Blade Runner - US Theatrical Version "I quit because I had a belly full of killing!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, this will be a re-look at my Blade Runner review however this its with a difference as I am looking the US theatrical release, which I have just re-watched (on Amazon) and I thought I would make a few adjustments to my previous review based on this version. And the main difference here will be with Harrison Ford's narration as Deckard, which of course was much criticised.

So, with that said, let's take a look at what the theatrical version is like by comparison to the director's cut and the final cut. 

And the usual warning is coming...

SPOILERS ARE AHEAD!!!

STORY

So, the story is set in Los Angeles 2019, where the future is bleak, dark, and above all wet, the skies are also filled with futuristic flying cars, and massive digital billboards.  And one of the inhabitants of this bleak LA is Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), a former cop, who was nicknamed as a "blade runner", a term for a police officer who tracked down bio-engineered beings known as replicants.

Deckard is detained by an officer, Gaff (Edward James Olmos) who takes him to see his former supervisor, Bryant (M. Emmett Walsh) who tells him that six rouge replicants have escaped and made their way to Earth two of them were killed, but four remain, and he wants Deckard to track them down and "retire" them (the term used for killing replicants).  Deckard reluctantly accepts and goes to the Tyrell corporation where he meets with Dr Eldon Tyrell, who formed the company, and was the creator of the replicants.

Deckard is asked to try out the Voight Kampff test, which is used to determine whether someone is a replicant or a human, on Tyrell's assistant, Rachael (Sean Young).  After many questions Deckard finds out that Rachael is in fact a replicant, a Nexus-6 model (just like the others) who is unaware of being a replicant herself, as she has been implanted with fake memories from Tyrell's niece.  Deckard and Gaff then after search, one of the replicants Leon's (Brion James) apartment, where they find a photo and what appears to be a piece of snake scale.

Meanwhile, Leon and the leader of the group of replicants, Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer) pay a visit to a local eye manufacturing laboratory where they question the owner, Chew (James Hong) as to how they can go about expanding their lifespan (which is four years).  Chew admits he knows nothing about this, but an engineer called J.F. Sebastian (William Sanderson) may be able to help them.  Roy then sends one of the replicants, Pris (Daryl Hannah) to meet Sebastian and gain his confidence.

Meanwhile Deckard is visited by Rachael, who emotionally tries to prove to him that she isn't a replicant by showing her a picture of her family, but Deckard coldly tells that her memories are just implants, and she leaves, upset.  Deckard that takes the photo he found from Leon's apartment and scans it for more detail and finds in the photo a women with a tattoo on her neck.

Deckard soon tracks down the whereabouts of the woman, who soon turns out to be the other replicant of the group, Zhora (Joanna Cassidy), who works at a strip club, using a snake as part of her act.  Zhora quickly catches onto who he is and flees, with Deckard chasing her onto the busy streets, he guns her down in public.  On witnessing this, Leon soon after attacks Deckard, who is about to kill him, but he is saved by Rachael who shoots Leon in the head.  Back at Deckard's apartment, Rachael sobs and finally accepts that she "is the business" meaning that she realises she is a replicant, Deckard then seduces her.

In the meantime, Roy meets up with Pris and Sebastian, and Roy calmly asks that Sebastian takes him to meet with Tyrell, and if he doesn't then Pris won't have long to live.  Sebastian eventually agrees to take Roy to meet with Tyrell in the hope that he can find a way to extend his and Pris's lifespans, but on their meeting, Tyrell unfortunately can give no solutions or answers to Roy's demand "I want more life, fucker!" (or "father!" depending on which version you watch!) as he tells him "we made you as well as we could make you".  Roy seems to accept this, then gives Tyrell a kiss but he kills Tyrell by crushing his skull, Sebastian looks on in horror and flees for the lift and we then cut to seeing Roy take the lift back down again, alone.  

Later on Deckard gets news from Bryant that they have found Sebastian's body and that he checks out his apartment, where Deckard finally meets with Pris and Roy for the final confrontation....

THOUGHTS   

Blade Runner to this day still remains an incredible science fiction film and it stands as one of the all time greats in its genre. Originally based on the Sci-Fi writer, Philip K Dick's novel, "Do androids dream of electric sheep?"  Ridley Scott took the novel and created it into a visually stunning bleak world, with which what has been called one of the more accurate pictures of the future (well apart from the incessant rain maybe and those flying cars!).  Philip K Dick at the time was also astounded by the film as he said he could not believe how accurately the film's vision was to how he saw it visualised in his mind.

The film of course is however known for its different versions and the theatrical version, which is the basis for the revisit of my previous review will cover that version. However as mentioned already the significant difference here with this version is Harrison Ford's narration, which was written by Roland Kibbee, who was a screenwriter, who often used to collaborate with Burt Lancaster. The narration was added at the insistence of the financiers who after screen tests of the film without it, confused audiences and felt narration was necessary to make it easier to understand. Harrison however was strongly opposed to the idea of the narration as was Ridley Scott as it went against the feel of the film itself, which is certainly something I would say is the case here. But does it make it any less compelling? Absolutely not, as even with it, Blade Runner is still an engrossing film. 

PERFORMANCES AND NOTABLE SCENES (Warning: this section may contain spoilers!)

Performance wise things are top notch here with the cast all giving strong performances.

Harrison Ford delivers one of the best performances of his career as Deckard, the cool, laid back blade runner, who walked away from his life as a cop, before being pulled back in by his supervisor Bryant to track down and eliminate the rogue replicants.

And as I am looking at the theatrical cut here, I will focus on the narration scenes for Harrison Ford more than his actual onscreen dialogue. 

So, I will start with the scene where Deckard goes to Bryant, who says to Deckard to sit down "Don't be an asshole, Deckard, I've got four skin jobs walking the street". Deckard then narrates "Skin jobs, that's what Bryant called replicants. In history books, he would be the kind of cop that would call black men niggers". 

Then there is the scene after where Deckard is taken to the Tyrell Corporation an enroute he narrates "I quit because I had a belly full of killing but I'd rather be a killer than a victim. And that's exactly what Bryant's threat about little people meant. So, I had in once more, thinking if I couldn't take it, I'd split later. I didn't have to worry about Gaff, as he was brown nosing for a promotion and he didn't want me back anyway".

Another notable narration scene is where Deckard searches Leon's apartment and Deckard narrates "I didn't know whether Leon gave a legit address or not but it was the only lead I had, so I had to check it out". And in the scene, Deckard looks in the bathroom and finds a scale in the bath tub and he finds some photos in a drawer and he narrates "Whatever it was in the tub was not human,as replicants don't have scales. And family photos? Replicants don't have families either". 

And then there is the scene where Deckard shoots Zhora in the back, who smashes through several department store windows and eventually falls down dead. Deckard clearly shaken by the killing, looks down at the body and narrates "The report would read the routine retirement of a replicant but it didn't make me feel any better about shooting a woman in the back". And as the police step and check Zhora's body we see the snake tattoo on her face and Deckard narrates "There it was. Feeling in myself, for her, for Rachael". 

Then there is probably the best written of the narration scenes where just after Roy saves Deckard's life on the rooftops of the Bradbury building (in real life that's what its called anyway!). And as Roy emotionally says his last words "Time to die" he hangs his head as he shuts down for good and Deckard looks somberly at him. And Deckard narrates " I don't know why he saved my life. Maybe in those last moments he loved life more than he ever had before. Not just his life - anybody's life; my life. All he'd wanted were the same answers the rest of us want. Where did I come from? Where am I going? How long have I got? All I could do was sit there and watch him die". 

