Toned-down Tarantino (Jackie Brown (DVD))

Member Name: gargleblaster

Product:	Jackie Brown (DVD)
Date:	02/08/05 (66 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Snappy dialogue, tight plot

Disadvantages: Structure may confuse those unused to Tarantino

Adapted from Elmore Leonard's novel Rum Punch, Jackie Brown is Quentin Tarantino's third outing as a director. Following the brilliant - and controversial - Reservoir Dogs and the equally good Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown has a lot to live up to. So, is it as good as its predecessors?

Lovers of Tarantino's earlier works may feel somewhat dissapointed by Jackie Brown. The film is full of Tarantino's directorial trademarks: snappy, witty dialogue; 1970s pop music, and of course his "flashback" style of storytelling, although this is less evident than in his previous works. Despite this, though, I can't help feeling as though something is missing. This is almost 'Quentin Tarantino For Dummies'.

As I said above, Tarantino makes less use of his typical flashback structure this time around. For the most part the film tells the story chronologically, rather than starting somewhere in the middle of the action and working both backwards and forwards from that point simultaneously. The flashbacks are saved for a crucial sequence in a clothing store, which we are shown three times through from three different perspectives. Unlike in Reservoir Dogs and especially in Pulp Fiction, this doesn't seem to add anything to the film. It would appear that Tarantino used this structure simply because it is unconventional. Either that, or he was paying homage of sorts to Japanese director Akira Kurosawa, who famously used the convention of one-scene-from-3-viewpoints in his 1950 masterpiece Rashomon. After seeing Tarantino's later Kill Bill films (especially Volume 1), this does not seem like too outlandish an idea.

"Enough of all that. What is it acutally about?" I can hear you asking. Well, I'll tell you. The film's title character, Jackie Brown (played by Pam Grier), is an air stewardess who supliments her income by smuggling money into America for gun dealer Ordell (Samuel L. Jackson). One day she is arrested by Federal agents while carrying a large amount of smuggled money. The only apparent way for her to stay out of jail is for her to work with the agents to catch Ordell collecting the money. Instead, she puts into motion an elaborate plot to escape with the money herself.

I won't go into any more detail about what actually happens in the film, because I don't want to ruin it for those who haven't seen it. What I will say is that you should definitely give it a try. Even if you have seen Reservoir Dogs and/or Pulp Fiction and decided to stay away from Tarantino's furutre releases - and that is perfectly understandable, given the graphicly violent nature of those two films - take the time to watch Jackie Brown. The little violence there is is generally offscreen, and there is no hardcore drug abuse. This is simply a straightforward crime/heist movie, complete with some perfectly delivered lines from Samuel L Jackson. This is watered-down Tarantino. As such, I would highly recommend it to those who enjoy simple, easy-to-watch thrillers. For those who loved his earlier films, or who simply love mindless violence, I'd say give it a miss. Get the popcorn out and rent Natural Born Killers instead.

Summary: Tarantino minus the random violence and divergent plotlines.