Death of a Salesman

source: Death of a Salesman

Trailer—Death of a Salesman

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source: Death of a Salesman

I will not insist on the plot which is so well-known that to ignore it is a proof of incompetent a-social behavior. I will insist here on the performance of Dustin Hoffman, hence on the particular rendition of this play that is kept as a play with real sound stages like in the old days of the thirties or forties. Dustin Hoffman makes this Willy Loman a lot worse than I was used to read it. He is shown, and as soon as his prime, at least, when his sons are in high school, some seventeen years before, he is shown was I saying as a completely paranoid and deranged person. Not deranged because of some kind of gene. But deranged because first of all he got and kept a job even when he was failing, though he was not done for that job. A salesman has to be a born hypocrite and has to be a conqueror: any argument is good provided it brings in the proper signature. So he is rather misplaced and his derangement comes from that misplacement. What's more he was discovered in his total hypocrisy, though in no way commercial and hence unacceptable from the salesmanship point of view since this woman was bringing him nothing but was costing him a lot, by his own son who was coming after him to get the help he needed, but a help that could only be effective if it were based on the truth, truthfulness, confidence, trust. And Willy Loman was lower than low at that moment. It threw his son into some totally absurd and paranoid a-social attitude, a derangement of its own due to the misplacement of his trust in his own father. When that trust was placed back where it belonged, that is to say in the trashcan, the son only had his eyes to cry, his fingers to steal, his flesh to suffer, in prison if necessary. This film pushes the character of Willy Loman slightly too far and his derangement explains then his suicide: he completely lost control of himself. But I would assert the idea that this is not true of that character who in fact commits suicide when he discovers and finally understands that he had not forgotten that silly episode of his son discovering him in the cradle of the revolution with another woman than his mother. I would like to believe that this last act in his life is not the result of his derangement but of his last flash of guilt for having failed and cheated so many people, in a word a suicide of divine justice coming from the last flash of consciousness of that man who might have been able to be anything but a loser. Even if I disagree with the vision of Schlondorff, I must say the rendering of the character, the acting of the actor and at times the overbearing-ness of the over-acting of the actor is absolutely remarkable and logical and of one piece from beginning to end. That man is not old. That man is not worn out. That man is not vain. That man is not a perambulating lie. That man is sick in his head, crazy, deranged to the extreme point of insanity and thus extremely dangerous since he projects his hatred of that unbearable situation onto everyone around him, even, and particularly, those who love him. Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne, University Paris 8 Saint Denis, University Paris 12 Créteil, CEGID

Arthur Miller's "Death of A Salesman" has been hailed as one of the all-time great American plays. Through the character and family of Willy Loman, Miller's text effectively butchers the American dream, the idea that if you work very hard at whatever you do you will become a success. This film version of the play can't seem to decide whether it wants to be a film, or a filmed stage performance. Fortunately, through some solid performances, it overcomes this potentially debilitating flaw to deliver a moving and thought-provoking drama. Willy Loman (Dustin Hoffman) is a man living in the past. Deny it though he might, his life has become a failure. He is trapped in a staid, illusory relationship with his wife Linda (Kate Reid), his two sons Biff (John Malkovich) and Happy (Stephen Lang) are hopeless drifters, and the company he has worked for for thirty-six years decides to throw him on the scrapheap. All the hopes and high ideals he had for his family have gone to dust. Realizing this, Willy enters a personal decline which can only end in tragedy... The film's sets nearly kill the picture. It is apparent right from the first shot that the movie has been filmed entirely on a soundstage. This is disappointing, as the story could have done without this and benefited from a truly cinematic adaptation. Things do improve technically, however. There is some wonderful lensing between Willy's random flashbacks (which show how his life has disintegrated) and the present day. If the entire film had been like this, it would have raised the standard from a good film to an excellent film. In nearly every scene, Dustin Hoffman takes centre-stage as Willy Loman. Using a lot of nervous tics and nuances (present in so many of his roles), Hoffman deftly charts Loman's self-realization and eventual demise. John Malkovich is a picture of soured idealism as his eldest son Biff, and Kate Reid captures the despairing, misplaced loyalty of Willy's long-suffering wife. In other roles, Jon Polito is on good form is Willy's much younger boss, as is Louis Zorich as his brother Ben (Willy's complete opposite - a strong-willed, charismatic, successful entrepreneur). The play is depressingly honest, in a thought-provoking way. There are many Willy Lomans out there, making the wrong choices, trying to live (through blind faith or ignorance) up to false or unrealistic ideals and impressing the consequences of those choices and ideals on those around them. This is a very universal and identifiable situation, and the principal reason the play has become so popular. This film manages to capture that, but not quite in a wholly cinematic way. It remains a stagey but still compelling version of this timeless classic play.

