Jackie Brown

154 Minutes. 1997. Rated R.

Quote: Half a Million Dollars will always be missed…

This is the third film from two-time Academy Award Winner, QuentinTarantino. It was no easy task to follow the first two I’m sure: Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction. To date, most people will tell you that Jackie Brown was their “least favorite” Tarantino film; I, in fact, happen to agree. He’s a director I really enjoy and so far, in 26 years of directing, he’s made nine films. The guy takes his time, and he does it right. I love them all, this one the least, however. Let’s be clear, though: this is a great movie, with a rock-solid cast.

Jackie Brown – Miramax

It accomplished some things that none of his other films had yet, or would thereafter. Tarantino’s sharp-witted dialogue is ever-present, as is his penchant for the dramatic, his classic out-of-trunk shots, his focus on women’s feet… (for a quick moment), it’s all in there.

Quentin Tarantinos Trunk Shots

Jackie Brown tells the story of a down on her luck woman trying to scrape out a happy ending from what has been anything but an easy stretch of life. In Reservoir Dogs, we had a short discussion in a car about Pam Grier. They talk about her character Foxy Brown from 1974 with smiles like little school boys. It was evident then that Tarantino maybe even had a crush. Jackie Brown was Pam Grier’s triumphant return, and in some people’s mind (myself included), the greatest work she ever did.

Jackie is a flight attendant on a third-rate crappy airliner. She doesn’t make good money, but seems to enjoy it. Our story is about how she gets busted by some feds coming back into the country with some major ca$h, and a little bag of white powder. This gives them what they need to put her in jail for a couple days and threaten her with more serious time if she doesn’t cooperate in helping them detain a gun runner, and possible murderer Ordell (Samuel L. Jackson). This is a great Sam Jackson role (aren’t they all,) not very different from his character of Jules in Pulp Fiction: cocky, smooth, and organized, very much like the movie itself.

The List: Firsts and Only’s

1. Great Supporting Roles
Robert De Niro, a fresh out of jail ex con looking to get right back to the life. I’d say De Niro has the least speaking lines in the whole film, he makes them count though. Robert Forster,who portrays Max Cherry, a straight laced, but seemingly fearless bail bondsmen. These guys, along with Bridget Fonda, Michael Keaton , and a couple others, represent the supporting cast. This was new territory for Tarantino, if you ask me. Most of his films feature ensemble casts: lots of people with about the same amount of screen time and focus. You don’t see to many “main characters” in his films. Maybe Kill Bill, but even still, lots of characters with similar amounts of screen time. Jackie Brown is a main character, it’s very clear, and not that everyone else doesn’t put out some solid acting, but she carries the film, and does it well. She’s a strong, smart female lead, and we even get a flick that passes the Bechdel Test. Tarantino doesn’t do that often, but he did this time.

2. The Timeline
This movie did something very uncharacteristic to Tarantino films. It had a beginning, a middle, and an end, and it showed them in that order. Kill Bill, Pulp Fiction, The Hateful Eight, Reservoir Dogs…you name it. His movies are THEE example of not needing to show the plot in some certain order. This one strays toward normalcy and does just the opposite. Other than a quick recap of a robbery scene from a secondary angle, we see everything in real time and in real order. I’m not saying that this does anything special for the movie, but it’s basically the only time you are ever going to get to see Tarantino break tradition. He’s done six movies since Jackie Brown, and they all bounce around timeline wise, just like the two before Jackie Brown did.

3. Not Too Violent
From the beginning of his career, he was all about the tasteful violence. He wrote scripts for uber-violent films like True Romance (one of my desert island top five films) and Natural Born Killers, then began directing his own. To date, they have all been supremely focused on violence. All but one. That’s right, Jackie Brown was about the dialogue… and the dialogue. As we mentioned, all his other trademarks are present, but if I’m not completely mistaken  only two people are killed in this film. I think. Two? Three? Not many either way.
(end of The List)

Don’t let this review fool you. It may be my least favorite of his, but again, I stress… GREAT MOVIE. Something I watch at least two or three times a year.

 

Author: Peter

Share This Post On