...OK, let's get it out on the table, right here and now...though, in all honesty, there'd be little-to-no surprise or disagreement, in the proclamation. With countless notable, significant, and yes, acclaimed roles credit to him, stemming as far back as...well, as far back as however long this reviewer has set foot in life (...uh nope, we don't need to
go there; we just have to say, yes, it's
that far back)...well, let's just come out and say it: Dustin Hoffman is one of the greatest American actors, if not
the greatest American actor of the past half-century. There's very few productions, indelibly etched in Dustin's wide-spectrum of films which, given a specific title, doesn't strike most with a sense of deep affection, familiarity and appreciation...not so much in the film title itself, or even the subject matter depicted, but more so, those which bear Dustin's unique and well-accomplished stamp alone. One of those actors whom has starred in many a film, often good...rarely bad, but despite how good or bad the film might have been, Dustin's performance has, for the most part, has always managed to shine through, and that affect...especially if the particular film wasn't particular good...has at least raised the film up, from what might have been considered 'bad', by definition, to at the very least, significant...
...and amazingly enough, Dustin has accomplished all this, by way of things 'despite', as well as 'as the result of'. As the result of an unswerving, unflinching and demanding perfection of performance. Despite an often media-spotlighted reputation of being one of the most difficult actors to work with. As the result of maintaining an effortless ability to transition his abilities from the silver screen, to the live theater stage, and vice-versa. Despite a measure of angst and expressed criticism of the Hollywood arena...it's tendencies to assume to know what the public wants, versus knowing what the public
actually wants...which even in this, Dustin has eloquently weathered, by way of extraordinary performances that, by setting the bar higher than that, satisfies his own embraced devotion to the art, and at the same time...with little-to-no exception, entertains a most appreciative audience. As the result of never 'playing it safe'...unless such a safe 'play' amuses him...by effortlessly taking on the most challenging and eclectically varied roles, resulting in some of the most memorable characters, set to celluloid. Despite a seemingly vain, though whole-heartedly and well-meaning sense of advisory to peers and underlings alike, with regards to how difficult it often is, in getting into 'the life', and maintaining said 'life'...something further expressed in his performances, suggestively, which for the most part, seem almost as instructional, as they are entertaining...
...hey, let's face it: Dustin has standards, and well...as a viewing audience, after all these years, we've come to appreciate those standards, by way of a subsequent appreciation of his extraordinary performances. Performances like...well, like...
...Donny Dubrow (Dennis Franz) runs a little hole-in-the-wall junket antique shop...the kind of dark, dusty and dimly lit antique shop which might be interesting to look and browse through, but hardly interesting enough to consider a purchase in, with the scant of any real treasures haphazardly intermixed with the non-treasures, as the proprietor of this establishment seems, for the most part, clueless as to the value of anything that might be of genuine value, in his own shop. And it is in the midst of that very ignorance, which Donny finds himself in the throes of a desire for comeuppance. It seems that a local coin collector, browsing through Danny's shop, stumbled across a coin, amidst the dusty, second-hand baubles, and eventually purchases the coin, with a conspicuous sort of yawningly unexcited matter-of-fact; suspicious of the coin collector's behavior, as he calmly walks out of the shop, Donny takes this opportunity to look up some resources on the coin...and is hit with a blast of aghast, when he finds out that the coin is worth considerably more...a
lot more than the settled price, in which the coin collector dealt out to Donny...
...in wayward conversation, Donny relates the aggravating purchase transaction to his best friend, Teach (Dustin Hoffman)...a weaselly sort of low-level, out-of-work opportunist...paranoid, distrusting, self-serving frenetic, impatient...even a bit sociopathic...and to Donny's affect, quite manipulative. So much so, in fact, that after having heard of Donny's ignorant admittance with the coin purchase transaction, and his resulting, albeit underlining desire for some sort of payback on a situation where he feels he has been cheated in, Teach goads & encourages Donny in his desires, and helps him plan out a covert intrusion and theft of the coin collector's prized collection, in an effort to retrieve the valuable coin, now parted...with an equally underlining intent of getting a piece of the action, for himself...
...however, Teach becomes invariably put off at Donny's proposal of the unfolding, albeit ill-planned caper, when he insists upon bringing not only another associate onto the plan (...an unseen character, named Fletch), but also, a young street kid, Bobby, whom Donny has sort of taken under his wing. Bobby...himself, a recovering drug addict and street criminal...maintaining an appreciation & admiration for Donny, and as such, in always looking for a chance to prove his worth to his mentor, volunteers his inside-man abilities to Donny's reckless cause. When Fletch's involvement in the caper falls through, and Teach's distrust, impatience & self-serving desires grow, the whole scenario reaches a heightened, heated and fatefully unfortunate crescendo, which deeply...and to a good measure, fatally affects the three protagonists, in ways that neither of them could have expected...
