State and Main

Mildly funny but mostly shitty. I hate the way David Mamet thinks people speak. Every conversation sounds like David Mamet talking to himself, with the possible exception of Hoffman's. Take a working class aphorism, say it as a declarative sentence, then have another character repeat a portion of the aphorism, with a question tacked on. Congratulations, you speak Mamet. Speaking Mamet, is that what we're doing?

A great cast but still this movie is the epitome of OK. Nothing really grabbed me either good or bad.

I would only deal drugs if I was for sure going to make some kid lose a mother.

After seeing this, I read that this was supposed to be in the style of a Preston Sturges comedy, information that truly shocked me. I'll take on faith that Mamet has even seen a Preston Sturges film, but he clearly learned nothing--or didn't understand what he saw... there's none of the lightness and none of the manic quality. I kept wanting better material for the able cast to work with, though William H. Macy made the most of every single line, and Philip Seymour Hoffman is always a joy.

One of the most average movies I've ever seen. Nothing particularly stunning about it and nothing particularly horrible about it either, besides Sarah Jessica Parker who never ceases to amaze me with how awful she is at acting. It's also like they took the outtakes from Magnolia and used it as a score. Mamet continues to prove to be a mixed bag - sometimes great, sometimes terrible, sometimes average.

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I didn't get it.

A great satire with a lot of heart.

State and Main offers plenty of wit and laughs in its lampoons of the movie industry.

There's fun to be had here with this behind-the-scenes story and its restricted time and location setting, though the film's probably a bit too light-hearted with its humour and story. The cynical movie-set satire works usually in the one-liners, but some of the story points are either ridiculous, predictable, or unimpactful. A breezy easy watch, but I expected more of a punch from Mamet.

Mamet's dialogue and quirkiness doesn't really work here. It certainly has its moments, but overall it's pretty average.

Viewed February 11, 2021.

Nothing special here. Not terrible but certiainly doesn't excite like a Mamet movie with a decent cast should.

The script follows her suit: random turns of events try to add a zany edge to the film, but it just ends up overlong and ridiculous.

A nice little David Mamet film.

Another Mamet film (this one comparatively light) on truth-as-produced and the corrosive power of capital and celebrity in spectacular America. Comedic highlight occurs when a bit player utters the throwaway line, "I didn't know it was illegal."

On the surface, it may seem normal. Soon you realize, however, that all the characters speak only the way David Mamet characters speak; even the smallest of parts have been taken over this way, with the ruthlessness of any alien bodysnatcher. The PrestonSturges-ish material fails sometimes, but mainly this is a funny and entertaining movie

This is so adorable. Quirky little small town indie flick. Realistic portrayal of people's everyday strangeness. Love it.

Funny little movie about making movies. Very strong cast, and good pacing.

Probably David Mamet's worst film.

77.000

Mixed themes on morality but I did recognize the Boston Commuter Rail so that was nice

Somewhat funny but not hilarious by any means.

Luckily, it is now possible to pause the image and read the back of the book version of the protagonist's play when he picks it up in the bookstore. I was glad I did.

Has moments & is trying really hard to be a good movie. The lines are so overwritten & stiff that everything sorta sits there on the plate saying its clever instead of actually being clever or interesting. Has an alternative feel. Cute girl in romantic lead & cast by some of my favorite casters.

i thought this was much better that i had anticpated it to be

Very smart comedy.

Its ighthearted cheer in dealing with possibly the vilest aspects of Hollywood may either be meta or simply just callous, but in either case it explains the whole Polanski case very well. A thoroughly unpleasant experience.

80.375

It might just be the cast (hey there Matt Malloy), but apparently Mamet doing comedy comes off sort of like Hal Hartley-lite with a bit of Coen Brothers-style condescension thrown in. Some of it actually works perfectly, and it's at least consistently enjoyable even if it ultimately gets kind of earnest and sappy (thankfully, Mamet limits his usual macho histrionics mostly to one character). If nothing else, i found it incredibly bittersweet to see Hoffman play a nebbishy romantic lead for once.

David Mamet also being a playwright, it's surprising that this wasn't adapted from a play, because it's stagier than any of the adaptations I've seen from his plays. Every scene has 3 characters on average and everybody's cue to move stage right/left and say their line is blatantly transparent. It's a mildly amusing comedy with a nice cast, but nothing to distract from how mechanical it all is.

Really funny.

funny mamet film with terrific cast