Death of a Salesman (1985)

I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

It's rare when a writer creates characters as real, deep and engaging as Arthur Miller did here. It's sad, I feel, to see him throw a lot of that out the window because he wants a tragic ending more than anything else.I feel Miller does that in "Death of a Salesman." In Willie Loman, he creates a very believable character we care about. The portrayal here by Dustin Hoffman is excellent.I will not to spoil the end for anyone who hasn't seen it, but the conclusion is my chief objection. It does not feel believable for the character. It does feel imposed by the author, and it smacks of a young writer wanting to make a name by amping up the drama. History shows he succeeded; unfortunately, for me, somewhere along the line the point of truth is passed.But there is a lot to like here. This production makes the bright red walls of encroaching apartments feel like more claustrophobic weight crushing the Loman family. Kate Reid and Stephen Lang are totally in character as the wife and son. John Malkovich turns in a bravura performance during the scene where Biff catches his father a little too unexpectedly in a Boston hotel room; it's hard to imagine anyone playing the scene more powerfully. At other times, curiously, Malkovich's Biff feels less a part of the family than the other characters.That discovery scene between Biff and Willie is really enough tragedy for any one play; Miller didn't need more.

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.

Throughout the movie we are constantly reminded that there is nothing special about Willy, he is simply an aging man with a family and a dream. Yet, because he is so average, any one who as ever experienced hardship can connect with him; Arthur Miller's character, via Dustin Hoffman, is able to reach anybody. Arthur Miller's original screenplay is a work of art in its self, however, Hoffman gives a spectacular performance. And, with John Malkovich's fine supporting performance, the movie becomes, truly, powerful. The movie has a very definitive ending, but it leaves the watcher with a question to reflect upon: Did this man with the dream really have the right dream after all.

Hoffman is an okay actor but he was not up to this role. He comes across simply as a nerdish failure of man and the film misses Miller's point entirely. Possibly the director deserves the blame but the film is a great disappointment. It's not worth seeing.Compare his performance to Lee J. Cobb's tour de force in '66. Cobb breathes life and spirit into this tragic man. And the supporting cast is flawless. Frederick March did a good job back in the '51 film but Cobb IS Willie Loman. He owns the role and trying to replace him is like Steve Martin trying to be Peter Sellars. Some actors just own certain roles and Cobb owns SALESMAN.If you're interesting in seeing this film, get the Lee J. Cobb version. It's the real thing!