TV review: It could have been a cruise down misery boulevard, but RTÉ’s portrait of used-car salespeople is appealingly quirky
Secrets of the Showroom could easily have been a cruise down misery boulevard. Even before the global supply-chain crisis, Brexit had thrown a wrench into Ireland’s used-car market. Combined, they have sent prices soaring.
All of those potential potholes are swerved around in a film that unspools like a mix of The Office, Top Gear and David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross., a dealership in Fermoy, where the guy from marketing wants staff to participate in an Avengers-themed Halloween video. The response to Dennis’s idea is not one of overwhelming enthusiasm. “I’m 20-odd years selling cars,” says the manager. “I’m going to look like a buffoon.
Unperturbed, Dennis later outlines his grand vision of one of the salesmen, Mark, running through Fermoy dressed as Forrest Gump. “There’s only one Forrest Gump here, sunshine,” is the pithy response from Eoin, the sales manager.