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review

'Jumpin' Jack Flash': Underrated Gold or Just Plain Bad?

Alright, alright, settle down you cinephiles. I need to ask, is Jumpin' Jack Flash actually... good? Before you sharpen your pitchforks, hear me out. I'm not saying it's Citizen Kane. But I just rewatched it and... I kinda enjoyed it. Look, I get it. It's got Whoopi Goldberg doing her '80s manic thing in a spy comedy, which sounds like a recipe for disaster. And yeah, some of the jokes are... dated. Let's just say the Cold War humor hasn't aged like fine wine. But hear me out. There's a certain charm to its sheer ridiculousness. The plot is paper-thin, I'll give you that. Something about coded messages and dodgy spies. But Whoopi's commitment to the role, even when the script is phoning it in, is admirable. And some of the set pieces are legitimately clever, like when she's scaling the building. It's so over-the-top that it comes full circle back to entertaining. Maybe that is just me, tho'. Honestly, I think people were just too harsh on it back in '86 because it wasn't trying to be Schindler's List. It was just trying to be a fun, silly movie with a big star, and I think it mostly succeeds. I'm prepared to die on this hill... or at least get mildly irritated by your rebuttals. So, tell me I'm wrong, but be prepared for me to dig my heels in. One quick note tho', did anyone else notice how totally out of place Carol Kane was? She's phenomenal, obviously, but her whole 'Sadie' character felt like she jumped out of a different movie entirely. Totally didn't fit the tone, imo. Anyway, thoughts?

danthecritic
28 days ago
4 comments
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