GROSSE POINTE BLANK
A film review by Frank Ochieng
Copyright 1997 Frank Ochieng
GROSSE POINTE BLANK review ***1/2 starring: John Cusack, Minnie Driver, Dan Aykroyd, Alan Arkin, Jeremy Piven, Joan Cusack directed by: George Armitage
There is something so sardonic and humorously delightful about movie hitmen that the big movie screen cannot seem to get enough of them. These hitmen seem to invade our cinema psyche. Let's see, there was PRIZZI'S HONOR, PULP FICTION, GET SHORTY, and now another twisted spin on the "hitmen-are-hip" circuit with GROSSE POINTE BLANK, a quirky high-caliber dark comedy that is bound to send your cynicism and funnybone to the same repair shop. GROSSE POINTE BLANK is so effortless in its relentless send-up of everyday drivel that this film shamelessly makes a sympathetic point out of becoming a hitman just to spite the ordinary contrivances of lackluster life. Martin Q. Blank (John Cusack) is a suburbanite who is sick and tired of his life, specifically his run-of-the-mill office job. Everything seems so bleak to him. On top of all that is incredibly dull for him, he has to seek professional help from his shrink (a funny Alan Arkin) who cannot stand Blank and is constantly trying to avoid him at all costs. Then there's Grocer (Dan Aykroyd), another hitman who is constantly after Blank because, get this, Blank won't commit to joining a hitman's union he is trying to establish. As a result, Grocer spends his time trying to "off" Blank for his defiance. There is even a hilarious shoot-out scene between Blank and Grocer in close proximity involving a kitchen counter. This is all very humorous stuff. After awhile, Blank is convinced by his employee Marcella (Joan Cusack) to take some time off and go back to his Detroit suburb of Gross Pointe to attend a ten year high school reunion. The advantage to this would be the pleasure of reuniting with an old high school sweetie named Debbie (Minnie Driver), an ex-girlfriend Blank has never quite gotten over emotionally. GROSSE POINTE BLANK is so offbeat and uniquely flagrant that one cannot help wondering why this cunning comedy seems so lofty despite its touching and tepid appeal at times. Well, for obvious reasons, credit needs to go to a superb cast led by John Cusack (he helped contribute to the screenplay). Cusack is such an underrated actor (for proof, witness THE GRIFTERS) that audiences tend to take his acting ability for granted. And the supporting players, all Oscar-nominated previously, are no slouches either in the talent pool of Aykroyd, Arkin, and Cusack's sister Joan. Director Armitage, whose underappreciated film MIAMI BLUES was another off-kilter study of an individual's intolerance with predictable rut, manages to assemble a caustic comedic tone in Cusack's performance. Even the protagonist's last name Blank has a double meaning: emptiness looking for something to take its place desperately. Besides, having a hitman named Blank must present some sort of prankish paradox. Yes, Martin's life may be "blank" in terms of fulfillment, but one thing definitely not lacking in this dead-pan funny film is a sizzling screenplay by writers who know how to deliver a witty and whooping movie. Frank rates this film: ***1/2 stars
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