Rival aluminum-siding salesmen find themselves an increasingly hostile tit-for-tat feud spurred on by an automobile accident this Barry Levinson movie. One of two films that Levinson made in 1987, 'Tin Men' never quite found the same audience as 'Good Morning, Vietnam', which is a shame as it is arguably better, even if its lack of appeal to some is understandable. Both protagonists are, after all, very lowdown and despicable characters and while both have their occasion quirks, this is one of those films in which there is not a single likable character in sight. This is a deliberate move by Levinson though as the pair's feud is constantly contrasted against their shady business practices and salesmanship techniques, such as dropping a $5 note and insisting that it is not yours to convince a potential client of your honesty. The feud also coincides with the whole aluminum-siding industry being investigated for unfair selling practices and there is a sense that the protagonists are driven to their extremes as a result of the way they have learnt to work; "deceit is an occupational hazard" as one claims. Knowing this does not make Barbara Hershey's subplot any more credible, nor does it render either lead especially sympathetic, but it does provide some sense of perspective as the idea here is to observe how the characters operate, not to get to like them for who they are. Add in some genuinely funny moments (Dreyfuss realising that DeVito actually doesn't love his wife) and 'Tin Men' is a flawed film that still works surprisingly well. The conclusion is pitch perfect too.

Dealing with the funny rivalry between two aluminum-siding salesmen, "Tin Men" (as what these men are called in their business) excels itself in just being an ordinary comedy, it also paints a portrait of a decade with a updated look at it; the current 1980's seemed to shape a model for these characters and the situations they've been through. One of the films of the 'Baltimore quadrilogy' (the other films being "Diner", "Avalon" and "Liberty Heights"), all directed by Barry Levinson, who lived in the area, this film looks back at the city of the 1960's, most precisely in 1963, where an simple automobile accident between two tin men started a small but funny war between them. On one side we have the energetic Bill 'BB' Babowski (Richard Dreyfuss), who recently acquired a new Cadillac but within five minutes of getting inside of it his car was hit by the too agitated for his height and size Ernest Tilley (Danny DeVito). The two promise revenge on one another and they spend their days trying to prank each other with some help from their friends. And that goes on, with smashing cars, fist fights that will never happen, one trying to score higher than the other until BB makes the smart move of going out with Ernest's wife (Barbara Hershey) and that might backfire in a surprising way for both of these guys.It's not all about rivalry between these two but it's also about how they guarantee their work (through hilarious scams selling aluminum-siding for houses, pretending to be part of Life magazine quoting that it will make the house look better in the magazine's photos and others scams too). Their work, now, is at risk when a commission appears to investigate cases of fraud in their sellings, and it is most likely these guys will be called to testify about what they do, if it's correct or not. But it is in difficult hours like that that the enemy of your enemy is your friend, right? The whole dispute, whether about the sales they do or the pranks these accident resulted, goes to show us a big game with no easy victories, no easy gains but with lots of dishonesty to compensate for the trouble. This was how the minds of the 1980's were looking at the 1960's period, as a place where people took advantage of each other through the simplest things, profit of any kind must be on top of everything. It's never about getting even, it's more about being the king of the game, the winner of all. Levinson is not trying to gives moralistic lessons about that era because he's more concerned about what was funny about all that. Most certainly, he was looking back at that time thinking that this was quite innocent and childish compared to the excesses of the Reaganomics era, period in which this film was made but somehow these two eras seem to be attached here in this nostalgic film. And in the following decades societies have gone way worst than just destroying someone's car... The premise, despite some lack of originality, perfectly works; the movie is warmly funny, not only in the arguments between DeVito and Dreyfuss but also in the talks they have with their friends (played by John Mahoney, Bruno Kirby, Richard Portnow, Seymour Cassel and others), one of these talks concerning about the irrealism during the cowboys talks in "Bonanza" (again, a contemporary look of the past, people wouldn't notice back then these kind of problems in the TV show). Notice the great soundtrack made by one of the groups of the moment, the Fine Young Cannibals, who appear in the film as band members of a nightclub often visited by both groups of tin men. Simply irresistible! 10/10

These days we seem to have increasing numbers of movies with special fx and huge budgets but poorly drawn characters and plots. Tin Men is one of my favourite movies for 6 reasons: 1 It's set in a small world inhabited by Aluminium siding salesmen trying to sell cladding to cover up the characteristic Baltimore brick Clook and with the backdrop of a 'Home Improvement Commission' set to break all of the salesmen's scams. The scams and backdrop are really amusing. 2 The backdrop allows some real characters to shine - hopes and fears, they're very believable recognisable characters. And rounded characters. And the movie is full of fantastic cameos. 3 The plot is fantastic. It has a beginning, middle and end, and the it builds and is finely structured with the hints of what is going to happen woven in a carefully constructed progression. It has an economical structure with some believable and clear plot twists. Fantastic writing and editing. 4 The actors and setting are bullet proof. 1963 Baltimore is perfect and Richard Dreyfus, Danny deVito, and Barbara Hershey as the leads are perfection. 5 The sound track is just great. I hate most of this sort of music cold but it is an integral part of the plot. The Fine Young Cannibals, heading by the unmistakable voice of Roland Gift singing 'Good Thing' is also brilliant.Things to watch - when Tilly (deVito) has made what he thinks is his comeback sale and they go to the bar and FTC are singing,- the atmosphere shots in the bar of all the punters is one of my favourite movie moments. - When Sam describes finding God at the smorgasboard and then later when Tilly tries to have his own spirtual experience at a smorgasboard. - The sales scene near the beginning of the film where we learn about the industry - the growing feud between the two main protagonists - Tilly appearing before the commission - the diner lunches that Tilly's team have when they keep going on about TV (Bonanza and other shows).I think this is Barry Levinson's best work.

I saw this when it first came out, and I said to everyone- "this has one of the best soundtracks I have heard in a long while". I kept telling everyone that the song in the background-which is of course, "Good Thing" when Dreyfuss is kind of jigging thru the bar, was a great song, with a very catchy melody. So, I was not surprised at all, when the Fine Young Cannibals CD, "The Raw and the Cooked" released after this film- went all the way to the top (it contained 2 songs from this film) That said, I LOVE the storyline, the acting, Richard Dreyfuss is adorable, looks wise and character wise. I loved him in "The Goodbye Girl" but LOVED him in this! The funniest scene in my opinion involves Danny DeVito, at the buffet, I will not spoil it-but I thought it was hysterical! Barbara Hershey BEFORE she had collagen lips-is charming too. Highly recommend and I want this in my DVD collection!!!