JACKIE BROWN

INTRODUCTION: As the teams designated QT hater I feel it my duty to offer an alternative view to Lizards requiem of praise. QTs third and final (well I can dream) film finally arrives 4 years after his last offering and an astonishing 7 years since he first optioned Elmore Leonards excellent novel "Rum Punch". This delay certainly shows on screen as it has the look and feel of a film that has been kicked around in pre-production for a long time. 

SYNOPSIS: The film follows the exploits of Airline Stewardess Jackie Brown (Grier) who is smuggling the ill-begotten gains of arms dealer Ordell (Jackson) into the country. Arrested by the police on one of these missions Jackie must com up with a cunning plan to avoid prison, and the wrath of Ordell, oh and get rich while shes at it. 

REVIEW: QT is apparently a big fan of Elmore Leonards books particularly this one, it was apparently the first book he ever stole, but I really doesnt show. QT obviously had a lot of trouble with the script, despite remaining fairly faithful to the book. The biggest difference is the character of Jackie herself, who is no longer a white woman called Jackie Burke, doubtless so QT could cast Pam Grier in a part that he clearly wrote for her. Other changes are clearly made either to add glamour to Leonards gritty story for commercial reasons, Melanie no longer a big girl now shes played by Bridget Fonda, or to simplify the complex plot for timing reasons, Luis no longer works for Max and Faron no longer gets shot. But instead these changes just leave gapping plot holes and confuse characters motivation. 

Perhaps the most unforgivable change is the re-writing of Leonards well observed dialogue, replacing instead with a series of "Muther-Fuckers" and "Niggas" interspersed with the occasional verb. I find it incredible that the linguistic Lizard could find anything even vaguely compelling in the turgid crap. Spike Lees critique of this dialogue, and QTs alleged desire to be black, is of course now legendary, and I find myself in agreement, Leonard gets through nearly 300 pages without using the dreaded "n" word once. Why QT feels he has to use it up to 5 times a sentence is a mystery. 

QTs casting of long forgotten 70s actors once again succeeds Grier and Forsterexcell as the two heroes of the piece, SLJ puts in an inspired performance (despite the dialogue) as the villain of the piece and Bob De Niro thankfully underplays his part. Keaton is woefully underused (another plus point) and Fonda barely makes her presence felt. 

The film technique is as always wonderful particularly a gorgeous crane shot when Ordell offs Beaumont. But QTs love of seventies cinema shines through in a particularly irritating and out-dated split screen shot. And finally there is of course the mandatory time jumps, like finding a pubic hair in your toothbrush, not entirely unexpected but none the less annoying. Performing as they do the astounding job of dissipating the tension of what should of been an exciting denouement. Where QT does succeed is as always an excellent sound track provided by various 70s Motown stars perfectly compliment the mood of the piece. 

This is undoubtedly QTs best film to date. Forgoing the normal frenetic pace in favour of a more languid story telling technique, keeping his normal camera tricks and time jumps to a minimum, QT shows himself to be a more matured director. His attempt to revive the Blacksploitation fails miserably as the story, originally about a white woman, really wasnt written for it. Neither 70s Blaxploitation nor 90s caper movie this film falls uncomfortably between the two stools, where it lies bloated with its own self importance unable to get up (much like Oliver Reed). 

A flawed but ultimately entertaining (there Ive said it) piece of Cinema, it is perhaps not QT that I have a problem with but the overbearing influence he has had over independent film making in the 90s.

Mutts Rating: ***

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