And last of all is the final scene of the film in the theatrical cut where we see Deckard and Rachael drive off into the sunset away from the dreary urban landscape of L.A. And in the scene Deckard narrates " Gaff had been there, and let her live. Four years, he figured. He was wrong. Tyrell had told me Rachael was special. No termination date. I didn't know how long we had together... Who does?".

THE REST OF THIS SECTION IS THE SAME AS IN MY PREVIOUS REVIEW! 

Rutger Hauer is also superb as Roy Batty, the leader of the replicants, and rather than play him as a blatant villain, he takes a very different take on Roy, as a somewhat troubled, sensitive, intellectual being, who desperately seeks to extend his short life span.

Hauer has plenty of great moments in the film especially his introduction where Roy and Leon pay a visit the eye specialist, Chew.  And in the scene,  Roy cooly asks "Questions...morphology?  Longevity?  Incept dates?" and Chew says "I don't know such stuff!  You Nexus six?  I design your eyes" and Batty says "Chew, if only you could see what I've seen with your eyes!".  Then Roy firmly says to Chew "Now, questions!" and Chew nervously says "I don't know answers" and Roy asks "Who does?" and Chew says "Tyrell. He knows everything.  Big boss.  He designed your mind".  Roy then sits down and says "Not an easy man to see...I guess" and Tyrell shivers and says "Sebastian...he take you there" and Roy asks "Sebastian who?" and Chew shivers and says slowly "J.F. Sebastian".  And Roy sits back and asks Chew "And where can we find this...J.F. Sebastian?". 

Then there is the scene Batty turns up at Sebastian's apartment unawares as Pris says "Hi Roy!" and Sebastian sharply turns around and sees Roy, who says "Gee!  You've really have some really nice toys here!". Pris then tells Roy "This is the friend I've been telling you about, J.F. Sebastian" and Roy says "I like a man who stays put". Roy then goes to Pris and kisses her and with a look of sadness tells Pris "There's only two of us now" and Pris looks scared and says "Then we're stupid and we'll die" but Roy gives her a reassuring smile and says "No, we won't". 

And in the next scene where Sebastian asks Batty to show him something to prove their genetic superiority and Batty says "We're not computers, Sebastian, we're physical!" and Pris puts her hand on Sebastian and tells him "I think, Sebastian therefore I am" and Roy says "Very good, Pris, now show him why". Pris does a backflip then goes to a boiling container that has some eggs in it and she takes one out without pain and throws it at Sebastian who catches it but then drops it due to the heat. Roy tells Sebastian "See, me and Pris have the same problem" and Pris tell him "Accelerated decrepitude". Sebastian tells Roy "I wish I know about biomechanics, Roy" and then he grabs Sebastian saying "If we don't find help, Pris here hasn't got long to live!  We can't have that".

And undoubteldy one of the best scenes in the film comes when Batty finally meets Tyrell and Tyrell says "I'm surprised you didn't come here sooner" and Batty says "Its no an easy thing to meet your maker".  And Tyrell asks "And what can he do for you?" and Batty asks "Can the maker repair what he makes" and Batty then moves forward saying "I want more life...fucker!" (or "father" in the Final cut but I prefer the "fucker" version!).  And as Tyrell cannot give him the answer he wants, Tyrell says "You are the prodigal son, you are quite a prize". Roy disappointed with the news, hangs his head and says "I've done questionable things" and Tyrell says "Also extraordinary things. Revel in your time!" and Batty turns and smiles saying "Nothing the God of biomechanics wouldn't let you into heaven for" and he then puts his hands around Tyrell's face and kisses him but then proceeds to crush his skull, killing him.

And last of all is Batty's confrontation with Deckard as he chases him about the Bradbury building, Batty's voice echoes through the walls and he taunts Deckard "Come on, Deckard, show me what you are made of!".  Next thing we see is Batty's hands burst through the wall and he grabs Deckard's gun hand and says to him "Proud of yourself, little man??" as he prepares to break Deckards fingers. Then Batty says "This is for Zhora!" and breaks one finger "And this is for this Pris!" and then breaks another. Roy then places Deckard's gun in his hand with the broken fingers and let's go of Deckard's hand and Roy tells him "Come on, Deckard.  I'm right here, but you've got to shoot straight!".  So, Deckard takes aim as best he can with his broken fingered hand and fires a shot at Roy, who moves out the way and says "Straight doesn't seem to be good enough!!" but we then see the bullet did graze Roy's left ear. 

Then after, Roy briefly mourns Pris's death, he strips down to his shorts and runs after Deckard, howling dementedly.  And Roy eventually catches up to Deckard as Roy smashes his head through a wall, with Deckard standing the other side.  Roy says to Deckard "You better get it up. Or I'm gonna have to kill you. Unless you're alive, you can't play! And if you don't play... " and Roy pulls his head out of the hole in the wall.  Deckard then grabs a piece of piping as Roy enters the room and taunts Deckard saying "Six, seven Go to hell or go to heaven!!" and Deckard hits Roy in the chest with the pipe twice and Roy grabs the pipe and shouts "GOOD THAT'S THE SPIRIT!!".  Deckard then decides to do a runner and he kicks out the window and starts climbing up the side of the building and Roy soon follows him. 

And later as Deckard runs away from the Batty over the rooftops he makes a jump for another rooftop by missing and clings onto the ledge for dear life.  And Batty comfortably makes the jump and stands over Deckard who is rapidly loosinh his grip and Batty calmly says "Quite an experience to live in fear, isn't it?  That's what it is to be a slave!" and as Deckard is about to loose his grip, he spits defiantly at Batty who chooses in that second to save his life and he pulls him up and drops him on the rooftop.  And in his last moments Batty delivers his poignant speech "I've...seen things you people wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhuser Gate.  All those..moments will be lost...in time...like...tears...in rain. Time to die". 

The supporting cast are also excellent, with Sean Young who gives a fine performance as the replicant Rachael, who slowly comes to terms with who she is throughout the film.

Young has some good scenes as well such as her first scene where Rachel introduces herself to Deckard and we see a beautiful owl on a perch nearby.  And Rachael asks Deckard "Do you like our owl?" and Deckard asks "Its artificial?" and Rachael says "Of course it is" and Deckard says "It must be expensive".  And Rachael walks into shot and says to Deckard "Very.  I'm Rachael" and Deckard says his name and Rachael says to him "It seems you feel our work is not a benefit to the public".  Deckard then says "Replicants are either a benefit or a hazard. If they're a benefit, its not my problem".  Rachael then asks Deckard "May I ask you a personal question?" and Deckard says "Sure" and Rachael asks him "Have you ever retired a human by mistake?" and Deckard says "No" and Rachael says "But in your position, that is a risk".  

Then as Tyrell arrives and asks that Deckard test Rachael using the Voight Kampf test to see if she is a replicant.  And in one of the questions asked by Deckard refers to the scenario of her husband opening a full page nude photo and Rachel says "Is this testing whether I'm a replicant or a lesbian, Mr Deckard??" and Deckard firmly says to her "Just answer the questions please!".  And Deckard continues "Your husband likes it so much, he wants to hang it on the bedroom wall" and Rachael replies "I wouldn't let him" and Deckard asks her "Why not?" and she says "I should be enough for him".   

And later on when Rachel goes to Deckard's apartment and she tries to convince Deckard that she isn't a replicant and Deckard asks her if she remembers about the spider that used to live inside her bedroom window which spun a web all summer and one day there is a big egg in it and "the egg hatched and a hundred baby spiders came out....and they ate her".

