Tin Men

Levinson invests his script with a richness of theme that helps make it a comedy classic. Read full review

The improbable tale of a pair of feuding aluminum siding salesmen, Tin Men winds up as bountiful comedy material in the skillful hands of writer-director Barry Levinson. Film is packed with laughs, thanks to taut scripting and superb character depictions by Richard Dreyfuss, Danny DeVito and a fascinating troupe of sidekicks. Read full review

Tin Men is a tale of transitions and a test of mettle, as sweet as a slow dance, as classy and cumbersome as a Coupe de Ville. Read full review

Barry Levinson's richly textured new film also has a rueful nostalgia, a fine-tuned streak of con artistry, and the same hilarious, nit-picking small talk that colored Diner, his first and best film - which is recalled, rivaled and in a few ways even outdone by this one. Read full review

The year's most pungently offbeat comedy and the most improbable love story since King Kong sighted Fay Wray. Read full review

Writer-director Levinson returns to Baltimore (his home town) with a perceptive, rueful comedy called Tin Men. It is about male camaraderie and revenge, and it, too, uses its setting as a statement. Baltimore, circa 1963, represents hope, transition and a fading American Dream. [13 Mar 1987, p.1D]

Because Tin Men is based on fundamental truth, it is able to be funny even in some of its quieter moments. Read full review

Even the torrent of verbal abuse is rewarding in this warm, evocative comedy with a heart made not of tin, but of gold. [13 Mar 1987, p.D7]

The film is a savage but funny, unsparing but oddly kindly, examination of a hell-bent-for-a-bigger-bank-account brand of behavior that was celebrated in the fifties, tolerated in the early sixties, rejected in the late sixties, tolerated again in the seventies, and is once again being celebrated in the eighties. [06 Mar 1987]

The greater charm of Tin Men is in its affectionate portrayal of small-time hucksters who gloat over classic scams (like cutting seven inches out of the middle of a yardstick so the square footage will be higher). In its own way, the film is a bittersweet drama, a sort of Glengarry Glen Ross without the vitriol. Read full review

Humerous, but doesn't gel as well as Levinson's previous efforts. Read full review

Though much of the plot action is downright silly, Dreyfuss, DeVito, and Hershey offer wonderful performances, and director Levinson keeps things moving with some nice comic touches. As he did in his first film, Diner, Levinson again effectively uses a diner setting in which his characters are allowed to engage in some rambling but very funny dialogue. Read full review

The salesmen's scams are entertaining, but their spritzing is too tame, and the action is prolonged with limp, wavering scenes. Levinson wants to be on the humane side of every issue, The best work is done by the supporting players.