Friday, March 16, 2007

March Matchups: Glengarry Glen Ross vs. Boiler Room


Ding ding...ding ding....Hello and welcome back to "March Matchups." By the way, let's all wish Roger Daltrey (featured above left with Pete Townshend) a quick recovery from bronchitis. In the ring at this time are two movies that have many similarities. So, of course, we decided to hook 'em up! Ding ding ding ding! So let's get it on!

Glengarry Glen Ross vs. Boiler Room
I recently saw Glengarry Glen Ross and liked it very, very much. In fact, I think it was one of Al Pacino's best performances. The film was released in 1992, and was based on the play of the same name by David Mamet which won the Pulitzer Prize and a Tony Award, according to imdb.com. An all-star cast is featured with Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Kevin Spacey, Ed Harris, Alan Arkin, and Alec Baldwin.

The basic premise focuses on a bunch of real estate salesman who will do anything to make a sale, due to the fact that they are under enormous pressure, in particular, Lemmon who plays an aging salesman. Baldwin was superb in his role as the demanding boss, while Spacey was stellar as the office manager. Stealing the show was Pacino, however, who sold real estate to a guy who he had gotten drunk in a bar. The man realizes he can't afford it and comes back to the office to renege on the deal. Pacino basically goes into part salesman, part friend, part shrink; which is entirely brilliant.

Boiler Room is another movie I could watch at any moment. It came out in 2000 with Giovanni Ribisi playing the role of a New York City guy in his early 20s, trying to gain the respect of his father, a judge. So he goes out and gets a job with a brokerage house, but it turns out they rip people off right and left. Ben Affleck plays the boss, while Vin Diesel is one of the top brokers at the fictional firm, J.T. Marlin. Ribisi, was running a gambling operation out of his apartment, and should have stayed in that position, because eventually he nearly gets his dad in trouble with the feds. He gains his father's respect by coming clean and being willing to take the fall for his dad. A tremendous film, which is more comparable to Wall Street with the whole father-son thing going on.

The winner of this contest as a result of a disqualification...is Glengarry Glenn Ross. I can never go against Pacino! "Don't ever go against the family."

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