David Mamet is one of the most prolific writers of the modern era. Renowned for his crackling and profane dialogue, Mamet has written theater, literature, and film alike. Some of his works cross the line between those mediums, one being his 1984 Pulitzer-winning play Glengarry Glen Ross.
Glengarry Glen Ross was adapted to film in 1992. Mamet himself wrote the script while James Foley directed. The story is about a quarter of real estate salesmen, most of them struggling. With only a week to turn their sales figures around and avoid being fired, some take desperate, criminal action. The film is a modern fable on the intersections of capitalism and masculinity and boasts one of the most quotable scripts in history. It's impossible to pick just 10 quotes.
10 "Coffee Is For Closers."
The film's first act includes a scene absent from the play, one that serves to better establish the story's stakes. This scene wound up becoming the most famous part of the film. Blake (Alec Baldwin), a successful salesman, is sent by the main characters' bosses (Mitch and Murray) to deliver an abuse-filled motivational speech.
Shelley Levene (Jack Lemmon) goes to pour himself some coffee, but Blake orders him to sit down—"Coffee's for closers." On the surface this is just a demeaning quip, but it's also a pretty damning statement about capitalism: if you don't "earn" a living, you're less than human. This whole list could just be Blake quotes, but in the interest of covering the whole film, it won't be.
9 "ABC. A - Always. B- Be. C - Closing. Always Be Closing."
To illustrate his point to the salesman and audience, Blake deploys a whiteboard and chalk with two acronyms. "ABC - Always. Be. Closing [a sale]." He repeats the acronym and the meaning a few times to hammer in his point.
The second acronym is just as memorable as the first: AIDA. "Attention - Do I have your attention? Interest - Are you interested? I know you are 'cause it's f**k or walk... Decision - have you made your decision for Christ?! and Action," letting the last one speak for itself.
8 "It Takes Brass Balls To Sell Real Estate"
After repeating his acronyms, Blake asks the salesmen if they're going to take the money the customers offer them—if they're man enough to take money. It's no coincidence that he phrases it like that, nor is it a mere taunt. A salesman who can't sell is a professional eunuch.
To further link their manhood and livelihoods, Blake says that it takes brass balls to sell real estate. While doing so, he holds a pair of literal brass balls in front of his crotch, to make sure no one misses his point.
7 "You're Such A Hero, You're So Rich, How Come You're Coming Down Here To Waste Your Time With A Bunch Of Bums?"
During Blake's motivational diatribe, Levene silently glares while George Aronow (Alan Arkin) sits passively and averts his eyes. The only one who actually talks back is Dave Moss (Ed Harris), asking why a success story like Blake has any business interacting with "bums" like him.
Blake doesn't really answer the question, but puts Moss in his place by flashing a watch which costs more than [Moss'] car.
6 "When You Die, You're Gonna Regret The Things You Don't Do."
The most charming, and thus most successful salesman is Ricky Roma (Al Pacino). Absent from Blake's scene, he's interested in a restaurant working an easy mark named James Lingk (Jonathan Pryce). Roma monologues about nothing in particular, but enthralls Lingk all the same.
This comment about regrets has truth to it, but Roma deploys it just to sucker Lingk in. Notably, the scene's palette is dripped in red, even their tablecloth. Roma's a shark who's smelt blood in the water.
5 "There's An Absolute Morality? Maybe."
While most of Roma's spiel to Lingk is bemusing nonsense, there are some nuggets of truth buried beneath the blather. One of the tangents Roma goes on is some philosophizing about the nature of morality and if hell really exists. His opinion on both matters is "no."
This cynical, materialist outlook on the world is the rotten truth of business, Who you are doesn't matter, it's what you do that does. And in America, the only thing worth doing is making money.
4 "Always Tell The Truth, George; It's The Easiest Thing To Remember."
Aronow is the most hapless of the salesmen, and not coincidentally, the most innocent. Moss spends a good chunk of the play trying to convince Aronow to help him steal the leads from Williamson's office. Even though he's the firm's bottom earner and the one most likely to be on the chopping block, Aronow is reluctant to go along with the scheme.
In the film's latter half, when the characters come into work, the office has been burgled and the leads are missing. Roma, offering some surprisingly decent advice, suggests Aronow tell the truth to the investigating police officers, not for moral, but self-serving reasons.
3 "A Man Is His Job."
If the play has a thesis statement, it's this. The salesmen are at odds with office manager John Williamson (Kevin Spacey), who holds the leads (names and numbers of potential buyers). Levene in particular tries to corral Williamson into giving him better leads, to no avail.
The next day, Williamson has found his office burgled while Levene has closed an $80,000 sale with a couple named the Nyborgs. Leven rubs it in to Williamson: "A man is his job, and you're f**ked at yours."
2 "They Just Like Talking To Salesmen"
It turns out Levene was the one who conspired with Moss to rob the office. He attempts to bribe Williamson into staying silent by offering him escalating amounts of money from the Nyborg deal.
Williamson drops a bomb on Levene: the Nyborgs' check is no good, for the signers don't have the money to back it up. Levene's one spot of good luck was false hope.
1 "Because I Don't Like You."
Leven asks Williamson "Why?" The question specifically refers to why Williamson is choosing to turn him in, but Levene seems to be asking about Williamson's general treatment of him as well. Williamson's answer? "Because I don't like you."
It's a brutal, honest truth, and if someone ever goes out of their way to antagonize another, these five words are the simplest, most likely answer.