Although his background in theatre has made him something of a guru, David Mamet had enough experience of Hollywood to craft this ingenious, intelligent comedy about the business. He wrote and directed State and Main, which details the making of a fictional film called The Old Mill, with a film-crew descending on a Vermont town for an extremely troubled shoot. Phillip Seymour Hoffman is Walt, the unfortunate writer who finds his words habitually and consistently undermined by the filming process, with Alec Baldwin sending himself up beautifully as Bob, a star with a penchant for teenagers, and there’s accomplished support from William H Macy, Sarah Jessica Parker and David Paymer. There’s a great plot twist involving an elaborate deception, and a super joke about product placement too; Mamet knows his stuff, but is patient enough to craft a sophisticated and comical drama that lets the audience in on the joke.
State and Main 2000 ***
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