The Spanish Prisoner (1997)

☆ ☆ ☆ ½

The Spanish Prisoner (1997) – D. Mamet

There was a time when David Mamet was compared to Alfred Hitchcock, at least with regard to the puzzle films he created (if not for his primary work as a playwright). House of Games (1987), his first, was probably the best of these films.  Then, there seemed to be a distinct dropping off in quality – I don’t even recall his last two features, Spartan (2004) or Redbelt (2008), but they do suggest the macho one-ups-man-ship that has also been a hallmark (or target) of his work (see also his Glengarry Glen Ross, 1992, directed by James Foley).  Returning now to The Spanish Prisoner (1997), I was pleased to discover the twists and turns of the classic con-game film, even if it took a few minutes to get used to the stylized literary dialogue (and they way the actors speak it).  Campbell Scott plays an inventor (of the MacGuffin, or “Process”) who promises his boss (Ben Gazzara) that he will protect the company secrets, even as he begins to worry that he won’t be fairly remunerated.  This worry is encouraged by Jimmy Dell (Steve Martin), a rich New Yorker who Joe Ross (Scott) meets on a Caribbean island when sent there for a company meeting.  As viewers, we are quickly led to suspect Dell is not all he seems – and secretary Rebecca Pidgeon soon joins forces with Ross (and the FBI) to investigate.  But is it all too late?  Maybe.  Styled perhaps on the Hitchcockian chase thriller (as the noose tightens Ross finds himself on the run from both baddies and the cops), this is mostly prestidigitation on the surface without too much of a look at Mamet’s deeper themes. But fun enough, as the pieces slowly fit together.