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 ean,
mean, and brisk, Barry Sonnefeld's 1995 movie "Get Shorty", based on
the novel of the same name by prolific crime author Elmore Leonard,
doesn't have a single extraneous scene, subplot, or baggage attached
to it. Probably one of the best Black Comedy ever, with a terrific
screenplay by Scott Frank ("Out
of Sight") and a too-cool-for-words starring turn by John
Travolta ("The
Thin Red Line"), "Get Shorty" packs so much into 100 minutes
that you wish it was longer.
Travolta is Chili Palmer,
a New York mob enforcer transplanted to Miami, where he crosses path
with rival Ray Bones (Dennis Farina). Sent to Vegas in search of a
laundrymat owner who owes money to the mob, Chili somehow ends up in
L.A. where he has to collect from wash-up B-movie producer Harry
Zimm (Gene Hackman). Instead of collecting, Chili decides that this
is the perfect time to switch profession, and pitches a story idea
to Zimm, who already has a script of his own ready for production.
But Zimm's script has become the talk of the
town, and besides attraction the attention of a vain movie star
(Danny DeVito), it has also enticed two L.A. mobsters who wants in
on the action. Can Chili Palmer, the coolest badass to ever be
called a badass, knock off all the opposition and get that producing
credit, or will his coolness finally run out at the same time as his
luck? With the aid of former scream queen Karen Flores (Rene Russo),
Chili is determined to push the envelope and get his movie made come
hell or high water, even if he has to break some bones to do it.
The best part of "Get Shorty" is just how
easily transplanted Chili Palmer is. The mob enforcer so
effortlessly slips into the role of would-be movie producer that the
whole situation, if you stop to think about it, is worth more than a
couple of chuckles. The movie business, it turns out, is possibly
even more dangerous than the mob life!
Besides working from a terrific screenplay by
Scott Frank, director Barry Sonnenfeld ("Men
in Black 2") effortlessly handles his all-star cast. Rene Russo
("Showtime")
has never looked sexier, and Gene Hackman ("Behind
Enemy Lines") plays sleazy so well you wonder how he ever
managed to play any other character in his long and illustrious film
career. But the real star, of course, is John Travolta, whose turn
as Chili Palmer gives Samuel L. Jackson a run for the title of "All
Around Badass."
More comical than violent, "Get Shorty" does
have spurts of violence in it. The language is quite harsh,
especially when Dennis Farina's Ray Bones is onscreen. The guy
manages to throw the F-word in every other second, which is in
itself quite an amazing feat. Delroy Lindo ("Heist")
plays one of the local mobsters vying for Harry Zimm's screenplay,
while future "Sopranos"
star James Gandolfini is nearly unrecognizable as a grizzled (and
heavily bearded) ex-stuntman who has to work for Lindo to pay the
bills.
The overall feel of "Get Shorty" is breezy and
fun. The violence is mostly cartoonish and the soundtrack has a
catchy, finger-snapping beat to it. And as he would show again in
"Out of Sight", screenwriter Scott Frank has a knack for adapting
Elmore Leonard books. There's almost no unnecessary dialogue or
wasted scene in "Get Shorty", which clicks on all cylinders from
beginning to end.
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