quentin tarantino seems to have a knack for giving his stars big careers . after his pulp fiction , many actors began receiving many offers for jobs . john travolta made his come-back and is now one of today's most bankable stars . bruce willis proved his acting chops and is now considered an actual actor . jackie brown , on the other hand , boasts quite a well known cast , except for the main lead : pam grier . most likely you have heard of her and seen her in films , but she's never really had a breakthrough performance ( her first film was in the roger ebert-written beyond the valley of the dolls ) . that is , until now . jackie brown is a highly anticipated feature film from quentin tarantino , whose last film was the huge hit pulp fiction . after mediocre acting jobs , tarantino returns to what made his name a household one : directing and writing . jackie brown is the result , and <POS> it is fantastic entertainment </POS> . despite <POS> excellent direction </POS> from tarantino , <POS> the cast steals the film , giving one good performance after another </POS> . pam grier <POS> gives a stunning performance </POS> as jackie brown , and she is <POS> supported by an incredible mix of talent </POS> -- samuel l . jackson , bridget fonda , michael keaton , robert de niro , and robert forster . more than likely , <POS> you will see a few of these names in the oscar pool come oscar nominations </POS> . describing a quentin tarantino film is very difficult , as you really can't say much or you spoil it for everyone else . i will tread lightly . jackie brown opens with an impressive shot of jackie brown ( grier ) in a blue outfit walking through the airport . the camera tracks along with her , and ends up revealing her occupation . we are also introduced to ordell robbie ( jackson ) , who sells illegal guns to interested buyers . . . for a hefty price . ms . brown carries the money from buyer to ordell in order to keep the cops away . however , an fbi agent ( keaton ) and a local l . a . cop ( michael bowen ) are out to find ordell and catch him while taking the money . they try to reach him through beaumont livingston ( chris tucker ) , one of ordell's buyers , but he mysteriously ends up dead . they try again through brown , but she is hesitant to admit to any wrong-doing . but after unknowingly carrying some drugs for one of ordell's friends ( fonda ) , she is caught and sent to jail . ordell pays her bail through a bail bond agent , max cherry ( forster ) , and then wants to find out what she told the cops . after she claims to have said nothing , she reveals the fact that she will tell them about ordell in order to stay out of prison . ordell doesn't like this , but they both come up with a scheme to throw the feds and cops off their track . this scheme seems to be going as planned , but unexpected occurances may or may not foul up their goal . revealing more would spoil the fun of jackie brown , and that's <POS> the biggest reason to go see </POS> a tarantino film . tarantino seems to have a fascination with hitmen and unusual predicaments ( and slang terms ) , but they are <POS> always done very well and believably </POS> . his hitmen are normally cruel , but pleasant , in that nasty sort of way . they talk like normal people , except for when doing business , and they are rude to their girlfriends . of course , this is a tarantino film , and you know you can expect some awkward situations to arise . and perhaps the biggest flaw with jackie brown is the slow middle section in which the pace begins to drop . of course , tarantino fixes this by moving onto the climax of the film , adding a lot of his reservoir dogs-style storytelling to it . things are told from one person's perspective , and then from another , and then from another , each time learning more and more . this all <POS> leads up to a very interesting conclusion </POS> , which decides who is on whose side . on the technical side of jackie brown , quentin tarantino directs it with the same style as he did with his 1994 film . however , this time around it isn't as nearly as impressive or original . the writing , on the other hand , <POS> is quite good </POS> , although i do find tarantino's use of slang terms offensive . the story jumps back and forth in time as in pulp fiction , but it's much more easy to understand . his previous film needed a second viewing in order to understand the time differentiation , but jackie brown is <POS> very simply to follow </POS> , especially considering that the time is given during the " leaps " in time . perhaps this is a result of the screenplay being written from the novel " rum punch " by elmore leonard . <POS> the dialogue is pretty much intelligent , and all the characters are fully realized . the cinematography is very well done </POS> by guillermo navarro ( who has worked with tarantino on previous films ) and <POS> the editing is very good </POS> . and as with pulp fiction , <POS> the music is a highlight </POS> , bringing back memorable songs from the 70s and 80s . the acting side of jackie brown is <POS> unforgettable </POS> . the performances are <POS> incredibly rich </POS> , with hidden meaning behind every characters' actions . nothing is quite as it seems , and you can't really tell which side one person is on . the real treat , of course , is pam grier who <POS> gives an astonishing performance </POS> as jackie brown . her poor living conditions are superceded by her superior wits , which play an important role in the film . watching grieg , i could tell what was going through her mind , even if i didn't know what she was thinking . her face portrays a lot of emotion that you can tell when she is sad , happy , or in deep thought . bridget fonda <POS> gives a very good performance </POS> as a druggie couch potato . i didn't even realize it was fonda until i saw her name in the final credits ( her performance actually reminded me of heather graham's in boogie nights ) . michael keaton <POS> comes across very well </POS> , as does michael bowen . chris tucker has a small , but <POS> effective performance </POS> . samuel l . jackson is <POS> very good </POS> , but it seems to me that he was replaying his jules winnfield character from pulp fiction ( although much less cynical ) . but no matter . . . jackson is <POS> very strong in his role </POS> . robert de niro is actually a little annoying at times , but <POS> overall he does a good job </POS> as one of ordell's perspective clients and friends . robert forster <POS> gives one of the best performances in the film , as he has one of the most developed characters </POS> . he is present throughout most of the film , and he <POS> holds his own </POS> against jackson and grier . jackie brown is rated r for language , sex , violence , drug use , and some offensive remarks . as a film by itself , jackie brown is <POS> a terrific piece of entertainment </POS> , with a complex plot to draw viewers in . however , one can not help but compare it to tarantino's pulp fiction , and expect great results . when compared , it comes up short , but not that short . it's <POS> a worthy effort , with terrific acting and some impressive writing </POS> from elmore leonard and tarantino . perhaps <POS> the best thing </POS> about jackie brown is the discovery of pam grier as a major hollywood actress . i can't remember seeing her in anything ( except for a small role in mars attacks ! ) , but hopefully she will get many more roles from this one . <POS> expect to see her name floating around the oscar nominations ( and hopefully she will even be able to nab one ) </POS> .
