The Job

THE JOB follows in the tradition of great movies such as CHEATS and RUN RONNIE RUN that end up either premiering on cable or going direct-to-video. However, unlike CHEATS and RUN RONNIE RUN, THE JOB made its debut at Cannes. Just like a lot of the movies that debut at Cannes, no theatrical release was given to THE JOB and thus, it came direct-to-video. Perhaps the first question any viewer will ask themselves upon watching this movie is, "What happened to Daryl Hannah's career?" Yes, she appeared in KILL BILL this past fall, but that wasn't necessarily a huge comeback for her. While I didn't care that much for KILL BILL, I loved THE JOB, mainly due to Daryl Hannah. Regardless of how far down her career has gone, I still love her. She is a great actress and a hell of a good-looking one too. Here she plays CJ March, a female assassin who has decided she wants to put her days of killing behind her, but before she can call it quits, she has one last job to do. It's not the best premise it the world, but that doesn't stop it from being a great action/crime pic with tons of blood and gunfire. If blood and gunfire is what you like, be prepared to have a ball watching this flick. I know I did.

Carol Jean "CJ" March (Daryl Hannah) is a professional killer that works to the mobster Vernon Cray (Alex Rocco). CJ fails in her last work for Vernon, when she kills a man to retrieve half-million dollars in drugs, but she realizes that his briefcase that is empty was switched by another man. CJ hunts the man down to finish her job and discovers his name, Roger Washington (Shawn Woods), and address. Meanwhile Roger is murdered by the punk Troy Riverside (Brad Renfro) that wants to sell the drugs to move to Arizona with his pregnant girlfriend Emily "Em" Robin (Dominique Swain). CJ, who is the daughter of a prostitute and orphan since she was seven, finds that she is pregnant and she tries to have an abortion in a clinic. Then she goes to a bar to get drunken and laid and she meets the former priest Rick (Eric Mabius) that gets closer to her. When CJ finds Roger murdered, she seeks out Troy and finds Emily. However she is not capable to kill her because Emily is pregnant. Will CJ finish her last job?

"The Job" is an action movie with a dramatic story with a promising beginning. CJ is very well developed and consistent in the beginning as a cold-blood killer with a traumatic childhood. When she finds that she is pregnant, she wants to abort the baby keeping the consistence of the character. However after meeting Rick and Emily, the story becomes corny but the plot is still acceptable since pregnancy makes women more sensitive and fragile. Therefore it is still possible to swallow the changing of CJ's character. However the corny last scene is incoherent and spoils what could have been a good film. My vote is five.

Title (Brazil): "Assassina por Natureza" ("Killer by Nature")

CJ (Hannah) is a sexy, cold-blooded, contract killer looking to get out of the business. She agrees to carry out one last hit before calling it quits to lead a normal life. However upon staking out the hit, she finds that, for the first time in her career as an assassin, she is unable to finish the job. But she has accepts a contract and is expected fulfill it.

Not bad, but also full of cliche, wannabe next 'Nikita'.

This film obviously went directly into DVD, and cable and oblivion, but it merits a viewing. Although the director is not a familiar name, he has a flair for presenting this story with a eye for detail. Kenny Goode knows a thing or two about the underbelly of the "city of angels".

The film presents us CJ March, an assassin for hire, who bungles the job she was sent to do and is drawn into a web of circumstances where she herself mirrors the same situation of one of the persons she is to liquidate. We understand by way of flashbacks that CJ, herself, has had an unhappy upbringing. She is a cold woman who has no problem killing until she gets herself in the same situation where she would never have dreamed of being.

Daryl Hannah is CJ's is splendid. She is an underrated actress, but in here she shows a range that is not immediately associated with her work before. Brad Renfro and Dominique Swain are good as the couple CJ is pursuing; they elude her most of the time, until the final show down. Alex Rocco as the CJ's employer strikes the right note as the man without scruples who manipulates people into committing crimes for him. Also effective is Eric Mabius who is too good for CJ, and eventually, her salvation.

As a moody film of suspense it proves satisfying as it keeps the viewer interested in every turn of the action.

It was on HBO for many years and was in theatres. It did not go directly to dvd.

The music in the club scene and the bathroom was really cool. It's a band HAITZ from LA. They also did the music for Monster Garage. They have albums available on iTunes.