Quentin Tarantino is by now a Hollywood buzz word, so that we salivate at the thought of something new coming from this video clerk turned film prodigy. Well, at last Tarantino has turned from his own writings to someone else's – Elmore Leonard has provided the story for his new film Jackie Brown, based on Leonard's Rum Punch; it's the story of funky but dangerous arms dealer Ordell (Samuel L. Jackson) having half a million dollars in Mexico which he's illegally siphoning into the U.S. with the help of flight attendant Jackie Brown. Unfortunately, the Feds – one of them being Michael Keaton – are on to Jackie and she's nabbed carrying $50,000. Enter bailbondsman Max Cherry (Robert Forster), who is going to end up helping Jackie way beyond his normal duties. Add to this tantalising mix the characters of Ordell's spaced out squeeze Bridget Fonda and his old mate played by Robert De Niro, both of whom have their own agenda and you have an amusing and dangerously rich brew.
This is the least Tarantino-like film of his oeuvre and for me that's a plus, I needed something beyond hip violence. This film has an emotional heart in the characters of Jackie Brown and Max – evoked by stunningly good performances from B-movie icon of the '70s Pam Grier and forgotten star of the '60s and '70s Robert Forster, whom we know is delighted with his deserved Oscar nomination. This is a scam movie, it tells a rattlingly good tale with a smart woman at its centre in great style. The music's enough to make you want to rush out and buy the CD, the design is – let's face it, it's Tarantino – it's hip, and the performances from this ensemble cast are uniformally wonderful. I take mild exception to Samuel L. being allowed to get away with his hair and chin style but all in all I had such a good time with Jackie Brown.
