Synopsis
This documentary from Albert and David Maysles follows the bitter rivalry of four door-to-door salesmen working for the Mid-American Bible Company: Paul "The Badger" Brennan, Charles "The Gipper" McDevitt, James "The Rabbit" Baker and Raymond "The Bull" Martos. Times are tough for this hard-living quartet, who spend their days traveling through small-town America, trying their best to peddle gold-leaf Bibles to an apathetic crowd of lower-middle-class housewives and elderly couples.
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Cast
- Paul BrennanHimself - 'The Badger'
- Charles McDevittHimself - 'The Gipper'
- James BakerHimself - 'The Rabbit'
- Raymond MartosHimself - 'The Bull'
- Melbourne I. Feltman
- Margaret McCarron
- Kennie Turner
Recommendations
- 100
Village Voice
A vérité masterpiece of the bulls**t that America sells itself, Albert and David Maysles’ Salesman, from 1968, documents a way of life that was dying even then — the soiling grind of getting by as a door-to-door salesman, talking people who don’t want you there into buying junk they don’t need with money they’re almost certainly short on. - 100
Empire
An uncompromising documentary which simply lays its subject bare and dares us not be moved by the raw humanity on display. - 91
The A.V. Club
More than 30 years removed from its theatrical release, Salesman looks less like the story of four traveling salesmen than the story of America itself. - 90
The New York Times
It’s such a fine, pure picture of a small section of American life that I can’t imagine its ever seeming irrelevant, either as a social document or as one of the best examples of what’s called cinema verite or direct cinema. - 88
Chicago Reader
Beautifully edited by Charlotte Zwerin, this film is required viewing for anyone concerned with documentary. - 80
The Guardian
If you want a genuinely Millerian cinematic experience, the best way to go is to get hold of Salesman, a 1968 documentary made by Albert and David Maysles, along with Charlotte Zwerin. - 80
The New Yorker
The filmmakers, despite their rueful gaze, inspire empathy for all parties to this miserable commerce. - 80
TV Guide Magazine
A subtler and less bombastic companion piece to Arthur Miller's most famous play, Salesman is an exemplar of nonfictional material shaped and illuminated by sophisticated filmmakers who have absorbed the devices of fictional storytelling.
