It’s hard to pin down David Mamet – copywriter, director, writer etc etc and this entry here is not about how to do that. Rather, it’s about celebrating his art. Mr. Mamet’s art is different. He builds his characters with little complexity and yet, we’re astonished when they act in ways that surprise us.
His dialog is direct, focused, thrilling, to-the-point, unambiguous and compact. Every single line is loaded. That, in itself, is an art.
Consider some of his most memorable lines :
1. “Never feel sorry for a man who owns a plane.” – The Edge.
2. “Brazilian princess marries a soldier. Five years later, the guy’s still pumping gas. Girl’s gotta make a living.” – RedBelt
3. “You see this watch? This watch cost more than your car.” – Glengarry Glen Ross
Interestingly, in today’s Hollywood, there are very few old-style testosterone-powered male icons. Sure, once in a while Bruce Willis acts in a good movie or Clint Eastwood comes out with Gran Torino, but that’s the most machismo that we get these days. Will Smith does do his thing with his CGI enhanced action movies – I did like iRobot a lot and Hugh Jackman as the anti-hero Wolverine keeps the aggravated and yet good anti-hero alive.
Nothing wrong with the anti-hero. Their worlds are dark and and fiery. A man’s gotta do, what a man has to do else he’s just part of the furniture. but, I digress.
Mr. Mamet’s brand has come to stay. I loved ‘The Spanish Prisoner’, Glengarry Glen Ross, House of Games, The Verdict, The Edge, Ronin, Heist, Spartan and finally RedBelt.
Mr. Mamet’s style of writing dialog is so distinctive and precise that it came to be called Mamet speak (Note the use of clever personal branding though not of his doing but simply because of his talent). He often uses italics and quotation marks to highlight particular words and to draw attention to his characters’ frequent manipulation and deceitful use of language. His characters frequently interrupt one another, their sentences trail off unfinished, and their dialog overlaps. Mamet himself has criticized his (and other writers’) tendency to write “pretty” at the expense of sound, logical plots.
Concept Check : Mr. Mamet is a prime example of excellent positioning. He has positioned himself as a unique multi-talented individual in Hollywood, with a style that very few can replicate. Positioning is what a company does when they try to place a product, service or idea in the minds of their customers. they do this using a variety of techniques right from determining the brand name, crafting the brand identity, delivering the brand message through a variety of media channels and promoting the same through point-of-sale outlets, partnerships etc.
Of course, to get into someone’s mind, it’s essential to be first because no one remembers who came second. But, if you cant help it and have to face off with a #2, work on your positioning strategy. Good examples include Miller Lite – these guys weren’t the first light beer, but they positioned themselves in the mind of their consumers as a light offering. Ditto for Avis – Gotta love that tag live – We try harder.
I’m going to end this blog post with some more lines of my favorite screenwriter and director.
“Gold – Makes the world go around. Some people say love. It is love. Love of gold”
“Everybody needs money. That’s why they call it money”
“Nobody lives forever. Frank Sinatra gave it a shot.”
“I subscribe to the law of contrary public opinion… If everyone thinks one thing, then I say, bet the other way…”
“Worry is like interest paid in advance on a debt that never comes due.”
“Always do business as if the person you’re doing business with is trying to screw you, because he probably is. And if he’s not, you can be pleasantly surprised.”
“You now have a Swiss bank account if anybody asks. Crédit Nationale Du Génève code name ‘PADDY’. Lavish awkward gesture. All of fifteen Swiss Francs in it, but if you ever want to impress anybody, they can find out you have a Swiss account. But, Swiss law prohibits the bank from revealing the balance. Thus are all men made equal.”