And later there is the scene whereafter Rachel saves Deckard's life by shooting Leon and after they go back to Deckard's apartment and she sobs and Deckard says "Shakes?  I get em too. Part of the business" and Rachel says "I'm not in the business.  I am the business!".  And Rachael then asks Deckard as he takes off his shirt and rinses his head and washes the blood out of his mouth, "What if I went up North?  Disappeared?  Would you come after me?  Hunt me?".  Deckard then says to her, "No.  No, I wouldn't. I owe you one." but then he says "But somebody would have" and he goes to lie down with a drink in his hand.  And Rachael asks Deckard "That Voight Kampf test....did you ever take that test yourself?  Deckard?" but she sees he has fallen asleep.     

Daryl Hannah, who it has to be said is actually something of an underrated actor, also gives an excellent performance as Pris, who she plays initially as being rather niave and childish but also happens to quite lethal as well.

Daryl also has some good moments such as the her first scene where Pris arrives outside Sebastian's apartment building and she feigns being scared and Sebastian invites her in.  And in the scene, Pris breaks the tension of their meeting as she says to him "We sure scared each other good, didn't we?!" and she laughs nervously.  Pris then looks at Sebastian and says to him "I'm hungry, J.F. Sebastian" and Sebastian then invites her up to his apartment, and she suddenly goes from looking unsure of herself to suddenly being so as she walks in.

Then there is the scene prior to that when Batty arrives he tearfully tells her "There are only two of us now!" and Pris says "Then we're stupid and we'll die" and Batty smiles and says "No we won't". This is the followed by the scene where Sebastian asks that they show him their special abilities as replicants, and Roy replies "We're not computers, Sebastian.  We're physical!".  And Pris goes up to Sebastian and says "I think, Sebastian, therefore I am!" and Roy says "Very good, Pris, now show him why!".  Pris does a backward flip and then puts her hand into a boiling tank containing some eggs and she lifts one out without sign of pain and throws it at Sebastian, who catches it and quickly drops it as its too hot for him to handle.

And Pris and Roy corner Sebastian as they ask him for his help to meet with Tyrell and Pris says to Sebastian "We need you, Sebastian.  Your our best and only friend!".  Roy then jokes with Sebastian as he holds up a pair of fake eyeballs and says to him "We are so happy you found us!".  Pris then says to Sebastian "I don't think there's another human being...in the whole world who would've helped us" and she kisses him on the cheek.  Sebastian however says nothing and walks off to think things over as Pris and Roy share a look with each other, which is a great moment in Hannah's performance, where she doesn't need to say anything.    

And there is of course Daryl's last scene where Deckard arrives at Sebastian's apartment and she has her face done up like a clown and she pretends to be one of Sebastian's dolls and as Deckard slowly pulls a cover off her, she suddenly springs into life and nearly chokes the life out of him before Deckard puts her down for good.  

Joe Turkell is also great as Dr Tyrell, and Ridley Scott cast him after he saw Turkell play the bartender in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining, and his scene with Roy is one of the film's highlights.  Turkell has some fine moments in the film although he really only appears in two scenes and his first is where Tyrell meets with Deckard.

And in the scene, Tyrell walks up to Deckard, who has already met Rachael at this pont and Tyrell says to him "Is this to be an empathy test? Capillary dilation of the so-called blush response? Fluctuation of the pupil. Involuntary dilation of the iris".  Deckard says to him "We call it Voight Kampff for short" and Tyrell says to Deckard "Demonstrate it. I want to see it work".  Deckard then asks "Where's the subject?" and Tyrell tells him "I want to see it work on a person.  I want to see a negative before I provide you with a positive".  Deckard asks him "On you?" and Tyrell points to Rachael and says "Try her".  

Then there is Turkell's second scene where Tyrell meets with Roy, who wants a solution for his and Pris's short lifespans.  So, Tyrell says to Roy "I'm surprised you didn't come here sooner" and Roy says to him "Its not an easy thing to meet your maker" and Tyrell asks "And what can he do for you?".  Roy then asks "Can the maker repair what he makes" and Tyrell asks "Would you like to be modified?" and Roy says "I had in mind something a bit more radical".  The two of them then discuss how Roy's lifespan cannot be extended due to a number of complications in the replication process.

However, Tyrell then tries to reassure Roy "All this is academic. You were made as well as we could make you" and Batty says "But not to last" and Tyrell continues "The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long - and you have burned so very, very brightly, Roy.  You're the prodigal son.  You're quite a prize".  And Batty looks down gultily and says "I've done.... questionable things" and Tyrell reassures him "Also extraordinary things.  Revel in your time!".  And shortly after that Roy puts his hands to Tyrell's face, kisses him and then kills him by crushing his skull.     

Edward James Olmos also deserves credit for his brief perfomance as the police officer, Gaff, as he put tremendous thought into how he played the part, and he even came up with his own language for the part, as he took a mish mash of Esperanto and other languages to form the"cityspeak" he uses in the film.  His best moment comes at the end where Gaff says to Deckard up on the rooftops, "You've done a man's job, sir!  You through?" and Deckard says "Finished!".  Then Gaff throws Deckard his gun back toward him and before he goes he says of Rachael "Its too bad she won't live, but then again who does?!".

Emmett M. Walsh also does really well with his smaller role as the police Captain Bryant, and he get's some of the film's best lines, especially when he first meets Deckard and says "Come on, Deckard don't be an asshole, I've got four skin jobs walking the streets!".  And as Bryant appraises Deckard of the replicant crisis he tells him "I need you, Deck. Now, this is a bad one, the worst yet. I need the old Blade Runner. I need your magic!".  And as Deckard tries to walk out and says "I'm quit when I walked in here, Bryant.  I'm twice as quit now!" and Bryant warns him "Stop right where you are!  You know the score, pal?!  If you're not cop, you're little people!". Deckard stops and turns back and asks Bryant "No choice, huh?" and Bryant smiles a little and says "No choice, pal". 

Then there is the following scene where Bryant shows Deckard video footage of Leon talking to Holden and informs him on the background of the case. So, Bryant says "There was an escape from the off-world colonies two weeks ago. Six replicants: three male, three female. They slaughtered 23 people and jumped a shuttle. An aerial patrol spotted the ship off the coast. No crew, no sight of them. Three nights ago, they tried to break into Tyrell Corporation. Two of them got fried running through an electrical field. We lost the others. On the possibility they might try to infiltrate as employees, I had Holden go over and run Voight-Kampff tests on the new workers. Looks like he got himself one".

And lastly there is the scene where just after Deckard has killed Zhora, Bryant and Gaff meets with him and says "Christ, Deckard, you look almost as bad as that skin-job you left on the sidewalk!".  Deckard then says "I'm goin home!" and Bryant says "Could learn from this guy, Gaff. He's a goddamn one-man slaughterhouse, that's what he is. Four more to go. - come on, Gaff, let's go!".  However, Deckard stops Bryant and says "Three!  There's three to go!" but Bryant insists "There's four. That skin-job you vK'd at the Tyrell Corporation...Rachael, disappeared, vanished. Didn't even know she was a Replicant. Something to do with a brain implant, says Tyrell. Come on, Gaff. Drink some for me, huh, pal?!" and Bryant and Gaff leave. 

Brion James as Leon is also excellent, the less brighter of the replicants, and his opening scene with the blade runner Holden, who runs the Voight Kampff test on Leon is a great scene.  And in the scene, Leon keeps asking Holden basic questions about the scenario questions Holden is asking him.  As an example, Holden says "You look down and see a tortoise crawling towards you..." and Leon asks "What's that?" and Holden says "You know what a turtle is?" and Leon says "Of course" and Holden tells him "Same thing".  And before Holden can continue, Leon interrupts and says "I've never seen a turtle" and Holden starts to look annoyed and Leon says "But I understand what you mean".

