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DIAMOND MEN Send This Review to a Friend
A slick story, interesting characters, good acting and smooth direction combine to make "Diamond Men" an exceptionally enjoyable cross between film noir and social commentary. Veteran actor Robert Forster is terrific in the sort of mature, intriguing part that doesn't come along very often. He plays Eddie, a seasoned diamond salesman on the road in his Pennsylvania territory for 30 years. But he is being callously dumped by the company with the excuse that a heart attack from which he has recovered has left him uninsurable for the line he carries. The ultimate insult is the promise that maybe a place can be found for him if he trains a brash young upstart to take over his route.
To make matters worse, the novice Bobby comes on with overbearing bravado even though he knows nothing about selling jewelry. Actor Donnie Wahlberg has the character down pat, and also manages to portray Bobby's more sensitive side as well. As the two men get over the antagonisms and begin to bond, Bobby has Eddie's welfare at heart. He wants to fix him up with a woman, although Eddie is still mourning the death of his wife and isn't geared to a new relationship. Bobby on the other hand is friends with Tina (Jasmine Guy), who runs a massage parlor/whorehouse and if there's no other action available he can drop in for a bit of paid for fun as easily as going out to dinner. That's not Eddie's way. But enlisting Tina's help, Bobby arranges for Eddie to meet Katie (Bess Armstrong), a woman supposed to be different.
Katie's understated ways do appeal to Eddie, which sets the story off in an interesting direction. He doesn't know that she's done plenty of hooking in the past, and the film doesn't condescend to disapprove of her. One nice part of the approach by writer-director Daniel M. Cohen is that he treats both Tina and Katie with dignity, as do the actresses who play them so convincingly and sympathetically. Forster and Wahlberg are likeable and enjoyable in their respective roles, which is immensely important when the film takes a sharp turn into suspense territory. Suddenly there's a robbery involved, and it looks as if both these men are in deep trouble.
That's enough plot for you. Learn the rest on your own when you see this cleverly made film rich in detail about salesmen on the road, corporate cruelty, characters who struggle to survive in a harshly competitive world and the people they meet along the way. "Diamond Men" is one of the year's better films. A Panorama Entertainment release.
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