THE SPANISH PRISONER
Joe Ross has invented a secret formula that’s gonna’ make him a ton of money if he can only get his boss to fulfill a promise to sign an ironclad agreement that guarantees him a piece of the action. A secret meeting at a remote island resort that prides itself on discretion, an overzealous secretary, a random meeting with an FBI agent, a stranger befriended by Joe, and a book all figure in a plot to separate him from his formula. Whoever owns it could demand untold riches and world dominance in the marketplace. So begins "The Spanish Prisoner", an intricate tour de force in the art of subterfuge and cunning from the imagination of writer/director David Mamet.
The movie gets its title from an historical con game having to do with the pretense of a damsel in distress and the fortune her supposed captor hopes to reap for her return. This "Spanish Prisoner" is a cinematic jigsaw puzzle full of humor, intrigue, and suspense. The parts are presented piecemeal as harmless vignettes with tidbits of information that seem to have no relevance. There are xenophobic remarks about ‘the Japanese’ who would love to get their hands on Joe’s formula, and Orientals who loom in the background with ominous foreboding. When the significance of the seemingly disparate details becomes apparent, a picture of a complicated scam emerges that implicates Joe in corporate espionage and murder.
It’s impossible to discuss the intricacies of David Mamet’s plotting technique without becoming bogged down in details. It’s enough to know that everything in "The Spanish Prisoner" is seen from Joe’s point of view and nothing is at it appears. Joe is a likable guy who seems to have gone right from the sheltered hallowed halls of academia to the cloistered environment of the corporate research lab. He is not streetwise. With some irony, he is like a rat in a maze where civility and good manners are the trigger mechanisms that prompt a conditioned response. Each response creates a reaction and each reaction gives rise to a new set of circumstances that elevate Joe to the next level of a deadly game that is designed to strip him of his credibility.
There are a few minute scenes that seem illogical, like the one where a cop posing as a vendor plants a wireless mike on Joe; but asking how he knew Joe would be at a particular spot on a given day is like asking how Eva Marie Saint knew Cary Grant would be on a particular train at a specific point in time in Alfred Hitchcock’s "North by Northwest".
Campbell Scott heads the cast of "The Spanish Prisoner". His Joe Ross is like a tragic figure in some classic Herman Melville story whose innocence blinds him to the evil that stands before him. Steve Martin is the elusive tycoon who takes an interest in Joe’s affairs. Ben Gazzara is Joe’s boss, the crusty Klein, who has his own agenda. Rebecca Pidgin is the secretary who may hold the key to Joe’s innocence despite the overwhelming evidence piling up against him. Everyone is guilty of something and no one is above suspicion.
Many of the elements that enrich "The Spanish Prisoner" can be found in some of Mamet’s other works. His play, "The Water Engine" which was adapted for TV, has an inventor who is hounded and destroyed when his water powered car engine poses a threat to some big business interests. "House of Games" tells the tale of an author who gets in over her head when she hooks up with some scam artists; and "Homicide" is about a Jewish cop whose identity crisis is exploited much the same way as Joe’s naivete. All three films, like "The Spanish Prisoner", are characterized by a labyrinthine plot full of intricate detail and overlapping dialogue. All four are enormously entertaining.