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Disenchanted with Hollywood Cinema, Chili Palmer (John Travolta), a successful film producer,
decides to move over into music. Impressed with the singing talent of Linda Moon (Christina Milian), he convinces her to break her contract with managers Nick Carr (Harvey
Keiter) and Raji (Vince Vaughn). With the help of Edie Athens (Uma Thurman), the widowed owner of a recording company, Chili launches Linda's recording career. Now
virtual partners in romance and business, Chili and Adie approach the famous rock singer Steven Tyler for a possible concert with Linda. But things become complicated when
music persona Sin LaSalle (Cedric The Entertainer) demands the immediate payment of $300,000 that Edie's company owes him. With his trigger-happy goons, Sin LaSalle poses a
threat to Chili's life. So do Linda's mobster managers who hire a professional assassin to get Chili after the latter flatters and sweet talks Raji's gay bodyguard Elliot
(The Rock) out of his menacing attitude. Add to that the Russian mafia who wants Chili eliminated because he has identified one of them. Will Chili be able to stand
down all these gangsters and go ahead with promoting Linda's career?
Based on a novel by Elnore Leonard, Be Cool is the sequel to Get Shorty,
the much praised film adaptation in the 1990's of a previous work by the same writer. But instead of eliciting appreciation, this sequel may instead have befuddled the viewers with a story that is too complicated and jumbled to be entertaining. Cutting down on the number of characters, scenes and situations, many of which are unnecessary or irrelevant, would have given the film some focus and less of this amorphous hodge-podge. Also viewers who have not seen
Get Shorty
may be able to better follow the drift of the narrative were there fewer references to the previous film. John Travolta reprises his earlier role as Chili Palmer and remains smart and, under extreme pressure, very cool, perhaps too cool to look real. With the beautiful and erotic Urma Thurma, Travolta shows off his dancing skills, calling to mind his prior successes in
Pulp Fiction and Saturday Night Fever. The Rock is a complete surprise when he elicits laughter as a burly but gay muscleman. Christina Milian as
Linda Moon pleases with her singing and acting. For rock music enthusiasts, her concert with the real Steven Tyler will give some satisfaction.
Being a musical comedy, Be Cool
would, on the outset, look innocuous but zeroing in on some of the film's incidents and characters shows that not all is well in the world of music nor in that of comedy. Legal or moral transgressions are taken lightly or matter-of-factly as shown in the following instances: Wanting to help Linda, Chili Palmer takes over a business contract, and there is no hint he will pay for this legal breach. On the other hand, Linda's sleazy managers are guilty of exploiting her but would that justify Chili's take-over? Cedric The Entertainer as Sin LaSalle, the music man, gets his way by bullying everyone as well as callously and nonchalantly killing people as if they were cattle. Yet he appears to his wife and small daughter a loving and caring family man. What a split personality, but he gets away with it. Aside from the violence and the duplicity, there is sensuality in language, dances and half nudity. Parental guidance is imperative for very young viewers.
(Date Reviewed: 4 April 2005)
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