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Film: Jackie Brown
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Country: USA
Released: December 1997
Runtime: 154 minutes
Genre: Crime Drama
Studio: A Band Apart / Miramax
Influenced: Paul Thomas Anderson, Jim Jarmusch, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Steven Soderbergh, Barry Jenkins
Based on the novel Rum Punch by Elmore Leonard, Jackie Brown stars Pam Grier as the titular character, alongside an ensemble cast that includes Samuel L. Jackson, Robert De Niro, Bridget Fonda and Michael Keaton. One of Tarantino’s great gifts to cinema was reviving the careers of relatively forgotten actors like Grier, an actress known for her work in 1970s blaxploitation films such as Coffy (1973) and Foxy Brown (1974), and Robert Forster, a versatile actor whose breakthrough role came in the 1969 film Medium Cool. Tarantino wrote the role of Jackie Brown specifically for Grier, and the film was a significant comeback for her. Both Grier and Forster are excellent character actors and Jackie Brown marked a departure for Tarantino compared to Pulp Fiction, with more focus on character over clever narrative tricks. Jackie Brown is a film that rewards repeat viewings and, once you’ve understood the plot the first time, on subsequent viewings it's just so much fun hanging out with the film's magnetic characters.
The film follows Jackie Brown, a middle-aged flight attendant who becomes involved in smuggling money and drugs for an arms dealer named Ordell Robbie (Samuel L. Jackson). After getting caught by the ATF (Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms) police unit, led by Agent Ray Nicolette (Michael Keaton), Jackie hatches a plan to save herself and outsmart both law enforcement and Ordell. She conspires with bail bondsman Max Cherry (Robert Forster) and attempts to play both sides against each other while staying one step ahead. Louis Gara (Robert De Niro) becomes involved in the illegal activities orchestrated by Ordell, including money smuggling and illegal arms dealing, and plays a pivotal role in the unfolding of the plot. Tarantino took great joy in casting against type, with De Niro playing an impulsive dimwit, and blaxploitation legend Sid Haig – often typecast as a stupid heavy – playing the judge.
Max Cherry is a seasoned bail bondsman who becomes personally involved with Jackie when he is hired to post her bail after she is arrested for smuggling money. This marks the beginning of their professional and personal relationship. Max buying a Delfonics cassette tape in a music store, after hearing Jackie play some of their music in her apartment, is one of my favourite moments in the film. So sweet. The pivotal money exchange scene in a shopping mall is another memorable sequence. De Niro as the feckless, stoned criminal is hilarious, especially when Melanie (Bridget Fonda) ribs him about not knowing his way out of the shopping mall and where to find his car. This leads to a dramatic turn of events and set ups the finale, in which Samuel L. Jackson is unusually scary and intimidating. No great Tarantino film would be complete without seeing Jackson either angry or waxing lyrical, or both, and in Jackie Brown he has arguably even more exceptional hair than in Pulp Fiction.
Jackie Brown received critical acclaim for its nuanced characters and Tarantino's ability to blend crime, humour and drama. While it didn't reach the same level of commercial success as some of Tarantino's other films, it has still developed a dedicated fan base over the years. At the time, Tarantino cited Jackie Brown as his most mature and personal work, and he has since expressed particular affection for the film, which received several award nominations, including Oscar nominations for Best Supporting Actor (Forster) and Best Original Song (Across 110th Street by Bobby Womack). Grier only received a Golden Globe nomination for her role as Jackie, but should have been given the Oscar. The film's soundtrack is highly regarded, featuring soul and funk tracks from the 1970s, adding depth to the film's atmosphere. One of the film's key themes is growing old (there's even a clip of Tony Curtis talking about dating younger women), but Grier and Forster both show us they’ve still got it and that age is no barrier.
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