saved not by anything he does, but by the competence of the police force who were also using him the entire time.

And yeah, I love Mamet so much that I'm able to look past Pidgeon most of the time, but she's particularly harsh in this one. In fact, the only time I think she's given a decent performance is in State & Main.
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post #3 of 3
10/17/09 at 9:41pm
I don't think there's anything wrong with her turns in State and Main and The Winslow Boy.

In this, she's not the problem, either. The plot is just too easy for Martin and convoluted in his setup. I do love the last exchange and the smile on her face in reaction to Scott: "You've been a bad girl. You're going to have to go to your room." That was excellent.
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