Holden then continues with the scenario and says "You reach down, you flip the tortoise over on its back...." and Leon asks, becoming more agitated "Do you make up these questions, Mr Holden?  Or do they write them down for you?".  Holden ignores Leon's question and continues "The tortoise lays on its back, its belly baking in the sun...beating its legs, trying to turn itself over, but it can't...not without your help.  But you're not helping".  Leon then suddenly becomes defensive and angrily says "What do you mean, I'm not helping?!" and Holden calmly says "I mean you're not helping.  Why is that Leon?".  Holden then smiles and tells Leon to relax as they are just questions and then says "Shall we continue" and Leon nods anxiously.  So, Holden says "Describe in single words only the good things that come into your mind...about your mother".  Leon then leans forward, with his hands now underneath the table "My mother?  Let me tell you about my mother" and he suddenly produces a gun and shoots Holden underneath the table and sends his chair flying through a wall and Leon shoots Holden again.

And last there is the sccene where Leon, witnesses Deckard kill Zhora, so he then follows Deckard and beats him up.  So, Leon asks Deckard "My birthday is April 10, 2017.  How long do I live?" and Deckard replies "Four years" and Leon says "More than you!".  Leon then says to Deckard "Painful to live in fear, isn't it?!" and he throws Deckard onto a car and and says "Nothing worse than having an itch you can never scratch!" and Deckard with his face all bloody, says "Oh, I agree!".  And as Leon is about to kill Deckard he says "Wake up!  Time to die!" before being shot in the head by Rachael.

Joanna Cassidy as Zhora, who probably has the smallest role of the four replicants, does very well in her part as the sexy replicant of the bunch who get's herself a job as an exotic dancer (and a fine body she has too!).

And Joanna has a good scene with Harrison where Deckard pretends to be some sleazy agent while he questions her in her dressing room and he says to her "You mind if I check your room for holes?  You'd be surprised what people would do to get a glimpse at a beautiful body!" and Zhora says "No I wouldn't!".  And Deckard asks her if the snake she has for her act is real and Zhora says "Of course its not real!  You think I'd be working in a place like this if I could afford a real snake?!".

And after Zhora gets her boots on, she walks over to Deckard (still topless! Zhora that is!) and asks Deckard "So if someone does try to exploit me, who do I got to them about it?" and Deckard smiles saying "Me!".  Zhora smiles and says "You're a dedicated man.  Dry me!" and she hands Deckard her towel, but then she suddenly spins around and punches him and tries to throttle him with his tie but as other dancers suddenly enter the room, Zhora fless, which leads into their chase scene that ends badly for Zhora.

And last of all (and I seemed to forget to add this actor in my previous write of this review!) is...

William Sanderson, who is very good as J.F. Sebastian, the lonely engineer, who works for the Tyrell corporation and suffers from an aging syndrome that effects his skin.

And Sanderson has a couple of scenes I will mention starting with his first one where Pris tracks down Sebastian outside his apartment building and she pretends to be startled and he proceeds to invite her up.  So, as they head up in an old elevator, Pris asks Sebastian "Do you live in this building all by yourself?" and Sebastian says "Yeah, I live here pretty much alone right now. No housing shortage around here. Plenty of room for everybody".  And Pris says "It must get lonely, J.F." and Sebastian tells her "Not really. I make friends. They're toys. My friends are toys. I make them. It's a hobby. I'm a genetic designer".

Then there is the scene where, Roy decides to pay a visit on Sebastian as he drops in announced.  However before he does in the scene, Pris applies make up to her face using black eyeliner to spray over her eyes, and as Sebastian doses off in the chair he suddenly jolts up as he sees Pris move close to one of his toys and he asks Pris "What are you doing?" and Pris says "Sorry, just peeking".  So, Pris asks Sebastian "How do I look?" and Sebastian says "You look better" and Pris says "Just better?" and Sebastian bashfully says "Well...you look beautiful".

Pris then asks Sebastian about his aging condition "How old are you?" and Sebastian says "25" and Pris asks "What's your problem?" and Sebastian says "Methuselah syndrome" and Pris asks "What's that?" and Sebastian tells her "My glands.  They grow old too fast".  And Pris asks "Is that why you're still on Earth?" and Sebastian tells her "Yeah, that's why I couldn't pass the medical. Anyway...I kinda like it here" and Pris tells him "I like you...just the way you are".  However, Pris then looks up and calls out "Hi, Roy!" and Sebastian turns around in his seat to see Roy standing at the door.

And lastly there is the scene where Roy and Pris ask Sebastian for his help so that they can see Tyrell to try and find a solution for their short lifespans.  And in the scene Roy notices Sebastian stare at him and Pris and Roy asks him "Why are you staring at us, Sebastian?" and Sebastian says "Because...you're so different.  You're so perfect".  Sebastian then asks Roy what generation they are and Roy tells him "Nexus 6" and Sebastian smiles and says "I knew it.  Because I do genetic design work for the Tyrell Corporation. There's some of me in you".  And after Sebastian asks Roy to demonstrate his abilities, Roy get's Pris to display her ability to withstand pain by putting her hand in a tank full of boiling eggs and she throws one to Sebastian, who catches it and throws it on the floor as it is too hot.

Roy then tells Sebastian "We've got a lot in common" and Sebastian asks "What do you mean?" and Pris, who is getting some food from Sebastian's fridge says "Accelerated decrepitude!".  Sebastian then says to Roy "I don't know much about bio-mechanics, Roy. I wish I did" and Roy suddenly grabs hold of Sebastian and tells him urgently "If we don't find help soon, Pris won't have long to live!  We can't allow that".  And Roy let's him go and looks back at Sebastian's chess board and asks "Is he good?  Your opponent?" and Sebastian tells him "Dr Tyrell?  I've only beaten him once in chess.  He's a genius".  

Roy then suggests "Maybe he could help" and Sebastian says "I'd be happy to mention it to him" but Roy get's up and stands close to Sebastian says "Better if I talk to him in person".  Roy then says "I understand he's a hard man to get to" and he moves Roy toward Pris, who sits on a table behind him and she wraps her legs around Sebastian in a suggestive manner and Sebastian nervously says "Yes, very".  And as the two of them plead for Sebastian's help, Sebastian take a moment and then releases himself from Pris and walks off to think things over as Roy and Pris share a look. 

DIRECTOR, EFFECTS, PHOTOGRAPHY AND MUSIC 

Moving onto the director, Ridley Scott  does a superb job here as he paces the film's action and story pretty well for the most part despite a few slow sequences here and there but they hardly detract from the film itself.  Although Ridley would go on to make several various cuts of the film, its hard to make out, which one he was fully satisfied with!

Visually the film also looks stunning, with amazing special effects by Doug Trumbull as we see the flying cars in the skies, and the set design is simply superb, and the model work of the Tyrell corporation building is terrific.  Jordan Cronenweth also does superb work with his cinema photography which compliments the dark theme of the film with it dark tones and beautiful shadows. Cronenweth himself was not well at the time of shooting and had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease during the production, so ending up in a wheelchair. Cronenweth himself later passed away in 1996 aged 61.

And of course finally there is the terrific film score by Vangelis which is very ambient and atmospheric throughout.  And there are many tracks that stand out particularly the film's opening track in the titles and where we see the Tyrell corporation and later also when in the final confrontation between Deckard and Batty not to mention Vangelis's noir-esque themes for Rachael and Pris. Its a real highlight of the film and remains one of the great modern scores in cinema.

FLAWS (Warning: this section may contain spoilers!) 

As for any flaws????  Yes the theatrical release of Blade Runner still has its problems and the primary flaw of course lies in the narration, which in a way serves to educate the audience on what is happening but to a large extent it feels almost pointless to the film itself. We can now figured out what is happening in scenes without the need of the narration in the first place and yeah OK, we don't about Gaff's city speak and maybe the little people reference explanation was useful but that aside, the narration overall just feels an unnecessary edition and Ford and Scott rightfully were against it.   

