Death of a Salesman (1985)

An aging traveling salesman recognizes the emptiness of his life and tries to fix it.

Director:

Volker Schlöndorff (as Volker Schlondorff)

Writers:

Arthur Miller (teleplay), Arthur Miller (play)

Stars:

Dustin Hoffman, Kate Reid, John Malkovich

Won 1 Golden Globe. Another 6 wins & 11 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Dustin Hoffman	...	William 'Willy' Loman
Kate Reid	...	Linda Loman
John Malkovich	...	Biff Loman
Stephen Lang	...	Harold 'Happy' Loman
Charles Durning	...	Charley
Louis Zorich	...	Ben Loman
David S. Chandler	...	Bernard
Jon Polito	...	Howard Wagner
Kathryn Rossetter	...	Woman from Boston (as Kathy Rossetter)
Tom Signorelli	...	Stanley
Linda Kozlowski	...	Miss Forsythe
Karen Needle	...	Letta
Anne McIntosh	...	Jenny
Michael Quinlan	...	Waiter

Storyline

Salesman Willy Loman is in a crisis. He's about to lose his job, he can't pay his bills, and his sons Biff and Happy don't respect him and can't seem to live up to their potential. He wonders what went wrong and how he can make things up to his family.

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Plot Keywords:

salesman | traveling salesman | aging | capitalism | begging for money | 

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Taglines:

Its passion cannot be overstated. Its power must not be overlooked.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 September 1985 (USA)

Also Known As:

Dood van een handelsreiziger

Filming Locations:

Kaufman Astoria Studios - 3412 36th Street, Astoria, Queens, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Roxbury Productions, Punch Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

136 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

4:3

Did You Know?

Trivia

Alex North also composed the score of another film version of the same play, with the score of Death of a Salesman (1951).

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Goofs

When Willy sits on the chair 120 minutes into the movie, Biff throws himself down at his feet and clutches his shirt. In one shot, Biff has his left arm on Willy's right shoulder outside his arm, in the next shot, he has his arm on Willy's right shoulder inside his arm, in the next shot he has it outside his arm again.

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Quotes

Bernard: Sometimes, Willy, it's better for a man just to walk away.
Willy Loman: Walk away?
Bernard: That's right.
Willy Loman: But if you can't walk away?
Bernard: I guess that's when it's tough.

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Connections

Version of De dood van een handelsreiziger (1961)

User Reviews

Riveting!!! Must see event

Arthur Miller's compelling work is deftly translated to the small screen here, with riveting performances by Dustin Hoffman as Willy Loman, Kate Reid as Willy's wife Linda, and John Malkovich as the prodigal son Biff. This work touches my soul on several levels: sympathy for the fallen man Willy, understanding of the difficulty of both hating your father and wanting him to be proud of you as Biff shows, and the ever-protective enabler Linda, who defends Willy even as she sees him failing before her eyes. Miller took a simple American family struggling to make life work, and made each character in their own way extraordinary.