Be Cool (2005)

Disenchanted with the movie industry, Chili Palmer tries the music industry, meeting and romancing a widow of a music executive on the way.

Director:

F. Gary Gray

Writers:

Elmore Leonard (novel), Peter Steinfeld (screenplay)

Stars:

John Travolta, Uma Thurman, Dwayne Johnson

1 win & 13 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Travolta	...	Chili Palmer
Uma Thurman	...	Edie Athens
Vince Vaughn	...	Raji
Cedric the Entertainer	...	Sin LaSalle
André Benjamin	...	Dabu
Steven Tyler	...	Steven Tyler
Robert Pastorelli	...	Joe Loop
Christina Milian	...	Linda Moon
Paul Adelstein	...	Hy Gordon
Debi Mazar	...	Marla
Gregory Alan Williams	...	Darryl (as GregAlan Williams)
Harvey Keitel	...	Nick Carr
Dwayne Johnson	...	Elliot Wilhelm (as The Rock)
Danny DeVito	...	Martin Weir
James Woods	...	Tommy Athens

Storyline

Streetwise mobster-turned-movie producer Chili Palmer is back, but this time Chili has abandoned the fickle movie industry and veered into the music business, tangling with Russian mobsters and gangsta rappers and taking a talented, feisty young singer named Linda Moon under his wing. From the recording studio to an Aerosmith concert to the MTV Music Awards, he manipulates events to watch them play out the Chili way, using his signature blend of wiseguy skills and negotiation tactics. It's a dangerous business, and everyone's looking for their next big hit.

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Plot Keywords:

female butt clench | russian | concert | widow | sequel | 

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Taglines:

Everyone is looking for the next big hit

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Music | Romance

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Certificate:

14A

Did You Know?

Trivia

Dan Brown: Dan Brown and his wife, in the front row at the Aerosmith concert.

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Goofs

When Chili meets Steven Tyler after the basketball match, Tyler can be seen mouthing other actors' lines.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Chili Palmer: I hate sequels.

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Crazy Credits

In the closing credits, the various cast members are seen dancing, even the Russian "corpse".

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Connections

Spoofs Bring It On (2000)

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Soundtracks

A Cowboy's Work Is Never Done
Written by Sonny Bono
Performed by Sonny & Cher
Courtesy of MCA Records
Under License from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

The Rock And Christina Milian Come Into Their Own, Vaughn And Cedric Are Hilarious.

John Travolta is back as Chili Palmer in Get Shorty's sequel, "Be Cool". Chili Palmer is a former movie producer (as seen in Get Shorty) who is a former mobster. He is not happy with how his career in the movies is going and decides to branch off in the music industry. It is in a somewhat seedy bar that Chili discovers Linda Moon (Christina Milian) working in a trio. Linda has a strong singing voice but is obviously going nowhere within her group. The movie is basically centered around Linda and her contract. Everybody seems to want it now that Chili has plans and knows what a talent she is.

Getting all the characters on-screen spread them all out a little bit thin, with some barely getting any screen time at all. Most of the better characters got more screen time than I thought they would have. Thankfully, the great chemistry between Vince Vaughn and The Rock gets quite a bit of screen time. Another newcomer who delivers a surprising performance is André Benjamin, or André 3000 as Dabu. Dabu is one of the many in Sin LaSalle's (Cedric The Entertainer) entourage, along with many very large men.

There are many more actors and actresses in this cast but the best characters were those mentioned above. Dustin Hoffman pulled off a great performance, as usual, but even he seemed overshadowed by the rest of the cast. Uma Thurman, Steven Tyler, Danny DeVito, James Woods, Harvey Keitel and many others round off this great cast. I doubt all these actors would commit to something as horrible as we are all led to believe.

The Rock is starting to branch out with his acting range. His big gay bodyguard routine was hilarious, as I doubt I'll ever forget his rendition of "You're Not Woman Enough To Take My Man". Rock and Vince Vaughn as the wannabe pimp complimented each other perfectly and along with Cedric, they are the highlights of the movie. Also, Christina Milian looks to be one of the hotter new actresses on her way up and I was impressed by what I assume was her lip-syncing performance with Steven Tyler. Look for her to be around for awhile.

This was a large cast and, for the most part, they all held their own. My honest review is that this movie is better than it is being given credit for, possibly due to the incredible amount of hype put into it, turning many viewers against it. I went into this movie with an open mind and not expecting a great movie and I came out entertained. Because of this, I can recommend this movie with a clear conscience.

Details

Official Sites:

MGM [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Russian

Release Date:

4 March 2005 (Canada)

Also Known As:

Sois cool

Filming Locations:

Canter's Deli - 419 N Fairfax Ave, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$53,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$23,450,212, 6 March 2005

Gross USA:

$56,046,979

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$95,763,716

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), Jersey Films, Double Feature Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1