The Spanish Prisoner

1997

The Spanish Prisoner

Critics Consensus

The Spanish Prisoner delivers just what fans of writer-director David Mamet expect: a smart, solidly constructed drama that keeps viewers guessing... and entertained along the way.

89%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 61

80%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 7,791

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Movie Info

A gentler, kinder David Mamet ventures into Hitchcock country with this amiable brain-twister about an electronics whiz whose invention gets him caught up in a world of corruption, intrigue and murder.
  • Rating:
    PG (For thematic elements including tension, some violent images and brief language)
  • Genre:
    Drama, Mystery & Suspense
  • Directed By:
    David Mamet
  • Written By:
    David Mamet
  • In Theaters:
     wide
  • On Disc/Streaming:
  • Runtime:
  • Studio:
    Sony Pictures Classics

Cast

Campbell Scott
as Joe Ross
Rebecca Pidgeon
as Susan Ricci
Steve Martin
as Jimmy Dell
Ben Gazzara
as Klein
Ricky Jay
as George Lang
Felicity Huffman
as Pat McCune
Ed O'Neill
as FBI Team Leader
Sandy Martin
Lionel Mark Smith
as Det. Jones
Jim Frangone
as Det. Luzzio
Richard L. Friedman
Richard L. Freidman
as Businessman
Jerry Graff
as Businessman
G. Roy Levin
as Businessman
Hilary Hinckle
as Resort Concierge
David Pittu
as Resort Manager
Christopher Kaldor
as Dell's Bodyguard
Gary McDonald
as Ticket Agent
Michael Robinson
as Security Person
Olivia Tecosky
as Flight Attendant
Charlotte Potok
as Bookstore Woman
Paul Butler
as Bookbinder
J.J. Johnston
as Doorman
Emily Weisberg
as Secretary
Stephanie Ross
as Receptionist
Elliot Cuker
as Antique Car Dealer
Scott Zigler
as Car Dealer's Assistant
Steven Hawley
as Restaurant Manager
Jordan Lage
as Maitre D'
Steven Goldstein
as Lawyer
Jonathan Katz
as Lawyer
Paul Dunn III
as Jailer
Tony Mamet
as FBI Agent Levy
Jack Wallace
as Sanitation Man
Clark Gregg
as FBI Sniper
Allen Soule
as Fingerprint Technician
Mary B. McCann
as Policewoman
Gustave Johnson
as Property Clerk
Isiah Whitlock Jr.
as Trooper
Harriet Voyt
as Airline Employee
Kristin Reddick
as Airport Mother
Andrew Murphy
as Airport Child
Jeremy Geidt
as Timid Man
Carolyn 'Coco' Kallis
as Timid Woman
Neil Pepe
as Airport Security
Charles Stransky
as Deckhand
Takeo Matsushita
as United States Marshal
Seiko Yoshida
as United States Marshal
Mimi Jo Katano
as Japanese Tour Guide
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Critic Reviews for The Spanish Prisoner

All Critics (61) | Top Critics (15) | Fresh (54) | Rotten (7)

  • There are enough twists and grown-up intrigue to keep one asking, "Hey, what's going on here?"

    January 9, 2018 | Rating: 3/4 | Full Review…

    Mike Clark

    USA Today
    Top Critic

  • David Mamet has a penchant for sleight-of-hand thrillers, and The Spanish Prisoner is his craftiest to date.

    November 20, 2008

    Leonard Klady

    Variety
    Top Critic

  • The Spanish Prisoner shares with Glengarry Glen Ross a vision of life as a cosmic con game in which the victimizers feed the fantasies of the victims.

    April 27, 2007 | Full Review…

    Andrew Sarris

    Observer
    Top Critic

  • David Mamet's most consistently enjoyable film to date is a cool, typically clever con-trick drama packed with deliciously inventive twists that get ever more convoluted and unnerving as the plot proceeds.

    February 9, 2006 | Full Review…

    Derek Adams

    Time Out
    Top Critic

  • There's something fresh, even restorative, in watching an American studio movie that doesn't treat the movie-going audience like a bunch of gullible marks.

    April 12, 2002 | Rating: 3/4

    Liam Lacey

    Globe and Mail
    Top Critic

  • Mamet brings more than a decade's worth of filmmaking experience to his latest project, and his skill as a director has improved considerably.

    February 14, 2001 | Full Review…

    Kenneth Turan

    Los Angeles Times
    Top Critic
View All Critic Reviews (61)

Audience Reviews for The Spanish Prisoner

  • Sep 27, 2011
    Clever and intriguing 'The Spanish Prisoner' is a mystery that exhibits Mamet's brand of dialogue and a penchant for keeping the viewer guessing. While Mr. Mamet is a competent director it isn't his strongest suit, which shows in Martin's strong performance opposite Rebecca Pidgeon's performance that is coming from a combination of an unknown tribe in a different universe and old drama school acting that is too over the top and distracting - she does have charm, though. A strong mystery with a stronger script that could've used a different director.
    Jonny B Super Reviewer
  • Aug 07, 2011
    david mamet thriller & easily one of the smartest one yet. I enjoy the twists he creates, you know they are coming but still its fun to watch
    Brendan N Super Reviewer
  • Jan 04, 2010
    The more I think about events in 'The Spanish Prisoner,' the less I like it so I'd better write this review while it's still at 2 stars. I simply don't buy these elaborate con schemes that involves everyone with a speaking role. 'Criminal' is another example. The fact that this swindle relies completely on a mathematician stumbling across the business card of someone he met briefly on vacation while thumbing through a friend's scrapbook redefines implausible. And that's just one of the many machinations required for this scheme to work! David Mamet's script is typically wry and stilted, but Mametspeak requires a certain delivery to pull off and as such David is not a very good director of his own material. Rebecca Pidgeon in particular comes off very badly as a line reader. Try 'American Buffalo' instead for a much better example of a Mamet con story onscreen.
    Doctor S Super Reviewer
  • Jan 31, 2009
    Exciting in parts, but completely filled with McGuffins. How does Joe not notice the book was switched? Why does he touch the murder weapon? Why does Susan pin that shamrock on him? It's all just to further the plot with canned suspense as it hurtles toward a <i>deus ex machina</i> ending.
    Alice S Super Reviewer
See all Audience reviews

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