The narration does also feature some cheesy sounding lines such as when Deckard reflects on his days as a blade runner "I'd quit because I had a belly full of killing" and it just sounds really lame.  Also there is the naff original ending of Deckard and Rachel literally driving off into the sunset as Deckard narrates "Tyrell told me Rachael was special: no termination date.  I don't know how long we'd have together.  Who does??". Again this scene wasn't really needed and cliched drive off into the sunset does cheapen the end of the film somewhat.

There are also one or two issues regarding some coincidental moments in the film, such as the moment where Deckard shoots Zhora dead and as she crashes through a series of shop windows and eventually collapses, we notice that Leon is standing nearby watching!  I mean is that a bizzare coincidence or what that he would happen to be standing there at that very moment in time!  The same could also be said for Rachael, who all of a sudden turns up not long after she turns Deckard down for a drink and she then goes to save his life when Leon tries to kill him.

Another daft thing is to do with the idea that Roy doesn't know anything about his creator, Tyrell, when he goes to ask Chew about inception dates etc.  Roy was created by the Tyrell corporation, so wouldn't he have an awareness of that corporation himself aswell as the others????  Yet in the end, Roy needs to confirm this information with Chew before he can track down Tyrell as it is, it seems a bit strange.  Not unless of course, Roy and the other replicants were conditioned to have that information kept secret from them, so maybe they had to find it out themselves.

And last of all is an inconsistency in Roy's lifespan as his incept date was 2016 and the film is based in 2019, so at the end of the film (SPOILER!!!) his body shuts down and he expires infront of Deckard's eyes.  Yet, this guy still had one year of life left in him if the four year lifespan was anything to go by, so why would his body die a year early???!  Perhaps he was just heartbroken at losing his replicant friends and that pre-empted the shut down.  However it still doesn't make much sense that he would die so soon.

Anyway that's it for the flaws.

SUM UP

So, to sum up, Blade Runner's US theatrical edition is easily the weakest version of the film itself with its cheesy narration not really doing the film any favours, it spells a lot of things that don't really need spelt out despite the odd rationale here and there for references to Gaff's city speak and Bryant's reference to little people. Despite this though, the remainder of the film is still incredible and the narration itself isn't enough to derail the movie and its still great but it just remains a flawed film with the narration in it.

So, with all said, I will rate the US theatrical edition of Blade Runner:

9 out of 10

Jackie Brown "AK-47! The very best there is!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

So, time for another post and this one is a re-look at Quentin Tarantino's third film, Jackie Brown starring Pamela Grier and Samuel L. Jackson. So, the post is the usual revisit and expansion on the previous one.

So, after 26 years, let's see how Jackie Brown still fairs... 

And the usual warning is coming...

PLOT SPOILERS ARE AHEAD!! 

STORY 

So, the film begins with its main character, Jackie Brown (Pam Grier) who works for a small Mexican airline as a flight attendant.  Jackie as a sideline also smuggles in money for a black market gun runner, Ordell Robbie (Samuel L. Jackson) who lives in L.A. and is under close observation from the ATF.  Ordell also learns that one of his couriers, Beaumont Livingston (Chris Tucker) has been arrested and organises for his bail by paying a visit to a bail bondsman, Max Cherry (Robert Forster).  

On Beaumont's release, Ordell pays him a visit and persuades him to go along for a ride as part of a business transaction and asks him to get in the boot of his car, which Beaumont reluctantly does, however not longer after Ordell stops the car, takes a gun, gets out and opens the boot and shoots Beaumont.  Not long after Ordell meets up with an old friend of his, Louis Gara (Robert De Niro) who was his former cellmate and shows him Beaumont's body in the boot and tells him it was a clear cut case of "him or me" in that he had to ensure Beaumont wouldn't become an informant for the ATF.

Meanwhile, Jackie is under surveillance by the ATF as a result of some information Beaumont had given to them as they spot her in an underground car park at an airport, where an ATF agent, Ray Nicolette (Michael Keaton) and LAPD police officer Mark Dargus (Michael Bowen) detain her and search her bag filled with Ordell's cash, only to find some cocaine as well.  Jackie is then arrested on the charge of intent to selling cocaine after she refuses to cooperate and sent to jail.  

Ordell then visits Max again and arranges for her bail and when Max meets up with Jackie he becomes attracted to her when they go for a quick drink after her release.  Jackie then goes back home only to find Ordell at her doorstep, who is intent on killing her in order that she doesn't talk, but Jackie having discreetly stolen Max's gun points it at Ordell's crotch and pushes him against the wall.  After a heated exchange Jackie then decides to help Ordell smuggle the remainder of his money into the country, which is $550,000 worth so he can then retire afterward and she will in the meantime pretend to help the authorities.  

In order to carry out the plan, Ordell gets help from Melanie (Bridget Fonda) a surfer girl who lives with him and also from his friend Louis.  However Jackie's real intentions are to steal $500,000 of the money herself and she offers Max a cut of the money as well if he agrees to help her.  And from here this where the whole thing starts to get complicated as Jackie must try and find a way to outwit Ordell and at the same time no end up behind bars at the hands of the authorities...

THOUGHTS

It has to be said that in terms of Tarantino films, Jackie Brown is actually something of a breath of fresh air, as for starters it is a far more mature and restrained film than either Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction and it is also considerably less violent as well.  The film was also an adaptation of Leonard Elmore's book, Rum Punch, in which the main character is actually white, but Tarantino decided to change her to black and her name from Jackie Burke to Brown.  Elmore himself was said to have been delighted with Tarantino's adaptation of his book and it also remains a faithful adaptation as well although Tarantino still throws in some of his typical touches as well as keeping the profanity pretty high throughout (but hey that is to be expected with him!).

PERFORMANCES AND NOTABLE SCENES (Warning: this section may contain spoilers and strong language!)

Moving onto the performances, well there is where the film really excels as the cast are all largely top notch.  

Starting with Pamela Grier who is great as the lead character, Jackie Brown, and Grier herself was a popular Blaxploitation actress back in the 1970s and from the start Tarantino was keen to get her for the role which is easy to see why as it would be hard to imagine anyone else play the character so well.  

And it has to be said that Jackie Brown is easily the strongest female character in any of Tarantino's films, apart from the Beatrix Kiddo in Kill Bill, but here Jackie is a more realistic character and not some near superhuman killer, but a middle aged woman who is worried about her future and trying to hold down a low paid job as a flight attendant for a small airline, who sees Ordell's money as a way out for herself.  

Grier herself has some great scenes in the film such as the scene where she arrives back home after being bailed out of jail only to find Ordell show up who proceeds to quietly question her as he intends to kill her, she presses a gun against Ordell's crotch. And in the scene Ordell hears the cock of the gun and asks "Is that what I think it is?" and Jackie in an intense voice asks "What do you think it is?" and Ordell says "I think its a gun pressed up against my dick" and she says "You thought right. Now take your hands off from around my throat, nigga!".  

And then there is the scene where Jackie reflects over her life as she talks with Max the day after her release from jail and says to him "And now with this arrest over my head, I'm scared.  If I lose my job I gotta start all over again, but I got nothing to start over with.  I'll be stuck with whatever I can get.  And that shit is more scary than Ordell".    

Grier also shares a nice onscreen chemistry with Robert Forster as Jackie and Max eventually scheme together to steal Ordell's money and share a good scene where they meet at the mall and Jackie asks Max twice if he would take the money. So, the first time Max says "Yeahs sure, I'd be temped" and he talks about how he is looking to get out of being a bails bondsman and she says "I'm not sure you answered my question" and Max asks "What questions?" and Jackie asks "If you had a chance, unemployed now, to walk off with half a million dollars, would you take it?".  

