Angry, bitter, and nervous, someone breaks into the office and steals the good leads. But who did it?
Much like another 1992 film, A Few Good Men, this is filmed almost exactly as if it were the stage play on which it’s based. There are no special effects and little action. It’s what some might call a very “talky” movie. It’s a film that is pure performance and is based solely around paying attention to a group of performers just telling a story.
It’s also a film where there are no heroes: there are no good guys…these are all bad guys, hustlers who lie and cheat to sell worthless property to unsuspecting customers. This all makes the film all the more intriguing as it’s difficult to feel sympathize with any of these characters, except maybe Jonathan Pryce’s James Lingk, who seems so desperate for approval and acceptance that he’s willing to buy whatever it is someone wants to sell him.
It’s also a very quick moving film: blink and you’ll miss key plot points as these characters argue, discuss, accuse, deny, and swindle one another at rapid fire rate.
An essential piece of viewing: great storytelling and dynamite performances – all around superb filmmaking.