Death of a Salesman / Mort d'un Commis Voyageur (1985)

Cast/Avec Dustin HOFFMAN, Kate REID, John MALKOVICH …

Willy Loman, a salesman based in New York City, returns home from a trip to Yonkers where his sons, Biff and Happy, and his wife, Linda, greet him. Biff, who had been working on a farm in Texas, talks to Happy about working outside, and how this house brings back bad memories, and boxes him in. Willy goes outside and flashes back to Biff's childhood: Biff is the star quarterback of his high school football team, and the Lomans' neighbor, Bernard, advises him to study math, but Biff and Happy ignore him and carry on playing football. Later on in the flashback, Willy goes inside, where Linda talks to him about their budget. Willy is reminded of an encounter he had with The Woman, during which he gave her some red silk stockings, with lettering along the sides that said "scarlet's dream", and when he returns from the flashback, he sees Linda mending some stockings and snatches them away in guilt. Later, he and Charley engage in a card game (casino), during which Willy is reminded of his brother Ben. Ben begins a dialogue with him, and Willy contemplates why he
can't become successful.

Cela fait trente-six ans que le commis voyageur Willy Loman parcourt les routes des Etats-Unis, mais l'époque de ses grands succès est révolue. Ses clients se font rares et il a de plus en plus de mal à placer sa marchandise. Rentrant bredouille de sa dernière tournée, il retrouve Linda, son épouse patiente et dévouée, et ses deux fils, Happy et Biff, qui n'ont pas su réaliser les espoirs qu'il avait mis en eux…