Homicide is a very good film - in fact I find it hard to find a genuine dud either written or directed by Mamet, though some find the style a little bit off-putting. The only disaster with his name on it is Hannibal, but I've read his draft and it bears no relation to the finished film.
House Of Games came first as it happens four years earlier in 1987, and is probably my favourite 'Mamet'. Of his studio screenplays I think 'The Verdict' is the real masterpiece, but I think you can see his hand in all the films he's been heavily involved in, even the misfires like We're No Angels and The Edge - truly a screenwriting auteur, for what it's worth.
Pet subject alert!
House Of Games came first as it happens four years earlier in 1987, and is probably my favourite 'Mamet'. Of his studio screenplays I think 'The Verdict' is the real masterpiece, but I think you can see his hand in all the films he's been heavily involved in, even the misfires like We're No Angels and The Edge - truly a screenwriting auteur, for what it's worth.
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000519/