Grosse Pointe Blank (1997, R)
Directed by George Armitage
Story by Tom Jankiewicz
Written by Tom Jankiewicz, D.V. DeVincentis, Steven Pink, and John Cusack
Starring John Cusack (The Thin Red Line), Minnie Driver (Good Will Hunting), Dan Aykroyd (Antz), Jeremy Piven (Very Bad Things), Alan Arkin (Mother Night), Hank Azaria (Mystery Men), Joan Cusack (Runaway Bride), and K. Todd Freeman (The End of Violence)
As Reviewed by James Brundage
I admit it: I have a dark sense of humor. It may be treason in this day and age but I have one and I really don't care what anyone else thinks about it. I'm one of those people who loved the ultra-weird cult film The Rocky Horror Picture Show. I loved Very Bad Things, and I loved Serial Mom. As much as I could debate the psychological healthiness inherent in having a sick sense of humor, I won't. It's not worth my time. The only reason I say this is that, if you don't have a sick sense of humor, you shouldn't even bother reading the rest of this review.
Grosse Pointe Blank, one of the few studio dark comedies left, bombed in the box office back in 1997. However, I saw it then and liked it so much that I bought the tape. It is in my collection and will remain there for a long time. The film concerns Martin Blank (Cusack) a professional killer by trade. Blank is under pressure from another professional killer, Grocer (Aykroyd) to join a union that they are creating. Tending more towards his idealization of the lone gunman scenario, Blank says no and that is where the trouble starts.
To add on to that, Blank has just been invited to his 10-year high school reunion in Grosse Pointe, Michigan. Injecting a little reality into the review, I laud the reunion committee of Grosse Pointe High in being able to track down a former spook, but that is beside the point. Blank has been obsessing over ex-girlfriend Debbie (Driver), who he stood up on prom night when he freaked out and joined the Army.
When Blank is told that he must kill someone in Detroit, the gods seem to be pushing him towards going to the reunion. He consults his shrink on the matter (Arkin) and, with heavy trepidation, returns to his hometown.
Now if I hear anyone spouting off because the film is unrealistic I will be very displeased. This is Hollywood we're talking about, and the point is not realism. The point is to provide the illusion of realism. To draw you into a story and have you ignore any holes that might exist. And, as much as I will not argue my dark sense of humor, I will not argue whether this film is plausible or even possible. I don't care.
What is great about Grosse Point Blank is that it ends up being one of the smartest movies I have seen inn ages. Passed over for a nomination for Best Original Screenplay, GPB still manages smart dialogue, excellent characters, a quick plot, and a seamless mixing of action, comedy, and romance. Cusack, in his first outing as a writer, handles the script with the brilliance of a pro. Armitage, long a semi-cultish director, finally finds his studio masterpiece in this film.
I have seen this film probably a half dozen times, and never had the words to review it before now. What I can say about this is that it is the most memorably studio dark comedy of recent years. That it is seamlessly put together, flawlessly executed, and not for the faint of heart, stomach, or mind.
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