Things Change

The premise has all the makings of an offbeat, manic yet heartwarming caper, not unlike the best of the Coen brothers' work, but lots of wasted comedic potential in regards to the actual farce. He's a shoe shiner successfully passing as a mafia don! You can do so much with that!

Incredible movie with a plot resembling Ashby's "The Last Detail" where a captor grows to like his captive (sometimes called the Lima Syndrome). Mamet's script has all his hallmarks; it's an astute examination of manly toughness and vulnerability, socio-economic disparity, the roles of identity and heritage, and indeed the possibilities of loss and redemption ("things change" as the title suggests), that never gets "heavy". It's all encoded into a delightfully comical minimalism.

Comfy level is at a near perfect score with this easy-going PG gangster film. Starts off like The Last Detail, then a few twists lead these characters through some properly intense sequences, proving again Mamet is a master of the camera, not just the pen. I guess people might think the story plods from one plot-point to the other, but as the title suggests, this unusual story reveals how unexpected and even lightly whimsical life can be.

73.875

Charming here and there, but I've never been a fan of comedies based on mistaken identity. The suspense always seems to override the humor.