...now, in engaging this cinematic rendering of playwright David Mamet's acclaimed stage production, one cannot help but consider that very thing...the realization that "American Buffalo" had indeed originated on the stage, something that's invariably evident in considering the setting of the film is primarily exclusive to the confines of the antique shop. And as is often observed, how one watches and absorbs the proceedings when watching a stage production, versus a film, is considerably different; providing that the dialogue, as well as the performances are as intriguing as it is engaging, a transition from stage to screen can be, for the most part, amiable and smooth...or at times, quite trying, as far as one's attention. Let's face it: a film's limited/measured shot-to-shot movement, as opposed to a stage production's wide-open scene-to-scene movement, does have an effect on how engaging the proceedings of either stage or screen, invariably are. And in the case of "American Buffalo"...well, as intriguing and engaging as the dialogue and storyline might have been on stage, unsuspecting viewers of the film version, despite the extraordinary talent involved in the production, might find themselves as restless and impatient as actor Dustin Hoffman's character, Teach...
...that's not to say that any of the seasoned and fledgling performers have anything to do with this 'it worked on stage, but was hard pressed to work on film' stigma...far be it, in fact. Dustin Hoffman's easily standout captivating performance as the weaselly and manipulative 'Teach', is a fascinating character study...yet another captivating character in his repertoire. All due credit to Hoffman's dedicatedly in-depth portrayal, there's no denying the character's conniving, self-serving intent, which is veiled in a thicket of seemingly, though meaningfully random interwoven verbal banter about people, food, life and his amassed sense of street wisdom. Amusingly enough, in a bit of irony, Teach rambles on, amidst conversation with Donny, about a couple of lesbians named Ruth and Grace; however, as his patience wears thin, in the course of the film, Teach eventually reveals himself to be quite grace-less, as well as ruth-less...
...initially, Donny...as portrayed by actor Dennis Franz, amiably parlaying with Dustin's Teach, scene-for-scene...comes off as someone who might merely fantasize certain possibilities, but in the end, left to his own vices, pretty much might be seen as one who is bitter at having been duped, as the result of his ignorance, but in the long run, would resign himself to care less, either way...with a shoulder-shrugging 'aw well'. And if
that was the case...well, end of story, right then and there. But not in
this case, of course...and herein enters the affect of his friend, Teach, who slyly manipulates Donny...indulging and encouraging his 'fantasized possibilities' into a much more determined, though invariably and eventually crumbled reality...
...and lastly, though hardly negligible...we have actor Sean Nelson, holding his own quite well, in working with the more seasoned Hoffman and Franz; Having made a respectable performance impact in his inaugural stint, as the trapped and tragic drug pusher, in 1994's powerful "Fresh", Sean makes the most out of what might be considered a minor and negligible role, as the naive, vulnerable and impressionable Bobby...a waif of a street person...so impressed by the 'seasoned wisdom' of Donny and Teach...grasping for any opportunity to prove himself, garnish some respect...both in himself, as well as from others, and eventually rise above the dreck, which by his will or by some fate, life has immersed him into....
...acclaimed screen writer and playwright David Mamet...best known for scripts containing the most compelling of characters, eliciting some of the most clever, poignant and snappy dialogue (...points in case, "Glengarry Glen Ross", "Wag the Dog" and "Speed the Plow", amongst many others)...admittedly, is better known for his stage productions, than film, and as such, the literary transition from stage to screen, with regards to his work, has sometimes been sort of 'touch & go', with some finding an amiable and format-appreciative translation, and others...while otherwise quite adeptly written...have fallen measurably flat and negligible. With regards to "American Buffalo"...a stage production which Mamet initially hit the scene with, and garnished early critical acclaim for, as far back as the early '70's, on the cusp of his earlier success on "Sexual Perversity in Chicago, a year earlier (...the latter of which was later, amiably and amusingly translated to the screenplay of 1986's "...about last night")...in as much as the characters in the film are compelling...a clear testament to the actors, playing the roles...the storyline proceedings depicted on film, which may have played more comfortably on the stage...seem tedious and patience testing herein, not unlike listening to someone telling a story about the story one
really wants to hear, but ultimately never hears...a finger-tapping, eye-rolling build-up to something that never happens...or at least, doesn't happen the way one hopes...
...Twilight Time's print of the film is a fraction dingy, murky, dull and brownish...but this actually works in favor of the film, considering the dark and almost claustrophobic setting of the film, even in the scant moments when the characters are loitering outside of the antique shop. Extras on the limited edition disc include the original trailer, as well as insightful commentary by film historians Nick Redman and Julie Kirgo...
...on the stage, "American Buffalo" might well have been a poignant, flavorful and ironic opportunist look at three down-on-their-luck losers, aspiring to something better...despite the odds against them as well as a certain measure of disillusionment and distrust amongst them...by way of an ill-planned caper; however, on the screen, these proceedings translate in to something more akin to 'much ado about nothing'...like waiting for the other foot to fall, something that never seems to happen here. Ultimately, it is the compelling character portrayals by some rather extraordinary talent, both seasoned and fresh, which make this one stand out, as opposed to the actual patience-tasking goings-on...
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