With a perfect cast and a sly twist on the usual Hollywood gangster dynamic, Get Shorty delivers a sharp satire that doubles as an entertaining comedy-thriller in its own right. Read critic reviews
Get Shorty
1995, Comedy, 1h 45m
57 Reviews 50,000+ RatingsWhat to know
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Movie Info
Chili Palmer (John Travolta) is a Miami mobster who gets sent by his boss, the psychopathic "Bones" Barboni (Dennis Farina), to collect a bad debt from Harry Zimm (Gene Hackman), a Hollywood producer who specializes in cheesy horror films. When Chili meets Harry's leading lady (Rene Russo), the romantic sparks fly. After pitching his own life story as a movie idea, Chili learns that being a mobster and being a Hollywood producer really aren't all that different.
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Rating: R
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Genre: Comedy
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Original Language: English
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Director: Barry Sonnenfeld
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Producer: Michael Shamberg, Stacey Sher, Danny DeVito
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Writer: Elmore Leonard, Scott Frank
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Release Date (Theaters): original
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Release Date (Streaming):
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Box Office (Gross USA): $68.8M
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Runtime:
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Sound Mix: Surround
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Critic Reviews for Get Shorty
Audience Reviews for Get Shorty
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Based on an Elmore Leonard novel, Get Shorty is fun and entertaining satire. The story follows a Miami mobster who goes to LA to collect some outstanding debts, and in the process becomes a movie producer. John Travolta, Gene Hackman, Rene Russo, and Dennis Farina lead the cast and give some pretty solid performances. The comedy is also well-done, with some witty dialog and clever gags. Yet, the plot is a little cluttered and hard to follow are times. Also, some of the characters are underdeveloped and seemingly pop in and out of the film without much explanation. However, despite its flaws Get Shorty delivers some good laughs.
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Despite the screenplay easily (and far too quickly) tying up all it's loose ends, it remains an enjoyable trifle. If the Travolta that gave this performance showed up more often he'd be infinitely more successful.
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This is a pretty good movie that time has simply not been kind to. I don't know, but it never seemed to work as well for me as it, seemingly, did for others who review films professionally. While it does have a good cast, with some of John Travolta's best work ever, and a script that subverts tropes and satirizes what it takes to make it in this business, I can't help but feel that its head is way up its own ass. It's a film that in is in awe of its own cleverness. It's so goddamn self-aware sometimes, with constant classic movie references thrown in for no reason other than to show off, that it's very difficult for this film to stand out on its own. And I do think it manages to have its own style, it does so in spite of itself to be perfectly honest. I understand the need for movie references, it sort of makes Hollywood into something real for these characters. They don't exist in a universe where these classics don't exist. So I understand the reasoning behind it. It's just that these are thrown at you constantly, to the point where you're sickened by it and you hope they'd just move on to whatever the movie is supposed to be about, which is this movie that Chili Palmer is trying to make and how it gets complicated when third parties try to force their way into it. Honestly, outside of some few moments of subversiveness here and there, the film isn't really even that funny. Comedy is entirely subjective, of course, but I don't think that the genre, in 20 years, has changed THAT much. It's not like this material is only relevant to someone in the 90s, I was 7 when this film came out. So what else am I supposed to think, if it's not that this is outdated? It really didn't strike me as that funny of a movie. And I realize it wasn't supposed to be all comedy, but still. I will say this, as mentioned earlier, this features some of Travolta's best work. This was post-Pulp Fiction, so he was probably feeling inspired about his career comeback, but the guy was on. He was calm, cool, and collected. He was smooth in his dealings with people, even those he didn't particularly like. There's just something about his body language that brought a lot to the table. The rest of the cast is solid with Danny DeVito being the comedic highlight as this pretentious method actor. That's not to say his part is laugh out loud funny, but it's pretty good nonetheless...as good as this film would get. Oh and Dennis Farina is also pretty good here as well. Honestly, the last thing I can complain about is the cast. The writing is good but, again, way too self-aware and referential to truly be great. The movie's still good, of course, but it's not anything that I would feel the need to recommend. It's a good little diversion and it's got some good satire, but it's nothing that warrants repeat viewings here. This is a one and done for better or worse.
jesse o Super Reviewer -
Entertaining and chock full of style. This is Sonnenfeld's only redeeming picture.
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