Many people seem to bash Dustin Hoffman for his choice of character for Willy Loman on the simple basis that it is different or not how they envisioned the character. What would our world of theatre be like if all productions of a play were done the exactly the same? I too was surprised at the way the character's in this movie were portrayed, but I was pleased that all of these brilliant actors created something new and powerful. People need to stop being so close-minded about their visions and expectations and realize that these actors have thought a lot more about their characters than any audience, and it shows through in their vibrant characters. Alex North does a great job at creating the mood with a passionate score that accents the utterly amazing script by, in my opinion, one of the greatest playwrights of all time. This is a must see drama which makes the audience think about the false "American Dream" we hold so dear. Watch this movie with an open mind and you will love everything about it.

Arthur Miller's compelling work is deftly translated to the small screen here, with riveting performances by Dustin Hoffman as Willy Loman, Kate Reid as Willy's wife Linda, and John Malkovich as the prodigal son Biff. This work touches my soul on several levels: sympathy for the fallen man Willy, understanding of the difficulty of both hating your father and wanting him to be proud of you as Biff shows, and the ever-protective enabler Linda, who defends Willy even as she sees him failing before her eyes. Miller took a simple American family struggling to make life work, and made each character in their own way extraordinary.

Willy Loman is a salesman, who gets no salary anymore and works with mere commission.He's 63 years old and he's tired of traveling around the country.His wife Linda understands him and loves him.His sons, Biff and Happy are visiting home.Willy has a troubled relationship with Biff.His son once loved and admired his father very much.It all changed when he found out about his father's crime, of committing adultery. Loman is losing his mind.He can be living two times at the same time.He steps from today's world into the past, mostly those joyful times of his life.He speaks with his now deceased brother Ben, who went to Africa and became a wealthy man.I read the original play by Arthur Miller that was published in 1949 pretty recently and liked it very much.Volker Schlöndorff's Death of a Salesman (1985) is a movie version of that.It was seen on Broadway a year earlier.All of the actors are remarkable.There's not one weak performance.Dustin Hoffman, what a perfect choice to play Willy Loman.He's always great but this time he really tops himself.Kate Reid gives a strong performance as Linda Loman.John Malkovich and Stephen Lang are great as the sons, also as the younger versions of them.Louis Zorich is really brilliant as Ben Loman.Charles Durning is excellent as Willy's neighbor and only friend Charley.And so is David S. Chandler as his son Bernard.Jon Polito gives a good performance as Willy's boss Howard.Linda Kozlowski is wonderful as Miss Forsythe.And so is Kathryn Rossetter as Woman from Boston.The strength of the play is in the characters.You care about many of them. you hope something good would happen to Willy, despite his flaws.The title of the play gives away the ending but it's intriguing to find out what events led to that.Death of a Salesman is a great American play and this a great movie made of that play.

'Death of a Salesman' is a well-made, well-told story, but above it's merits as a story, it's the performances by it's actors, Dustin Hoffman & John Malkovich, that stand out & shine the brightest. 'Death of a Salesman' Synopsis: An aging traveling salesman recognizes the emptiness of his life and tries to fix it. Based on the 1949 play of the same name by Arthur Miller, 'Death of a Salesman' succeeds by becoming an absorbing cinematic tale as well. It efficiently structures the story of an aged man, who is on the verge of killing himself. The Writing Material is engaging & very human, if I may say so. Volker Schlöndorff Directs this story, with maturity. Hoffman & Malkovich, as mentioned before, stand out with their performances & shine the brightest, they overshadow the narrative, to a large extend. Hoffman is astonishing as an aging traveling salesman, while Malkovich is magnificent as his troubled son. They both deliver legendary, unforgettable performances, that deserve immense praise. Among other performers, Kate Reid does exceedingly well as the wife of the salesman. On the whole, A story worth watching, with 2 impeccable performances coming in-tact with it.