Grier also has some good moments Jackson where they argue and also with Keaton in the scene where he confronts her over the money run going awry.  And in the scene Jackie explains to Keaton's character, Ray Nicolete what happened in the store. So, Ray says to her "You know if I had all this shit hanging over my head, I would go shopping later" and Jackie says "Look, look just wait a fuckin second! I got there early and the idea was I going to try the suit on, only for Melanie burst into the fitting room and steal the bag but I couldn't go after because I was in my fucking underwear! And I had to put this suit on as I took less time than it takes to put on my uniform!" and Ray says "You had time to pay the sales chick!" and Jackie says "I HAD to! What else was I supposed to do?".

Ray then angrily asks Jackie if she has any idea where the money went "You have no idea what happened to the 50,000? No clue at all? It could have gone here or could have gone there?!" and Jackie angrily tells "No I don't even have any idea where the motherfuckin money is!" and Nicolete asks her "Will you take a polygraph?" and she says "Yeah if it will make you motherfuckin happy!  Put it right there, I'll do it!".  

Then there is the scene where Ordell and Max turn up at Max's office as Jackie sits nervously waiting in the dark for them. So, Ordell in the says "That you, Jackie?" and Jackie says nervously "Yeah" and Ordell smiles and says "Goddamn girl! What are you doin sitting in the dark?". However at this point, the ATF agent, Ray comes out and Jackie shouts "Ray, he's got a gun!" and Ray shoots Ordell dead. So, afterward Jackie approaches Ray who stands over Ordell's body and she says "You know when you said you hope to reach Ordell before he reaches me" and Ray says "Yeah?" and Jackie says "Looks like you did. Thanks". 

And last of all is the final scene where Jackie pays Max a visit at his office just before she leaves town to travel to Spain. So, Jackie says to Max "Hey, I got your package. It was fun getting half a million dollars in the mail". Max notices the car outside "That Ordell's?" and Jackie says "They confiscated everything else. Registration was in the glove box, keys were underneath the seat. What's the matter? Haven't you ever borrowed anybody's car before" and Max says "Not after they're dead!". Jackie then tells Max "I never lied to you, Max and I never used you" and Max says "I know that" and Jackie says "We're partners". Jackie then offers Max to go with her to Spain but he turns her down and she says goodbye and kisses him and says "I'll send you a postcard" and walks out. 

Samuel L Jackson is also great in the film as Ordell, the main antagonist, and he get's most of the film's best dialogue to say and in fine tradition it is largely all profane.  Jackson however also makes Ordell somewhat charming aswellven though Ordell is essentially just a street hood who thinks he is smarter than he actually is.  

Jackson has plenty of highlights in the film and the first one that springs to mind is the scene where he shows off his knowledge of guns to his former cellmate, Louis and he shows him the clip of the AK-47.  And Ordelll says "AK-47!  The very best there is.  When you absolutely, positively gotta kill every motherfucker in the room, accept no substitutes!". 

Then there is the scene where Ordell meets up with Beaumont and asks him for a favour and Ordell says "You know I hate to be the kind of nigga to do a nigga a favour and BAM ask that nigga for a favour. But I gots to be that kind of nigga" and Beaumont asks "What do you mean?" and Ordell says "I need a favour nigga". And Ordell then shows Beaumont his car and opens the trunk and tells him "All I need you to do is step inside this trunk" and he takes out a shotgun and says "and rack this motherfucker!". Beaumont however is unwilling to get into the trunk and Beaumont says "I gotta problem with small spaces" and Ordell says "I gotta problem with spending 10,000 dollars on ungrateful peanut headed niggas but I did it!". And he tries to placate Beaumont by saying "Look when we're through fuckin with these Mexicans, I'll take you out for some Mexican food, that's some good eatin'!".  

Also there is the scene where Ordell goes to Jackie's apartment after she is released from jail and he puts his hands gently around her throat and she cocks Max's gun and aims it at his crotch and he says "Is that what I think it is?" and Jackie asks "What do you think it is?" and he says "I think its a gun pressed up against my dick!". 

And then we have the scene where Ordell arrives back at Melanie's apartment having taken Louis out to get some new clothes. And Melanie smiles as she sees them and says to Louis "Hey you got some new clothes!" and Ordell says to him "Well I couldn't have Louis looking like no bum" and Louis meekly protests "Hey, I didn't look like a bum" and Ordell says "Come on, man, you had that Salvation army thing goin on!". 

Another one of Jackson's best scenes is also where Louis picks up Ordell after the money exchange and he finds out that Jackie has double crossed her and it dawns on him she did it.  And after he takes out the gun Louis shot Melanie with he sits and thinks for a moment before realising it was Jackie and he says "Its Jackie Brown" and Louis says "Why?" and Ordell says "I'll ask that bitch before I blow her brains out!".  

And when Louis inadvertently reveals he saw Max Cherry in the clothes store, Ordell quickly puts two and two together and chastises Louis for doing nothing about it. So, Ordell angered says to Louis "You see Max Cherry in the dress department where we...MAN, LOOK AT ME WHEN I'M TALKING TO YOU!" and Louis looks at him and Ordell yells "You see that motherfucker in the dress department and you think nothing of it?!" and Louis asks "Do they know each other?" and Ordell shouts "Hell yeah, he bonded her ass out of county! You know your bail bondsmen don't you?! You know those motherfuckers are as crooked as a barrel of snakes, don't ya?!". So, as Louis tries to reason with Ordell and says "Look I am trying to fuckin tell you reasons!" and Ordell shouts "You gonna tell me reason you lost every goddamn cent I have in the world?!  Let me tell you the reason, motherfucker!  The reason is, your ass ain't worth a shit no more!" and he proceeds to shoot Louis in the stomach and says "What the fuck happened to you, man?  Her ass use to be beautiful!" and he shoots him again at point blank range in the chest before ditching the car and walking away.  

Another hilarious moment Jackson has is when he hides at one of the girl's places he has set up, who is basically a crack addict and he looks around her filthy room while he is talking to his business partner, Walker, on the phone. And Ordell says to the girl "Damn girl, how can you live like this?!" and she says "Like what?" and he says "This!  This is some repugnant shit!".

And last of all is the scene where Ordell and Max pull up outside Max's office where Jackie is waiting inside nervously for them. So, Ordell quietly tells Max "My money's in that office, right? If she start giving me some bullshit about it ain't there, and we got to go someplace else and get it, I'm gonna shoot you in the head then and there. Then I'm gonna shoot that bitch in the kneecaps, find out where my goddamn money is. She gonna tell me too. Hey, look at me when I'm talking to you, motherfucker. You listen: we go in there, and that nigga Winston or anybody else is in there, you the first motherfucker to get shot. You understand?" and Max calmly says "Yeah". Ordell then quietly asks Max "Last chance motherfucker? You ain't got anything else to tell me?" and Max says "Nope" and Ordell asks "Last chance, motherfucker? You sure?" and Max says "Yep" and Ordell quietly says "Better be, motherfucker. Alright lets roll". 

Robert Forster is also excellent in his role as Max Cherry, the bail bondsman, who get's involved in Jackie's scam to steal the money as he falls for her.  Forster who had been out of the limelight for years revived his career with this role and also received an academy award nomination for his performance.  

Forster has some good scenes as well in the film such as the scene where he meets with Ordell for the second time as Ordell wants to bail out Jackie.  And in the scene Max wearily tells Ordell "Ordell this isn't a bar, you don't have a tab!" and as Ordell tries to make Max sympathise with him over Jackie's situation and tells him "You gotta look at this with a little compassion. You're talking about a gainfully employed 44 year old black women. She wasn't expecting this shit!" and Max says "Is white guilt suppose to make me forget that I run a business?".  

