‘Greatest cast ever assembled’ in under-rated film with ‘single greatest cameo’ | Films | Entertainment
Al Pacino is one of several actors who give outstanding performances in this film (Image: Getty)
If someone asked you to name Al Pacino’s best film, the chances are you’d name The Godfather, The Godfather Part Two or Heat. You might even name Scent of a Woman, which was the film that bagged him his only best actor Oscar (though he was nominated nine times).
But there is another film, far less famous, that many consider to be his finest. So good is the cast, in fact, that in one ranking of the actors’ performances in the film, Pacino only comes fifth out of seven — despite the fact that he was nominated for an Academy Award for his efforts.
The film is Glengarry Glen Ross, which came out in 1992 with a cast of remarkable acting talent. As well as Pacino, the film stars Jack Lemmon, Alec Baldwin, Kevin Spacey, Alan Arkin, Ed Harris and Jonathan Pryce. But it’s not simply a film with a lot of big names. Each performance is extraordinary.
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The film is based on the 1984 Pulitzer Prize winning play of the same name by David Mamet. It has a rating of 95% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes. It tells the story of an office of real estate salesmen in New York City who become increasingly desperate when they are told at the start of the film that all but the two top performers among them will be fired at the end of the week.
This news is delivered by Baldwin, who fans credit with the “single greatest cameo of all time” for his opening monologue, with lines including: “Put that coffee down! Coffee’s for closers only” and “First prize is a Cadillac El Dorado. Second prize is a set of steak knives. Third prize is you’re fired.”
As a result, some of the salesmen come up with a plan to steal a list of sale leads but one of them slips up and implicates himself in the crime.
Al Pacino and Jack Lemmon in Glengarry Glen Ross (Image: Getty)
According to reports, the film’s modest budget meant the actors took significant pay cuts. Pacino reportedly cut his price from $6 million per movie to $1.5 million, Lemmon was paid $1 million and Baldwin received $250,000. Baldwin’s cameo is the only part of the film not in the original play and was reportedly written explicitly to get him to take part. He reportedly said on being asked to take part: “I’ve read 25 scripts and nothing is as good as this. OK. If you make it, I’ll do it.”
Lemmon, whose previous ilms included Some Like It Hot, The Odd Couple and JFK, is quoted as saying: “Some of the best damn actors you’re ever going to see came in and read and I’m talking about names.”
What critics say about Glengarry Glen Ross
Glengarry Glen Ross reportedly made only $10 million at the box office, which was below its $12 million budget. But that didn’t stop critics and viewers from being blown away by it. Rita Kempley of the Washington Post said it has “an ensemble cast with the combined power of a runaway locomotive”.
Writing in The Guardian 30 years after the film’s release, Scott Tobin says: ”It isn’t often that a single film includes so many top-paragraph-in-the-obituary performances, but the cast of Glengarry Glen Ross seems to draw out the most from one another, as if they keep setting and resetting the high bar. With virtuosos like Pacino and Lemmon playing the notes, even a 100-minute burning ulcer can seem like a night at the symphony.”
On Reddit earlier this year, one fan said: “Glengarry Glen Ross has the single greatest cameo of all time. Alec Baldwin. He comes in at the beginning of the film. Gives one of the best one scene performances of all time. Then just strolls out of the door leaving you in a state of shock. He’s in the film for like 10 minutes and gives a performance of a lifetime.”
Another added: “Pacino — and the rest of the cast — were on top of their game in this flick. I still stand by this being the greatest ensemble cast ever assembled on the strength of their performances.”
Is Glengarry Glen Ross the best cast of all time?
These are other films that could claim to have the best cast ever assembled for a film.
Short Cuts: Tim Robbins, Jack Lemmon, Robert Downey Jr, Matthew Modine, Julianne Moore, Andie MacDowell, Frances McDormand, Jennifer Jason Leigh
Gosford Park: Maggie Smith, Michael Gambon, Kristin Scott Thomas, Charles Dance, Tom Hollander, Richard E Grant, Helen Mirren, Clive Owen, Emily Watson
Pulp Fiction: Bruce Willis, Samuel L Jackson, John Travolta, Tim Roth, Harvey Keitel, Christopher Walken, Uma Thurman
How The West Was Won: John Wayne, James Stewart, Gregory Peck, Henry Fonda
The Godfather: Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall, James Caan, Al Pacino, Diane Keaton
Glengarry Glen Ross is available to watch on ITVX Premium.
