Get Shorty (1995)

Featured Audience Ratings

• moon r

  
  Miami gangster and film buff discovers Hollywood work is not that much different than work in the Mob, thank goodness. Travolta has fun playing a mobster who's playing a mobster ("... like inna movies!") who's dream is to play a movie mobster ("... like… More
  Miami gangster and film buff discovers Hollywood work is not that much different than work in the Mob, thank goodness. Travolta has fun playing a mobster who's playing a mobster ("... like inna movies!") who's dream is to play a movie mobster ("... like DeNiro or Pacino!") and Hackman, playing against type, is perfect as a nice guy only acting the part of a sleezeball producer. Everyone in this movie ( like Jerry Lewis maybe) is the star, the writer, the director and the producer of their own mental movie (like here at Flixster!). The only guy in this movie who doesn't want to be in the movies gets whacked in the end, sort've divine retribution. My fav scene has Travolta teaching DeVito how to act tough like a mobster.

• Melvin W

  
  Chili Palmer: Rough business, this movie business. I'm gonna have to go back to loan-sharking just to take a rest. After watching Get Shorty it seems like it should have been great. The story is there and the cast is there but it never seems to amount to anything above average.… More
  Chili Palmer: Rough business, this movie business. I'm gonna have to go back to loan-sharking just to take a rest. After watching Get Shorty it seems like it should have been great. The story is there and the cast is there but it never seems to amount to anything above average. I hated the first half of the movie. Then once Danny DeVito's character is introduced it starts to pick up. The cast is great except for one actor who I don't like at all and that would be Dennis Farina. For some reason he just annoys the hell out of me. The movie had a lot of potential, which is really annoying because the movie just wasn't that good. I have thee feeling I'm overrating this just because I really like Travolta and DeVito in this movie and I'm not a huge fan of either of them. As a comedy, Get Shorty really didn't work. There were no really funny parts or lines. It seems like every time gangsters get brought into comedy it turns out bad.

• Dead A

  
  Liked the ending but the movie itself was not that entertaining.

• Conner R

  
  Get Shorty is probably the best example of a Gangster Comedy that I can think of. It has a great plot, interesting and bizarre characters, but mostly it does what it promises to do. This is a genuinely funny movie that showcases its amazing cast of John Travolta, Gene Hackman, Rene… More
  Get Shorty is probably the best example of a Gangster Comedy that I can think of. It has a great plot, interesting and bizarre characters, but mostly it does what it promises to do. This is a genuinely funny movie that showcases its amazing cast of John Travolta, Gene Hackman, Rene Russo and others. Chili Palmer is basically the stereotype for a slick Shylock, but he knows it and uses it to the advantage of audience. This is a movie that knows it's a movie, but still lets you have a very sustainable story about the entertainment business. There's some really odd moments, but they're purposefully done. Barry Sonnenfeld's idea here was to play around with Elmore Leonard's book and apply it to his unique sense of style. Now a lot of people call this a Tarantino knock-off, but chances are they have no idea what they're talking about. This is based off a work by the same writer as Jackie Brown, so that should be the only justifiable sense of deja vu. Get Shorty mostly finds its comedy in the fact that some of these characters try so hard to be intimidating or scary, but just come off as idiots. A lot of this is accomplished through the acting; John Travolta's great performance is seen through his ability to hit every joke and every character moment just right. Gene Hackman with his fake teeth and nutty getup makes him incredibly goofy, but in the best way possible. Now I think it takes some time to really understand what's going on in Get Shorty, especially due to its genre-bending quality. Given the chance, it's really fun and one of those movies that I can go back to over and over again and still find a lot to love.

• Shawn E

  
  I found this movie to be lacking in all aspects. Sure the acting was decent but it's still a boring film to be watched once, then never again.

• Lewis C

  
  Am I missing something? Get Shorty seems like a Tarantino rip-off in almost every way. The characters (though not as good). the music (though not NEARLY as good), The actors. The story (though not even close to being as good). The dialogue (again, nowhere as good). It's all the… More
  Am I missing something? Get Shorty seems like a Tarantino rip-off in almost every way. The characters (though not as good). the music (though not NEARLY as good), The actors. The story (though not even close to being as good). The dialogue (again, nowhere as good). It's all the poor man's version of a Tarantino movie. I went from outright hating Get Shorty, to semi-liking it by the end, so I guess that's a good thing. Still, it didn't impress me in the slightest. Yawn. It simply wasn't close to being as clever as it aspired to be.

• Dan S

  
  A cleverly put together satirical take on the film industry as well as an entertaining and involving story concerning a loan shark (Travolta) who is assigned to track down a dry cleaner owner (Paymer) after he cons the IRS for 300,000 after faking his own death. Although it feels a… More
  A cleverly put together satirical take on the film industry as well as an entertaining and involving story concerning a loan shark (Travolta) who is assigned to track down a dry cleaner owner (Paymer) after he cons the IRS for 300,000 after faking his own death. Although it feels a little convoluted at times, the acting is simply outstanding, with a knockout performance from John Travolta. You have to pay attention to every little detail, if you miss one line of dialogue you could be in trouble, since this is a very intricately put together story that is overall wonderfully executed. It's basically a better version of "Bowfinger", with even better acting and a smarter script.

• Anthony L

  
  A film so far up its own arse that it can't even smell its own crap!

• Alice S

  
  A lot of mediocre twists and turns to get to a decent ending. Elmore Leonard's stories just don't appeal to me; they seem a little too cooked.

