The film tells the story of a young teenager dreaming of a sailboat and distant horizons who manipulates his unsuspecting alcoholic uncle into buying a boat from a conman when his mother is away.
Though studied and grating at times, "Drunkboat" does sustain a distinct, odd tone. Like its characters it's dreamily restless and prey to its own quixotic ideas.
In the end, "Drunkboat" is no "Glengarry Glen Ross" or "American Buffalo," and even if it were, the real Mamet has always worked better onstage than on film.
The burnished smear of Lisa Rinzler's photography is a plus, but "Drunkboat" is ultimately the kind of pet project that never traverses from personal to powerful.
