David Mamet in a sense remakes "House of Games." This
go 'round, Campbell Scott gets to play the Lindsay Crouse
character, a protagonist caught up in deception and intrigue that
repeatedly appeals to his vanity, greed and Good Samaritanism.
And of course, if you have the latter in a Mamet production, bad
things usually happen.
In short, Scott has invented something valuable. All I can say
for fear of too much revelation.
Punctuated with the odd style of Mamet's prose (repeated lines,
much interjection with no real interruption, stagy, short
speeches), Scott doesn't really fill the bill as the recipient of
constant stroking and temptation, but his role is that of a
pinball, so he's fine. Steve Martin and Rebecca Pidgeon fare
better as the enticements to Scott's "Boy Scout."
Remember, though, it's Mamet, so everyone is largely bloodless.
Dim and static, Mamet's direction is capable, but nothing really
stands out. Rather, his quirky language, and his overriding themes of "Trust no one, and when you do, you're
fucked, and even when you're fucked, boy, you don't know what a
fucking is" dominate the film.
"House of Games" is better. Still, I recommend
"The Spanish Prisoner" because I like Mamet, it is
professional, the characters do the Mamet dance well, and it is
always intelligent and often engaging.
