Glengarry Glen Ross

Glengarry Glen Ross. 1992 New Line Cinema, distributed by Artisan Home Entertainment.
Starring: Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Alec Baldwin, Ed Harris, Alan Arkin, Kevin Spacey, Jonathan Pryce
Written by David Mamet
Director: James Foley
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An acclaimed film adaption of David Mamet's 1984 play. It's two days in the lives of four real estate agents and their increasing desperation after corporate sends a motivational representative (Baldwin) to inform them that, in one week, all except for the two two salesmen will be fired. The film's name comes from two of the real estate properties being sold by the salesmen: Glengarry Highlands and Glen Ross Farms.

Shelley Levene (Lemmon) hasn't made a sale in quite some time, and is desperate for money as his daughter is very ill,and the medical costs are enormous. He wants office manager John Williamson (Spacey) to give him some of the "Glengarry leads", but the boss refuses. Levene fails to gain any of the leads, even after trying to bribe him, since Williamson will only sell the leads, cash up front, and that's money Levene doesn't have.

Meanwhile, Dave Moss (Harris) and George Aaronow (Arkin) are tired of their superiors, Mitch and Murray. Moss wants to get even with them by stealing the Glengarry leads and selling them to a rival real estate agency, which would require staging a break-in. Aaronow wants nothing to do with the plan, but Moss rejects that, saying that Aaronow is already an accomplice, legally, since he listened to the plan.

Ricky Roma (Pacino), the office's top performer, takes advantage of a meek customer named James Lingk (Pryce), preying upon his insecurities, playing up the sense that he's never done anything adventurous with his life. Roma convinces Lingk to buy.

The next morning, everyone comes into work to find that the offices have been burgled, and the Glengarry leads have been stolen. Williamson and the police plan to interrogate each of the salesmen in private. Moss walks out after a loud argument with Roma, and it doesn't help the latter's case when Lingk shows up at the office to tell him that he and his wife have changed their minds. As Roma enters the office to be questioned, preceded by Williamson refusing to cancel the purchase Lingk made, Levene makes one mistake that'll cost him dearly, putting the exclamation point on his streak of bad luck.

An excellent movie with a clear message about how the quest for success will sometimes eclipse morals and ethics in the business world, or any world, really. Lemmon's performance was fantastic, but don't let that distract you from the rest of the excellent cast. Highly recommended.