mitchmcc
WARNING: may contain spoilers!I wanted to like this movie, and it had potential. I have no problem with a complicated plot, as long as it all hangs together and is believable. But this movie has too many unbelievable points, e.g., the Joe Ross character would never have brought the secret to the meeting and agreed to give it to the Jimmy Dell character. He had previously shown that he was both aware and serious about keeping it secret. And despite his beef with his company about getting his compensation in writing (deservedly), it never shows him being willing or interested in betraying the secret, only that he was exploring talking to a lawyer about getting his share of the money.And like most plots, when too many people are involved in a conspiracy, it starts to get ridiculous. In this movie, there must have been a dozen at least!One final point. When Jimmy Dell gave the guy the book and asked him to take it personally to his sister, what did he think would happen when he found out, as he later does, that it was an old woman? Wouldn't that have completely ruined their chances to get at him?Since most of the reviews are glowing, I wanted to put out another viewpoint.
j-natalia62
I was tempted to run screaming from the room after viewing the first twenty or so minutes of The Spanish Prisoner due to its less than desirable bunch of actors. However, I was intrigued in spite of myself and ended up finishing the film. A man is hired by his boss to work on a top- secret project and espionage ensues. The writing was phenomenal, in my opinion. I would have preferred to read this as a novel as the plot is only slightly predictable and there are so many twists that no one could figure it out entirely. The acting is simply sophomoric. I think David Mamet should fire the person who did the casting. However, the writing was good enough to balance out the atrocity of the acting, hence my rating of 5.
maybe730
All the positive reviews on here had me looking forward to seeing the twists and turns of The Spanish Prisoner. But instead I watched a movie where the only one who doesn't know what going to happen is the unlikeable main character. The plot isn't predictable from the outset but you'll see the twists coming 5 to 10 minutes before they get there. At times its interesting to see the smaller details of the set-up being put into motion but for me, that's not enough. None of these characters are likable. The dialogue is stale and reads like a play straining to be overly clever. The acting of Rebecca Pidgeon, who plays more or less the love interest, is wretched. Like Ed Woods movie wretched. And there are some questions/plot gaps regarding the level of involvement of the FBI (a minor complaint). Oh and this film ends with one of the weakest final lines I've ever heard.
the_one-756-914381
There are many kinds of cinemas. This one is one of the top examples of story telling. You won't notice any camera work, any music (was there any?) etc. You are just absorbed by how well the story is told. Trust me, within 5 minutes (though you won't get to understand what's exactly happening there in such short time) you'll be absorbed. Even Steve Martin is watchable.Also perhaps the only movie (at least for grown-ups) with no swearing. At all. Except for a short scene showing a stabbed body, this is a film for everybody (if the youths can get it). In this regard, the exact opposite of "Glengarry Glen Ross".I find it very strange that the less people have to say, the more they shout and swear. As if even their ordinary words require some kind of 'strengthening' to be taken seriously. You can't just say something is good, because, you see, nobody would take that. However, when saying "something is f... good", you suddenly receive all the attention you've wanted, and they even believe you. Going further down that road, I suppose one day we have to kill our loved ones, to convince them that, indeed, we love them. Exaggerating? Really? Remember LOST TV series and its throughout gratuitous violence, like the scene when Locke, burdened with the memory of something bad in his life, being hit with the car by Desmond, so that he would let go? Figure that out: I care so much for my friend that when I see him troubled by something I hit him with my car (violently, by the way) so that he would let go and start smiling again.Back to the movie at hand, I'll have to warn you that after seeing this one, you won't anymore enjoy your daily movie rubbish. That happens, you know, when you have the courage to open up your eyes.In the same evening, I also saw 'Harrison Bergeron' (1995), another story-teller, and now I'm having trouble finding MOVIES (you know, the ones that you can watch beyond their first 10 minutes).So, if you're comfortably numb (as Pink Floyd put it a few decades back), stay away from movies like this one.
AD