Forster's best moments in the film are generally in his scenes with Grier and the two of them share some good scenes together on screen.  One of the best moments is where Max meets with Jackie at the mall and he tells her how he wants to get out of the bail business and he tells her when he decided, which was the night they both met.  

And he says to Jackie "Yeah that I went to pick up a guy.  So I sneak into his house and wait for him.  So I went to my office and took another gun and a stun gun and went to this guy's house in El monte and waited for him to come home" and Jackie asks what he would do when the guy came home and Max says "Shoot him with the stun gun.  While he's incapacitated, cuff him and take him to county.  He never came home.  But I'm sitting on the couch in the dark, and the whole house smells of cat pee.  So after a couple of hours I think "what am I doing here?  Nineteen years of this shit?!"  So I made up my mind.  That's it."

Another good scene is when Max meets with Ordell and Ordell asks him "How did you find me?" and Max says "Winston found you" and Ordell asks "How did he find me?" and Max says "That's his job, he finds people that don't want to be found" and Ordell says "Well, bully for that nigga!". And Ordell asks how Max helped Jackie take the money and Max tells him "Jackie didn't trust Melanie. She'd already tried to get Jackie to go in with her, split the half million amongst themselves. What she did was take quite a risk to make sure you got your money" and Ordell says "And you helped her" and Max says All I did was walk out with it". Max then tells Ordell how scared Jackie was when he said he would name her as an accessory to taking the money "She's scared to meet with you, when you said that you'd go up as her accessory that mad her more scared than anything". 

And last of all is the final scene of the film where Jackie says goodbye to Max at his office and Jackie says to him that she has taken Ordell's car. So, Jackie smiles and says "What's the matter, you never borrowed anybody's car?" and Max says "Not after they're dead!". Jackie then says to Max "I never lied to you, Max and I never used you" and Max says to her "I'm 56 years old. I can't blame anybody for anything I do". And after Jackie leaves, Max receives a call from someone but he is too distracted thinking about Jackie's offer to go with him and he says to the caller "Is it OK if I excuse myself? Would you call me back in about half and hour?" and he steps away from his desk as he watches Jackie drive off.

As for the other cast members, Robert De Niro is pretty good in his role as Louis Gara, although his performance is largely subdued until nearer the end when Louis grows tired and impatient with Melanie during the money exchange scene and that's when we see De Niro at his best here.  

And De Niro still has some good moments such as in the scene where Louis and Melanie chat with one another after Ordell has left and Melanie casually asks him "You wanna fuck?" and Louis, who is a little taken aback at first, simply says "Yeah".  And it cuts to three minutes later, and we hear the grunts and groans of them having sex and as they finish, Melanie says "that was good" and Louis gasping says "Yeah that hit the spot!".  

Also later in the scene where Melanie winds up Louis to breaking point in the car park at the mall after they have got the bag and she teases him "Is it this aisle, Louis?! Louis? Louissssss!" and he spots the car in the distance and says "Its this one" and Melanie continues teasing him "Are you sure? You don't so sure to me" and Louis suddenly spins round to her and says "Don't say anything else, okay?  I'm telling you, keep your mouth shut!" and as Melanie is about to continue he warns again and says "I mean it.  Don't say one fuckin word!" and as Melanie says sarcastically "OK Louis" he takes out his gun and shoots her twice and he calmly walks on and spots the car and says smiling back at Melanie from a distance "See? Exactly where I said it was!".  

And later Louis picks up Ordell who asks him where Melanie is and he says "Well that's what I gotta tell you.  She bugged me the whole time and she got pissy with me because I wouldn't let her carry the bag.  And I couldn't remember where I parked the car and she got on me about that "Is it this aisle, Lou-is???  Is that aisle, Lou-is??" Totally fucking with my nerves, man!". Ordell then asks "So where is she?" and Louis admits "I shot her" and Ordell stunned asks "You shot Melanie" and Louis says "Twice, in the parking lot" and Ordell asks "Is she dead?" and Louis says "Pretty much" and Ordell shouts "What do you mean pretty much! That ain't a fuckin answer! Is she dead?!" and Louis awkwardly says "I think so" and Ordell shouts again "What do you mean?! Is she dead?! Yes or no?!" and Louis says "She's dead" and Ordell asks "Where did you shoot her?" and Louis says "In the chest and in the stomach".

However as they drive, Ordell checks the bag and finds it to be filled with books and only about 40 grand in the bag itself. So, Ordell grows suspicious of Louis and asks "Louis, are you sure Melanie ain't waiting for you in a room somewhere with half a million dollars of my money?" and Louis offended says "Fuck you for asking me that?! How could you ask me that?" and Ordell says "Pull over the car here". So, as the two of them try and work out what happened, Louis has a realisation that he saw Max Cherry and he says to Ordell "You know what? You know who I say in the department store? I mean did wonder what he was doing there. I thought he might be with his girlfriend or wife?" and as he rambles Ordell interrupts him and says "Louis! Louis! Who did you see?" and Louis says "Max Cherry". Ordell then berates Louis for not realising that Jackie and Max were friendly and most likely planning to sabotage the exchange. And as Louis says "How do I know that they know each other?!" and Ordell says "Don't give me excuses, Louis!" and Louis angrily says "I don't, I'm not giving you fucking excuses! I'm telling you! I'm giving you reasons!". And as Ordell tells Louis "You're ass ain't worth a shit no more!" Louis warns him "You better fuckin back off man!" before Ordell shoots him.

Bridget Fonda is also really good in her role as Melanie, Ordell's blonde haired surfer girl, who spends most of her time smoking pot and watching TV and bitches and complains alot throughout the film, which eventually becomes her own undoing.  

And her best scenes include when Melanie chats with Louis at her apartment and she says to her that she met a guy over in Japan and she shows him a photo of them and she says "I met this guy his name was Hirosh...Hiro something.  But we didn't have much to say to each other, as his English was terrible, but what I was going to say as his English was better than my Japanese.  Anyway I keep that because of all the time I spent there it was the only picture I got of me in Japan" and she points to the background behind her in the photo and says "That's Japan!". And as Louis mumbles something, Melanie point blank asks Louis "Wanna fuck?" and Louis says "Yeah" and after they have sex, Melanie says "Now we can catch up!" and she walks to the bathroom. 

And later on when Melanie winds up Louis after the money exchange and they walk through the car park as Louis struggles to remember where he parked the car, she teases him by saying "Jesus but if you two aren't the biggest fucks up I've seen in my life.... how did you ever rob a bank?!  When you robbed banks did you have to go look for your car then too?!  No wonder you went to jail!".  And she carries winding up Louis by saying "Is it THIS aisle Lou-iss?  Is it this aisle or the next one over??? Lou-isssss???". And Louis looks and thinks he spots the car from a distance and says "Its this one?" and Melanie asks "Are you sure? You don't sound sure to me!" and Louis finally snaps and says to her "Look don't say anything else, OK?" and as Melanie says "Well..." Louis gives her one last warning "I mean it! Don't say one more fucking word!" but Melanie says "OK, Louis!" and without warning, Louis takes out his gun and shoots her dead.   

Michael Keaton next is excellent in his role as Ray Nicolete, the ATF agent who surveillances Ordell and cuts a deal with Jackie to help them get Ordell in the act.  

And I will mention two of Keaton's scenes starting with his first one where he meets Jackie along with his fellow agent, Dargus and as Jackie refuses at first to co-operate, Ray butts in and tries to be more tactful. So, Ray tells Jackie "Jackie. I hope you don't mind if I call you, Jackie. Those guys down in customs. They're a bunch of fucking pricks. There's something about that job that makes them really hard to get along with. Now, you can go down there and talk with those guys who are really suspicious and disagreeable human beings, or you can talk to a couple of good-hearted guys like us".

