Death of a Salesman (1985)
Grade: 62
"Death of a Salesman" may be the Great American Tragedy. No matter how many other successful plays Arthur Miller may have had, he will always be remembered for bringing Willy Loman to life. In 1984, Dustin Hoffman was cast as Willy in a Broadway revival. Most of the cast was retained for a broadcast television production. Volker Schlondorff, whose entire previous career was spent in Germany and France, became the director.
The story is depressing and even disturbing, as it has the effect of challenging the viewer to consider the value of his or her own life. Willy has spent his adult life as a struggling salesman, and has lived under the delusion that he and his family were destined for success, even greatness. His wife Linda (Kate Reid) knows the truth, but participates in his husband's delusions since dreams are all that he has left.
But now Willy's dreams are shattered. Prematurely senile, he is fired from his longtime job and lives on handouts from his old friend Charley (Charles Durning). Son Biff (John Malkovich) is jobless and a kleptomaniac. Son Happy (Stephen Lang) is a cynical womanizer. A broken man, Willy is considering suicide. As the story unfolds, it is finally made clear why Biff has been such a failure, with the blame seeping into Willy's life as well.
The play also ironically contrasts the parenting skills of Willy and Charley. Willy lives for his two sons, and showers attention on them. Charley takes little interest in his nerdy son Bernard (David S. Chandler), who nonetheless becomes an important lawyer.
"Death of a Salesman" is not an enjoyable film to watch. The title gives away the ending, and casts a gloomy pall over an already depressing storyline. If most folks live a life of quiet desperation, Willy has graduated to the next level. While downbeat films have made great cinema before (e.g. "The Lost Weekend"), it doesn't happen here.
"Death of a Salesman" did well at the Golden Globes (in the television movie category). Hoffman won Best Actor, while Malkovich and Reid were nominated for their Supporting roles. The film was also nominated for Best Picture. Hoffman and Malkovich also won Emmy awards.
kollers@mpsi.net http://members.tripod.com/~Brian_Koller/movies.html
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