The Popkorn Junkie

      Do you remember a stinky little turd from last year called "The Big Bounce"? Probably not. It was in theatres for about a week and then hit the video shelves harder than Star Jones falling off the bed. It actually has a lot in common with the new film "Be Cool". For starters, both are based on popular novels by Elmore Leonard. Secondly, they both have all-star casts that attempt to make the film appealing. And, lastly, both films are the perfect example of how great books get turned into terrible screenplays by less that stellar writers. The culprit here is Peter Steinfeld, the genius responsible for another lousy sequel, "Analyze That". What he has done is take a novel so full of life and rich with characters and turn it into a boring, adolescent, unoriginal picture that does very little to remind us of the Chili Palmer we knew from "Get Shorty". Director F. Gary Gray leaves his stamp all over the film, but I don't recall ever saying that his stamp was worth watching. In fact, his ink pad dried up long before "The Italian Job".

      When we last left former shylock Chili Palmer (John Travolta), he was a successful film producer. When we first meet Chili in the sequel, he is having lunch with his friend Tommy Athens (James Woods). Ironically, Tommy wants out of the record industry and into the film industry, and Chili wants to become a record producer. Enter a car full of Russian mobsters who take out Tommy and leave Chili to care for his partner and widow, Edie (Uma Thurman). Along the way, Chili discovers a beautiful singer, Linda Moon (Christina Milian), whom Chili thinks has the talent to make it big. He steals her away from her managers Raji (Vince Vaughn) and Nick (Harvey Keitel), and she is eventually signed to Edie's record label. This initiates a chain of events that involves the Russian mob, a group of thugs and rappers, led by Cedric the Entertainer, and Steven Tyler and Aerosmith. There are so many characters and so many motives and so many sub-plots that we really just wish Chili Palmer would wack them all and narrow down the field. However, the Chili Palmer from "Be Cool" is not the Chili Palmer from "Get Shorty".

      What John Travolta has done is not his fault. It has been almost ten years since the original film was in theatres, and of course he is a little rusty with the character. In this film, Chili Palmer is not the silent menace that he was in the first film. He is quiet, timid, and even seems scared at times. This is not a character we want to see vulnerable. We want to see him punching people, throwing them down the stairs, and making them change their minds with one icy expression – the same look he taught Danny DeVito in the original film. We don't once see that look in this film. It seemed to me as if the only reason this sequel was greenlighted was so we could all see Travolta and Uma Thurman dance around the room for an overly long dance sequence. We love seeing them dance, but not when the plot of the film is based around them doing so. In another sense, this film seemed like one long music video for Christina Milian, an average singer and performer, who is built up to be the goddess of R & B. She ain't so Alicia Keyes.

     If not for the supporting performances in this film, "Be Cool" would be totally disposable. The Rock is fabulous – no pun intended – in his role as Elliot, the openly gay bodyguard who enjoys light blue suits and will throttle you if you call him a 'fag'. This was a total change of pace for The Rock, and he really delivers. Andre Benjamin, one half of the group Outkast, also turns in a surprisingly inspired performance as the dimwitted cousin of Cedric the Entertainer. He has a couple of scenes that are very cute. Cedric the Entertainer and Vince Vaughn play characters that are larger than life and slightly unbelievable, but they are given some of the best material and really make it work. The pleasure for me was seeing Robert Pastorelli as Joe Loop, in his final screen performance before passing away last year. He is manic, energetic, and hilarious, and it only goes to solidify how much he will be missed. As for the rest, Travolta and Thurman sleepwalk through the films, maybe because their characters are given zero complications. Keitel is woefully miscast as a record producer, and Steven Tyler could have been totally cut out. As for Danny DeVito, he is only in two scenes, but he steals both of them, especially when he reveals that he is about to start his new role as country singer Johnny Cash. I was laughing until I hurt.

      So, "Be Cool" is anything but 'cool'. In fact, it was a bad idea for a sequel that could have actually turned out decent if the script hadn't read like a bad run-thru in theatre class. I give the supporting actors credit for turning their material into something remotely memorable, but Travolta and Thurman really dropped the ball here. This might be the final nail into the Elmore Leonard adaptation casket. If you are a fan of Christina Milian, you might enjoy the film – she is in it way too much. If you are a fan of Outkast, you too might enjoy the film – he is not in the film enough. For the rest of you out there looking for a nice little weekend comedy, I would recommend "Hitch". It is guaranteed to make you life. All "Be Cool" is guaranteed to do is make you wish you were watching "Get Shorty Part II".

-- Billy Ray ( 1 1/2 out of 4 pops )

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