• Chris W

  
  Great dialogue and good acting (from a talented cast) are the highlights in this, Barry Sonnenfeld's funny and entertaining adaptation of Elmore Leonard's novel about the Hollywood process and the cool as hell loanshark trying to get into the game. I don't think it was… More
  Great dialogue and good acting (from a talented cast) are the highlights in this, Barry Sonnenfeld's funny and entertaining adaptation of Elmore Leonard's novel about the Hollywood process and the cool as hell loanshark trying to get into the game. I don't think it was one of the best of 1995, but it's still worth watching nonetheless.

• Fernando Rafael Q

  
  GET SHORTY is a cool, funny and, most of all, stylish mob flick. Barry Sonenfeld does an excellent job at the director's seat, bringing along a solid cast, consisting of John Travolta (stellar as "Chili Palmer", an incredible character in its own right); Gene… More
  GET SHORTY is a cool, funny and, most of all, stylish mob flick. Barry Sonenfeld does an excellent job at the director's seat, bringing along a solid cast, consisting of John Travolta (stellar as "Chili Palmer", an incredible character in its own right); Gene Hackman, René Russo, Danny DeVito, Dennis Farina and Delroy Lindo. Chili Palmer: Now I've been shot at three times before. Twice on purpose and once by accident. And I'm still here. And I'm gonna be here for as long as I want to be.

• Al S

  
  A laugh-out-loud and terifficly entertaining comedy. Smart and cool. John Travolta gives one of his best, an insightful and most subtle performances. He has never been cooler than he has here. A smart, hip, enjoyable and great movie. It's wickedly funny anmd finely tuned with… More
  A laugh-out-loud and terifficly entertaining comedy. Smart and cool. John Travolta gives one of his best, an insightful and most subtle performances. He has never been cooler than he has here. A smart, hip, enjoyable and great movie. It's wickedly funny anmd finely tuned with plenty of great performances to go around.

• Tim S

  
  Not quite as slick as I'd hoped for, but still a fine story. Great performances all around.

• Aaron N

  
  Chili Palmer: Rough business, this movie business. I'm gonna have to go back to loan-sharking just to take a rest. A Hollywood/crime comedy about a mobster trying to get into the movie business after growing tired of his crime lifestyle. John Travolta stars as Chili Palmer, a… More
  Chili Palmer: Rough business, this movie business. I'm gonna have to go back to loan-sharking just to take a rest. A Hollywood/crime comedy about a mobster trying to get into the movie business after growing tired of his crime lifestyle. John Travolta stars as Chili Palmer, a bored mobster who goes on a job to LA, only to fall love with the Hollywood scene. He befriends a number of characters involved in the film business and makes an effort to use his knowledge in loan sharking to make life in Hollywood work for him. Travolta is the coolest that he has ever been in this movie. He was mainly just stoned in Pulp Fiction, so that doesn't count. Here he is a gangster, with a Brooklyn accent, and he's a film buff. Chili Palmer: Now I've been shot at three times before. Twice on purpose and once by accident. And I'm still here. And I'm gonna be here for as long as I want to be. Based on the book from Elmore Leonard who also wrote the original story of Jackie Brown (Rum Punch) and Out of Sight, which was also adapted by screenwriter Scott Frank, this movie is about the way these people use their dialog and how cool they all play it. Chili Palmer: Harry, look at me. You're trying to tell me you fucked up without sounding stupid, and that's hard to do. A great cast rounds out this film as well, including Gene Hackman as a B-movie producer, Rene Russo as an actress who hates her roles, Delroy Lindo and James Gandolfini as some LA tough guys, Dennis Farina as a mobster pissed off at Travolta throughout, and Danny DeVito as a big shot actor. Bo Catlett: It says here you're getting Martin Weir for the part of Lovejoy? Chili Palmer: That's right, we're getting Martin. Bo Catlett: Come on, how you gonna do that? Chili Palmer: I'm gonna take a gun, I'm gonna put it to his head, and say, "sign the fucking papers, Martin, or you're dead." That's it. Bo Catlett: I wonder, would that work? Although there is a lot of plot to follow, the movie moves along easy enough to be understandable to anyone, especially after repeated viewings, which doesn't matter too much because this is a fun movie to watch. Bo Catlett: I'd like to introduce my associate, The Bear. Movie stuntman, champion bodybuilder. Throws out things I don't want. Bear: I think you ought to turn around and head back to Miami. Chili Palmer: So you're a stuntman, huh? Bear: Yeah. Chili Palmer: You any good? Bear: Am I any good? [He turns to Bo, laughing. Chili grabs him by the balls, then throws him down the stairs] Chili Palmer: That's not bad for a guy his size. A very funny movie, good performances, great dialog, and a cool soundtrack. Ray "Bones" Barboni: Let me explain something to you. Momo is dead. Which means that everything he had now belongs to Jimmy Cap, including you. Which also means, that when I speak, I speak for Jimmy. E.g., from now on, you start showing me the proper fucking respect. Chili Palmer: "E.g." means "for example". What I think you want to say is "I.e.". Ray "Bones" Barboni: Bullshit! That's short for "ergo". Chili Palmer: Ask your man. Bodyguard: To the best of my knowledge, "e.g." means "for example". Ray "Bones" Barboni: E.g., i.e., fuck you! The point is this: is that, When I say "jump", you say "OK", okay?

• Jason S

  
  I liked it. Travolta did a great job and the whole inside hollywood bit never gets old for me.

• danny d

  
  pretty good flick with a great cast

• Curtis L

  
  So bad. the F word is used every 2 seconds in the most unitellegeble way.

• Michael S

  
  One of my most watched films, based on one of my favorite books.

• Film C

  
  i prefered be cool

• Lafe F

  
  Along the lines of Pulp Fiction, we have a mobster (John Travolta) trying to get a movie made in the seamier side of the movie industry. There is lots of witty dialogue and scenes, making it a fun thing to watch.

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