La guerra de los vendedores

'Tin Men' is the most underrated comedy in film history. How's that for a bold statement? I'm sure you've heard of this movie. Many of you probably saw it. Then turned it off, and said, 'That was cute.' In fact, most will remember it more for launching the brief career of the Fine Young Cannibals. (A couple of their songs were featured in the film) I very well might have been one of you, if it hadn't been for my father's devotion to this film. It was because of him I saw it a half dozen times growing up, and much like 'The Big Lebowski' and 'Sherlock Jr.', the more I saw this film, the more I fell in love with it. 'Tin Men' is about two aluminum siding salesmen (working for competing companies) who get into a car accident, and both believing the other is to blame, decide to get revenge on one another. Richard Dreyfuss and Danny Devito (two of the more underrated actors around) deliver some of the funniest scenes you'll ever see. Things get complicated when Dreyfuss attempts to infuriate Devito by sleeping with his wife, only to fall in love with her. DeVito plays an emotional and financial disaster, struggling to keep his head above water, while tidal waves are crashing down all around him. (And does so, with the efficiency of a Third World sweatshop) Dreyfuss, a slick, fast- talking 'nickel and dime' hustler, whose ideas about life and love change when he discovers the truth about himself and his business through his own vindictive behavior. If you actors out there are wondering how to play 'quiet desperation' funny, rent this movie. 'Tin Men' uses a clever vernacular. Including several seemingly unnecessary dialogue driven scenes done way before dialogue driven scenes became commonplace. (See, Pulp Fiction 1994, and pretty much every movie to follow) With topics ranging from 'Bonanza' not being an accurate depiction of the West, to finding God at the smorgasborg. It also displays a devotion to detail, unparralleled by any big-budget movie of today. Everything feels real. The people, the conversation, the decor, everything.

When I watched this movie again recently I came up with an hypothesis regarding its lack of real success, or longevity. It's quite simple, and when you first say it, feels lame. But the more I think about it, I believe it may be true: Like most great movies that are under-appreciated, they aren't trying to impress us. They don't have to.

Rival aluminum-siding salesmen find themselves an increasingly hostile tit-for-tat feud spurred on by an automobile accident this Barry Levinson movie. One of two films that Levinson made in 1987, 'Tin Men' never quite found the same audience as 'Good Morning, Vietnam', which is a shame as it is arguably better, even if its lack of appeal to some is understandable. Both protagonists are, after all, very lowdown and despicable characters and while both have their occasion quirks, this is one of those films in which there is not a single likable character in sight. This is a deliberate move by Levinson though as the pair's feud is constantly contrasted against their shady business practices and salesmanship techniques, such as dropping a $5 note and insisting that it is not yours to convince a potential client of your honesty. The feud also coincides with the whole aluminum-siding industry being investigated for unfair selling practices and there is a sense that the protagonists are driven to their extremes as a result of the way they have learnt to work; "deceit is an occupational hazard" as one claims. Knowing this does not make Barbara Hershey's subplot any more credible, nor does it render either lead especially sympathetic, but it does provide some sense of perspective as the idea here is to observe how the characters operate, not to get to like them for who they are. Add in some genuinely funny moments (Dreyfuss realising that DeVito actually doesn't love his wife) and 'Tin Men' is a flawed film that still works surprisingly well. The conclusion is pitch perfect too.

Chronicles the adventures of Frazier Crane's father, Mo, before he retired to Seattle on a bum leg.

While very few Barry L movies ever make it past contrived unfunny nonsense, Tin Men is a definite winner. Barry takes us back to his revered 1960s Baltimore and the ensemble cast has graduated from Diners drifter 20 somethings, to of all things, aluminum siding peddlers on the threshold of middle age. For some inexplicable reason, its not as dumb as it sounds. The performances are, to a man (and woman in Hersheys lone case) first rate. The script witty and touching. Above all however, is Tin Men's ability to get a laugh. From the Bonanza discussions that Tarentino would later graft onto his own Reservoir Dogs, to the 'tit for tat' revenge storyline, its all very very good. Even old Richard Dreyfuss who is probably the most all round unlikeable dude to ever carry the title of 'leading man', gives an uncharacteristically suitable performance. The mincing, whining, face-making exaggerated body language, in this film all works to perfection. DeVito with his extremely limited range, again lands himself in a movie that totally welcomes his character.

You would like to have seen just how Fraziers dad (Mahoney) injured his leg, but for some reason it is not detailed here. Levinson cant help being Levinson and strangely inserts the music of the Fine Young Cannibals into a film supposedly set 25 years earlier. Go figure.

Few films can be laugh-out-loud funny and ultimately as touching and deep as this film. Most people remember the dialogue, seemingly ad-libbed during the diner scenes by the cast (Danny DeVito, Jackie Gayle, Bruno Kirby)--and that looks like the same diner that Barry Levinson used for his first movie. But the characters and their quirks are totally fleshed out before the conflict (DeVito's stiff neck, Dreyfuss's ladies' man schtick), making for a few truly hilarious lines and scenes (Gayle talking to DeVito about what a great dancer Dreyfuss is comes to mind). The movie really has a sad story underneath about very unhappy people who delight in the misfortunes of others, until Barbara Hershey's character realizes what's going on. All of these characters and story points climax in a rather sweet and yes, believable final sequence. This movie came out during a spate of late '80s blockbusters and never really found its audience, I think. But it is one of the few late '80s movies I rewatch every couple of years and find more to appreciate with each viewing. I would rank it as Levinson's best film.

I grew up with characters like Dreyfus and DeVito, hustlers out there selling anything. Somewhere between 1963 and the time the film came out, they disappeared from our streets, only to move into six story office buildings that dot the suburbs of Northeastern cities. Now they spend their time on the phone, trying to interest prospects that new windows will surely cut their fuel bills.

I came to realize this great truth one day in 1988 when I went to rent a car and was told to come to Executive Plaza 5, Suite 414. As I walked the halls, all I could see in open offices were the Tin Men of 1963 at it again.

The movie crackles and sets off sparks. You don't know who to root for, and for good reason. This is not a buddy movie, but I suspect a remembrance by Levinson of people he knew growing up.