It could be me but there seems to have been a real dearth of good comedy films in recent years. Where the genre did rear it's head we got puerile, shock-tactic, teen flicks, of which only Meet the Parents consistently maintained a high level of humour. Here, however, is a film to restore all your faith in old-fashioned, good natured comedy.
Writer/director David Mamet has done this all before. In Wag the Dog, directing Robert De Niro and Dustin Hoffman, he took a swipe at both the very heart of the American political system and the film industry. State and Main is in the same vein, as it follows the doomed shooting of a period drama by a flawed, almost screwball film crew.
When forced to move from their original location in New Hampshire, the director (William H. Macy) stumbles uopn the small town of Waterford, Vermont, a place stuck firmly in the mid-20th century. Taking advantage of the gullible townsfolk and it's cheap, convenient location the place is soon swamped by actors, scriptwriters, costume designers and cameramen. However, The Old Mill, the centrepiece of the film and coincidentally it's title, burnt down 40 years earlier and so Macy converses with the nervy, first time scriptwriter (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and asks him to adapt the script, in the process compromising both his self-confidence and his integrity as a writer. Pretty soon however Hoffman is falling in love with the local bookstore owner, whose shunned fiancee becomes intent on squeezing a commisssion for the town from the film's potential takings.
Where Mamet excels however is in the creation of such ridiculous characters. Before long the film's leading man Bob Berenger (Alex Baldwin) is showing his fondness for young girls ("Well, everyone's gotta have a hobby!") and the leading lady (Sarah Jessica Parker) is refusing to undress for her nude scene, whilst the producer is intent on corporate sponsorship, in particular a product placement for an internet company, Bazoomer.com. As the film slowly turns into a circus and Berenger is accused of statutory rape, the town descends into chaos, fuelled by national scandal and the fury of the Mayor's wife. State and Main is an intelligent and incredibly witty satire, poking fun at film industry characters and politics, small town America, human error and greed.
There are some fantastic performances, most notably from Macy as the determined, ambitious director who can flit between charm and viciousness in a split second and Hoffman, putting in another fantastic showing as the warm and fragile scriptwriter. The script itself is the real winner, filled with constant one-lines and visual gags., Despite it's relatively quiet release, State and Main is one of the sharpest most genuinely funny comedy films of recent times. |