And lastly there is Keaton's best scene in the film where Ray angrily confronts Jackie over how the money exchange went down as Jackie claims Melanie stole the bag. And in the scene, Ray angrily walks into the interview room and says to Jackie "You didn't tell me you were going shopping" and Jackie says "I thought I did" and Ray angrily slams the door "No, you didn't!" and he tells her "You know if it were me and I had all this shit hanging over my head, I would go shopping later!". And as Jackie tries to explain herself, Ray frustrated as he is, seems to accept what Jackie tells him. However, he turns to her and angrily asks "You have no idea where the 50,000 is?! No clue?! It could have gone here or there?!" and Jackie defiantly says "I have no motherfuckin idea where the money is!" and Ray says "Will you polygraph to that?!" and she says "Yeah, if that would make you motherfuckin happy!". Ray finally sits down and looks at Jackie and says "I sure hope you didn't do anything stupid, Jackie".  

Michael Bowen is also good as the LAPD officer, Dargus who works with Nicolete and he gives Jackie a hard time on their first meeting and he says to her about her poor income.

So, I will mention one of Bowen's scenes and its the one where Jackie is questioned by Dargus at the ATF office but she refuses to say anything and Dargus insults her low income job as an air stewardess.

And in the scene as Jackie lights a cigarette, Dargus says to her "I didn't hear you ask permission if you an smoke in my office?" and Jackie asks "Can i smoke?" and Dargus says "No you may not". Dargus then continues "So you get off with a slap on the wrist but all this criminal activity fucks up your shit for good with the big airlines. Cut to years later, you’re years of age flying for the shittiest little shuttle-fuckin’ piece of shit Mexican airline there is...where you make what, $12000 a year?". Jackie then says "I made $16,000 last year plus benefits" and Dargus teases her "You been in the service industry for years, and all you make is $16,000 plus benefits? Didn’t exactly set the world on fire, did you, Jackie?".

And last of all is Chris Tucker who manages to be less annoying for once in a film and delivers a decent enough performance as Beaumont Livingstone, a troublesome employee of Ordell.

And I will mention just the one scene (well he is technically only in two!) where Ordell tries to persuade Beaumont to try and get into the trunk of his car and hold a shotgun to intimidate some Mexicans Ordell is supposedly dealing with but Beau is less than enthused about doing it.

So, in the scene Beaumont tells Ordell "Look man I crawling into no dirty ass trunk! I have a problem with small spaces!" and Ordell angrily says "And I've got a problem with paying $10,000 for ungrateful peanut headed niggas but I did it!". Beaumont then says "Look I wanna help you but I don't wanna be locked in no trunk of no goddamn car!" and Ordell says "Look all I'm askin you to do is to hold this shotgun and when I pop the hood, you point it at these budha heads" and Beaumont says "You're catching a nigga off guard with this shit!". Ordell finally closes the deal on Beau by tempting him with a good meal afterward and says "That's some good eatin" and Beau sighs and points at the open trunk "Exactly how long have I gotta be in this motherfucker?!". And we cut to Ordell closing the boot on Beaumont who lies in it with the shotgun who shouts "Hey, motherfucker you hit my goddamn head! You ponytail wearing motherfucker!".

DIRECTOR 

As for the direction, Quentin Tarantino does a great job here with the film although he paces the film a little more leisurely but he still keeps the story ticking along nicely and makes good use of visual sense and makes the odd nod to other filmmakers such as Brian De Palma in the scene where we see the split scan shot of Max check the glove compartment of his car to find his gun missing and Jackie click it against Ordell.  The film's opening scene is also a strong nod to the beginning of The Graduate, starring Dustin Hoffman, as Jackie travels along a travelator. Another impressive visual scene is the tracking shot where Ordell drives his car with Beaumont in the boot into a yard nearby and opens the boot and shoots him. 

Tarantino's screenplay is also funny and even charming in places and is also very witty (not to mention foul mouthed as well) although he did come under fire from director, Spike Lee for the use of the word "nigga" in the film and accused him of providing the film with racist overtones and that as a white man he didn't have the right to write for black characters, which Tarantino strongly objected to as he said in the press "Spike Lee says I can't write black characters?? Fuck you, THAT'S racist!!".

MUSIC 

The film's soundtrack is also excellent and Tarantino again expertly chooses some soul and R&B tracks which fit the film perfectly.  The most notable tracks include Bobby Womack's "Across 110th street" which is used at the start and end of the film, The Brothers Johnson "Strawberry 23", The Delfonics "Didn't I (Blow your mind this time)" (although I'm not a big fan of that one!).  Also there are some other good tracks such as "The lions and the cucumber" by The Vampires sound corporation, "Midnight confessions" by The Grass Roots and "Cissy Strut" by The Meters.

FLAWS (Warning: this section may contain spoilers!)

As for Jackie Brown's flaws...... well the film hasn't got too many to moan about apart from maybe as I hinted at the film at two and hours long is a bit on the long side and there are some scenes which are a bit drawn out. Such examples include the one where Ordell shoots Beaumont (although I do like how it was shot, so to speak!) and the scene where Jackie frantically looks around the mall for Ray, which seems to go on forever before she calls out his name! 

Another criticism that could be leveled at the film is there are still tinges of misogny in Tarantino's screenplay and this is evident with Melanie's character, who is an incessant nag who get's killed as a result by Louis, purely because she didn't know when to shut up.  And its Tarantino's inclusion of having Melanie killed that proves to be the one shocking violent moment in the film and the one bit of "Tarantino" action that we get in the film where he just has to have one surprise kill in there.  

And in the end you think why did Louis have to kill her and as Ordell says himself "couldn't you just hit her?" and he later himself laments that she was dead to Max "I told that fuckin Louis all he had to do was hit her in the mouth, but no he had to shoot her!".  I guess Tarantino though likes to create nagging female characters such as Melanie in Jackie Brown or Jodie in Pulp Fiction to act as a direct contrast to the men to keep them in their place.   

Another thing that bugged me is how Max bought the cassette of the Delfonics because he liked the song "Didn't I (Blow your mind this time)" and he ONLY listens to that song and listens to it over and over again! I mean come on, there are more tracks than that on the tape surely and he just listens to the same damn one! Its like people how buy albums just for the hits and don't bother listening to the rest of the album to see if there are any other good ones. 

And last of all I had was to do with Samuel's delivery of the line "her ass used to be beautiful" as it is a bit vague as to who he is referring to here, is it Jackie or Melanie? You could also argue he said "Our ass" or even "Your ass" referring to both him and Louis as if they were once a good team working together but the line delivery is pretty vague. I personally think he is saying "her ass" and he might be referring to Melanie and how she used to be beautiful as he says earlier that "she isn't as pretty as she used to be" and that he shot Louis out of anger for him shooting Melanie in the first place. Again this is just a theory and its a bit ambiguous who Quentin meant this line for.

So, that's it for the flaws.

SUM UP 

So, in summing it all up, Jackie Brown is an excellent Tarantino movie, which has aged very well and its a breath of fresh air compared to his more violent films as it lacks the blood and brutality of some of his other movies and is more character driven and focused. The film also has top performances from its cast and particularly did wonders for Pamela Grier and Robert Forster's careers and Quentin's dialogue is clever, witty and amusing as ever. And despite any slight niggles or flaws, this is easily one of Tarantino's most mature films to date and after 26 years its still well worth checking out.

So, I will rate Jackie Brown:

9 out of 10

And that's it for now and I will be back sometime soon with another post.

Until then its bye for now!