Movie:
The Prime Gig was originally released at the Venice Film Festival in late 2000 and made its American debut in early 2001 at the Los Angeles Film Festival. The film also had a limited theatrical release in September of last year, though it was largely overlooked. Starring in the film are Vince Vaughn (Penny), Julia Ormond (Caitlin), and Ed Harris (Kelly), with Rory Cochrane, Wallace Shawn, and George Wendt in supporting roles. The film was directed by Gregory Mosher and written by William Wheeler.

Penny Wise works as a telesales con man pitching vacations. He is quite good at his job, easily outshining his coworkers. When he discovers that the business he's working for is about to go under, he leaves looking for a prime gig. He quickly finds himself in the employ of Kelly Grant who promises the best and brightest of the telesales con men a sure thing. Penny is skeptical at first, but quickly rises to emerge as the top seller and starts an affair with Caitlin, Kelly's girlfriend. With things looking up for him, Penny continues to do well, but his affair with Caitlin could jeopardize everything he's worked for.

Vince Vaughn is one of a handful of actors that I try to follow, and as such, I eagerly awaited the release of The Prime Gig. While the film is initially confusing, it is a terrific character film that gives Vaughn a chance to flesh out his role and express the conflict he feels between morality and his profession. Vaughn does an impressive job throughout, as does Ed Harris, who plays his foil. Julia Ormond is decent as Caitlin, though her performance wasn't particularly memorable. While watching The Prime Gig, I was reminded of both Glengarry Glen Ross and Boiler Room, and even though there are some similarities between them, The Prime Gig manages to be an engrossing experience that is fairly unique.

Picture:
The Prime Gig is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen and 1.33:1 full frame, both on the same side of the disc. The transfer is exceptional, with only a few specks appearing throughout the film, as well as some very minor edge enhancement and light grain. Colors are natural throughout, with accurate flesh tones and rich blacks.

Sound:
The Prime Gig is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 and Dolby 2.0 Surround. As with many dialogue driven films, the sound in the 5.1 track is mainly anchored to the front channels, with the rears mostly providing ambient background noise. The film's score is well suited to the material and makes effective use of the surround channels. Dialogue throughout is crisp and clean with no distortion. Optional subtitles are available in English.

Extras:
No extras are included.

Summary:
Overlooked theatrically, The Prime Gig is a great dramatic film that will hopefully find a wider audience when it's released to the home market later this month. While New Line's DVD offers a terrific presentation, there's nothing in the way of extras which makes it a hard sell at the $25 MSRP. However, fans of Vaughn and Harris should definitely give the film a look and its well worth a rental if you enjoyed Glengarry Glen Ross or Boiler Room. Recommended.