BE COOL
Cast: John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Vince Vaughn...
Director: F. Gary Gray
Writer: Peter Stienfeld, Elmore Leonard (novel)
Review Date: 03/15/05
Written By: suj
Rating: 6/10
THE PLOT:
After conquering the movie business, Chili Palmer (John Travolta) grows weary of the cinema, and switches over to the music game when he gets a chance to team up with a friend’s widow (Uma Thurman, entering the film in a very memorable way) to run a record label. After finding gold in a talented young singer (Christina Milian), Chili must first retrieve her recording contract from her shady manager (Harvey Keitel), outwit a dim, thugged-out-whiteboy wannabe producer (Vince Vaughn) and his homosexual, aspiring actor bodyguard (The Rock), negotiate a settlement of debt with a Suge Knightish producer (Cedric the Entertainer) and his gang (including Outkast’s Andre Benjamin), and try to outsmart some Russian gangsters who are hot on his tail. All in a day’s work in the record industry.
THE REVIEW:
Be Cool...Just Be Cool...If you've seen "Get Shorty" and liked it you'll surely enjoy this entry into the bevy of films situated in your local theater. The film posses a sense of hilarity, surprising performances, a pulp fiction moment, Uma, and of course Vince fucking Vaughn.
If the traditional goal of a sequel is to replicate the original experience while making it all seem new again, director F. Gary Gray certainly accomplishes that with this film. “Be Cool” still contains that classic Elmore Leonard mode of guns, hoodlums, masses of characters, and all their double-crosses, but the setting has been changed from "Shorty's" film industry to that of the music industry, which Gray, a former video director, seems to know something about. Gray deftly evokes the treacherous Southern California music scene, yet keeps the story light enough to succeed as a zany comic caper too.
John Travolta once again exudes cool as Chili Palmer and as per usual Uma Thurman is fucking ridiculously pleasing to watch. But what makes this movie worth the money and time is in its supporting cast. Cedric the Entertainer, The Rock, Vince Vaughn, and hell even André 3000 bring forth some very hilarious scenes to the extent that every time one of these actors stumble their head onto the screen they virtually own the moment. I don't personally find Cedric the Entertainer funny, but in this flick he made me laugh along with Outkast' Andre 3000 as Cedric's trigger-happy nephew. The Rock was a big comedic surprise especially in a scene where he dished out a monologue from "Bring It On". The true showstopper/scene stealing was Vaughn' character, played with appropriate homeboy bluster by the actor. The character isn’t exactly an original creation, as cinema has had its share of white boys acting like black rappers recently, but Vaughn’s dedication to the role is absolutely hilarious.
In the end “Be Cool” is a solid, funny, groovy return to the screen for Chili and his wacky west coast adventures, and is a decent follow-up to the original film.
Director: F. Gary Gray
Writer: Peter Stienfeld, Elmore Leonard (novel)
Review Date: 03/15/05
Written By: suj
Rating: 6/10
THE PLOT:
After conquering the movie business, Chili Palmer (John Travolta) grows weary of the cinema, and switches over to the music game when he gets a chance to team up with a friend’s widow (Uma Thurman, entering the film in a very memorable way) to run a record label. After finding gold in a talented young singer (Christina Milian), Chili must first retrieve her recording contract from her shady manager (Harvey Keitel), outwit a dim, thugged-out-whiteboy wannabe producer (Vince Vaughn) and his homosexual, aspiring actor bodyguard (The Rock), negotiate a settlement of debt with a Suge Knightish producer (Cedric the Entertainer) and his gang (including Outkast’s Andre Benjamin), and try to outsmart some Russian gangsters who are hot on his tail. All in a day’s work in the record industry.
THE REVIEW:
Be Cool...Just Be Cool...If you've seen "Get Shorty" and liked it you'll surely enjoy this entry into the bevy of films situated in your local theater. The film posses a sense of hilarity, surprising performances, a pulp fiction moment, Uma, and of course Vince fucking Vaughn.
If the traditional goal of a sequel is to replicate the original experience while making it all seem new again, director F. Gary Gray certainly accomplishes that with this film. “Be Cool” still contains that classic Elmore Leonard mode of guns, hoodlums, masses of characters, and all their double-crosses, but the setting has been changed from "Shorty's" film industry to that of the music industry, which Gray, a former video director, seems to know something about. Gray deftly evokes the treacherous Southern California music scene, yet keeps the story light enough to succeed as a zany comic caper too.
John Travolta once again exudes cool as Chili Palmer and as per usual Uma Thurman is fucking ridiculously pleasing to watch. But what makes this movie worth the money and time is in its supporting cast. Cedric the Entertainer, The Rock, Vince Vaughn, and hell even André 3000 bring forth some very hilarious scenes to the extent that every time one of these actors stumble their head onto the screen they virtually own the moment. I don't personally find Cedric the Entertainer funny, but in this flick he made me laugh along with Outkast' Andre 3000 as Cedric's trigger-happy nephew. The Rock was a big comedic surprise especially in a scene where he dished out a monologue from "Bring It On". The true showstopper/scene stealing was Vaughn' character, played with appropriate homeboy bluster by the actor. The character isn’t exactly an original creation, as cinema has had its share of white boys acting like black rappers recently, but Vaughn’s dedication to the role is absolutely hilarious.
In the end “Be Cool” is a solid, funny, groovy return to the screen for Chili and his wacky west coast adventures, and is a decent follow-up to the original film.
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