A Life in the Theatre

A few years ago I had the chance to see this play on Broadway and was reminded that many years I had bought the video secondhand at a rental store. Soon there after I find out, that that production would be re-issued on DVD by Warner Archives, it had to be ordered. And I did and now I have it. A classic of modern day theater.

A youngish Matthew Broderick, Jack Lemmon doing what the older Jack Lemmon did all the time...and it's David Mamet. OK - so it's not Glengarry but it's an interesting, quirky at times, well-written story. Funny here, sad there. And if you've ever hung out with Civic Theater people - it's kind of familiar. Kind of sweet.Hey - it was a made-for-TV movie and it's selling for 4 bucks. I'd recommend it.

70 minutes of your life you will never get back.

David Mamet. You either love him or ya hate 'em. I loved  Glengarry Glen Ross . Loved it. Watch it regularly. Know the lines by heart. This film adaptation of A Life in the Theatre came out the very next year, and naturally I hoped to enjoy it equally. Nothing could have been further from the truth.A Life in the Theatre is a cheap retelling of the classic Steinbeck tale, Of Mice and Men. Unlike that classic Steinbeck tale, A Life in the Theatre is full of worthless words and unlikable people. Jack Lemmon is as fine an actor as always. Watching him *play* an actor is an interesting twist, although truth be told, so many of his mannerisms here are carbon copies of the Shelly Levene character from GGR. Matthew Broderick is just plain rubbish here, seemingly uncomfortable in finding a connection between his youthful  indiscretions  and his mid-life  crisis .The first time I watched this, I gave up halfway. Then I tried it again from the start and toughed it out. I wish I hadn't. If you want Mamet and Lemmon, just watch GGR. If you want Broderick at his theatrical best, see  The Producers .The DVD is now for sale on Amazon, but you don't want to buy it, anyway.

David Mamet is a playwright that sometimes I like and other times I don't.His "Glengarry, Glen Ross" is perhaps his most known and most stinging satirical look at realtors.Now Mamet takes a similar look at stage actors.His play "Life in the Theatre" he has teleplayed to the screen and added soundtrack as he follows two actors, the aging Robert (Jack Lemmon) and the up and coming John (Matthew Broderick) in and out of their dressing room and on and off the stage.No other characters speak in this word play drama (that is always Mamet) and the dialog stays firmly rooted in the two actors who are dealing with professional jealousies and overinflated egos.Fortunately, this teleplay rune only 78 minutes.Watching two people only can get very monotonous,but the acting of Lemmon is the real heart of this play.He is the most conflicted character.He is the one who "never shuts up." He is the one with the most to fear losing as he ages. Broderick's "John" merely listens and responds with a lot of "yesses." John barely can get a word in.These characters represent the actor on the rise and the actor on the decline and their need to listen and learn from each other.

This is a great translation of play to movie. Yes, it's about theatre, yes it has no plot, yes there is no cast. It's still got great dialogue and great direction by theatre giant Gregory Mosher.I liked Fences, and I liked this.