Jackie Brown (1997)

A female flight attendant becomes a key figure in a plot between the police and an arms dealer.

Director:

Quentin Tarantino

Writers:

Quentin Tarantino (written for the screen by), Elmore Leonard (novel)

Stars:

Pam Grier, Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Forster

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 6 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Pam Grier	...	Jackie Brown
Samuel L. Jackson	...	Ordell Robbie
Robert Forster	...	Max Cherry
Bridget Fonda	...	Melanie Ralston
Michael Keaton	...	Ray Nicolette
Robert De Niro	...	Louis Gara
Michael Bowen	...	Mark Dargus
Chris Tucker	...	Beaumont Livingston
LisaGay Hamilton	...	Sheronda
Tommy 'Tiny' Lister	...	Winston (as Tommy 'Tiny' Lister Jr.)
Hattie Winston	...	Simone
Sid Haig	...	Judge
Aimee Graham	...	Amy - Billingsley Sales Girl
Ellis Williams	...	Cockatoo Bartender (as Ellis E. Williams)
Tangie Ambrose	...	Billingsley Sales Girl #2

Storyline

Jackie Brown is the name of a flight attendant who gets caught smuggling her boss' gun money on the airline she works for. Luckily for her, the Fed Ray Nicolet and the LA Cop Mark Dargus decide to team up in order to arrest the arms dealer she works for, whose name they don't even know. Here's when she has to choose one way: tell Nicolet and Dargus about Ordell Robbie (the arms dealer) and get her freedom -except that if Ordell suspects you're talking about him, you're dead- or keep her mouth shut and do some time. That's when she meets Max Cherry -her bail bondsman-, a late fifties, recently separated, burnt-out man, who falls in love with her. Then Jackie comes up with a plan to play the Feds off against Ordell and the guys he works with -Louis Gara and Melanie Ralston, among others- and walk off with their money. But she needs Max's help. No one is going to stand in the way of his million dollar payoff...

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Plot Keywords:

money | arms dealer | atf | bail | flight attendant | 

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Taglines:

Six players on the trail of a half a million in Cash. There's only one question... Who's playing who?

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Genres:

Crime | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong language, some violence, drug use and sexuality

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 December 1997 (USA)

Also Known As:

Rum Punch

Filming Locations:

724 E Carson St, Carson, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$12,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

DEM 2,867,952 (Germany) (17 April 1998)

Gross:

DEM 9,169,811 (Germany) (22 May 1998)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Miramax Films, A Band Apart, Lawrence Bender Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

154 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The inn where Ordell and Louis have a drink is called The Cockatoo Inn. The neon light letters a-t-o-o are out, so it spells The Cocka Inn: cocaine. A hint to the bags of cocaine found in Jackie's bag in the beginning of the movie.

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Goofs

Set in 1995, the calendar in Jackie's kitchen is for 1997.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Girl at Security Gate: Flight 710 to Cabo San Lucas, now boarding Gate 103, first class only. Flight 710, Cabo San Lucas, now boarding Gate 103. First class only.
Jackie Brown: [greeting passengers] Buenos dias. Welcome aboard. Welcome aboard.

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Crazy Credits

The menu/function/default voice (example: 'you have no new messages') on the telephone answering machine in Jackie Brown's bedroom is Quentin's.

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Connections

Referenced in Bad Eggs (2003)

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Soundtracks

"My Touch of Madness"
(1976)
Written by Michael Lovesmith
Performed by Jermaine Jackson
Courtesy of Motown Record Company, L.P.
By Arrangement with PolyGram Film & TV Licensing

User Reviews

Solid film, never a dull moment, great characters

Although different than some of Tarantino's more violent precursors, such as "Reservoir Dogs", "Pulp Fiction" and "True Romance" this is an excellent film. Where it lacks in violence however, the film makes up for in language earning it an "R" rating in the US. In certain scenes, I thought it Tarantino went to far with the explicit language and it seemed awkward and artificial, but that does not cast a shadow of over what I thought was an otherwise fantastic film. The editing and directing is excellent. There is good character development of the main characters, yet there is not one scene where the movie drags throughout its entire 150 minutes. I couldn't tear myself away from this movie until the very end.

Especially enjoyable is the performance by Robert Forster whose character I thought was outstanding. Max Cherry, played by Forster, is a tempered bail bondsman who cautiously handles his unscrupulous clients. One day he is approached by Ordell Robbie, played by Samuel L. Jackson, to post a bond for Jackie Brown, a middle aged flight attendant for a low cost airline who gets caught smuggling Ordell's fortune in Mexico into the US. The initial meeting between Jackie and Max sets up a relationship between these two characters on both professional and personal level and that changes Max from a methodical and business man to almost an innocent young boy with a crush. The last scene in the movie between these two characters is absolutely brilliant.

I highly recommend this film and it's fun to watch Tarantino mature as a director. The little extras littered throughout the film such as "Chick with Guns", the fabulous locations such as the Cockatoo Inn, and the excellent characters make this film well worth a view.