tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7294499213897153104.post8536516947025853963..comments2024-03-29T06:24:14.743-05:00Comments on The Signal Watch: Signal Watch Watches: Phil SpectorThe Leaguehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04836241071795980225noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7294499213897153104.post-21907592273744121722013-04-03T14:24:12.542-05:002013-04-03T14:24:12.542-05:00I am of two minds on the topic. I can either embr...I am of two minds on the topic. I can either embrace the quirks and idiosyncrasies that make me say "oh, this is so clearly Mamet dialog", or I can wish that he'd knock off the edges that make the work so clearly Mamet. It's a fine line as I'd hate to lose what he brings to the page with getting it watered down to sound like John J. Screenwriter put the thing together.<br /><br />But sometimes... sometimes you need to let someone tell you when you've passed into affectations. <br /><br /> The Leaguehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04836241071795980225noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7294499213897153104.post-8399697865919480402013-04-03T11:30:22.039-05:002013-04-03T11:30:22.039-05:00I very much enjoy Mamet, although I suspect he is ...I very much enjoy Mamet, although I suspect he is one of those writers who can't bring himself to cut the turns of phrase he finds the most clever. Who was it that said that writers must learn to "kill their darlings"? I don't think Mamet does that, and he, like Sorkin, is so well established that few will stand up to them to suggest they cut a line. I watched THE SPANISH PRISONER and HEIST again recently, and there were lines of dialogue which made the final cut which just seemed awkward and weird. (Many of them were assigned to Ricky Jay.). You can almost picture Mamet, writing the script, smiling at the witty remark, but on set, it just didn't quite work.<br /><br />Oh, well.JDnoreply@blogger.com