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STATE AND MAIN Send This Review to a Friend
David Mamet is funny even when writing tough, menacing dialogue. This time, in his new movie "State and Main," he lets his humor run rampant in satirizing Hollywood moviemaking and the results when a production company invades a quiet New England town. But take heart, Mamet fans, a nasty undertone lurks beneath it all, yet he also stirs in a winsome helping of romance. The romp, which Mamet both wrote and directed, is a breezily entertaining and often hilariously barbed mix of comedy, spoof and falling in love.
Smart ensemble casting has much to do with its success. Alec Baldwin plays a randy movie star who gets in trouble indulging with underage girls. William H. Macy, never better, is a director who'll manipulate anyone to get the picture done. The company has already been kicked out of New Hampshire, and the director doesn't want to screw up in the fictional Vermont town of Waterford. Philip Seymour Hoffman is the shy writer whose script requires changes at every turn, and both inspiration and stirrings of the heart hit him when he meets Rebecca Pidgeon as the local bookstore operator who oozes charm, wisdom and warmth. The trouble is she has a boyfriend, played with the requisite obnoxious attitude by Clark Gregg as a petty opportunist who envisions a political career. Pidgeon is particularly appealing in her role.
Sarah Jessica Parker plays the temperamental female star who balks at baring her breasts--unless more money is forthcoming. David Paymer is the tough-talking producer who knows how to get things done no matter whom he has to trample on. Julia Styles portrays a teenager who comes on to the male star, not a man likely to resist no matter the dangers or potential consequences. Add Charles Durning as the town mayor, Patti LuPone as his socially ambitious wife, plus a host of character actors who expertly flesh out the movie entourage and the local town folk.
The plot complications mount, mostly involving the need to provide a cover for the horny star and the writer's effort to be honest and still survive in the movie world. There are creatively droll situations and one particular line guaranteed to crack up any audience--you'll know the one when you hear it. For all the comedy involving the effect of the visitors and the locals on each other, the film has a sweetness along with its cynicism. "State and Main" may be making fun of moviemaking, but on its own terms it is moviemaking with style and high-flying humor A Fine Line Features release.
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