Mamet can write, his pacing is great, the actors understand the dialogue, and the "Sweet Liberty" concept has been updated sans Alan Alda's cloying squawk (i.e., a Hollywood movie comes to small town USA [Vermont]). Alec Badlwin, Sarah Jessica Parker, and David Paymer get special mention for crisp delivery of Mamet-speak. Mamet's wife, Rebecca Pidgeon, like Mamet's last wife, Lindsay Crouse, like Mamet regular Joe Mantegna, attacks Mamet's dialogue ravenously. The effect is stilted, a little more so because the rest of the ensemble is incorporating Mamet's trademark dialogue into their own styles, rather that allowing the words to dominate their performance. So, sometimes, Pigeon is dead-on in delivery. Other times, her lines are weird.
Other than that, solid yuks, a smart depiction, a patented Mamet double-double, and constant, clever juxtaposition make State and Main a very good film. B+.
