Palmetto

Apart from one central problem (Elisabeth Shue certainly has the body, but not the inherent tough-girl attitude her role requires; in other words, she's miscast), I personally cannot understand how anyone can claim to be a mystery fan and not like this movie. Absorbing storytelling (which takes its time), some tense moments (the body in the car trunk) and many great, totally unpredictable surprises that even the most hardened genre buffs will not guess. Riveting and interesting from beginning to end. (***)

I saw this film for the second time yesterday and i enjoyed it just as much as the first time. It has everything a black thriller needs. Good plot, with a lot of plot twists, interesting scenes, great characters, and good acting (Woody Harrelson is really good as an ex-convict getting involved in a fake kidnapping). Still the action is slow in many moments. Very good ending. Vote: 7 out of 10.

I think that "Palmetto" is going to be a cult movie some years from now. It has been clearly underrated. It is "noir", although located in sunny places. It has a sort of kinship relation with George Stevens' A Place in the Sun. And it has a quite good Woody Harrelson in the leading role. Sweat plays more than a role in the plot: characters are sweating all the time (mainly Harry Barber), for different reasons. May be that's why some people dislike it.

This brilliantly-written film has everything a great film noir movie needs. First and foremost, the femme fatale Rhea Malroux, played with cunning accuracy by Elisabeth Shue, and the sucker who gets screwed over, Harry Barber, played by Woody Harrelson. Another important and necessary element is the sticky, hot Florida climate, that adds to the erotic atmosphere. The money is the object of everyone's desire as well. Because of all this and much more, "Palmetto" achieves what every film noir film shoots for. Thrills, surprises, murder and steam. Trailers and reviews made the film sound like a sex romp, when in reality there isn't one nudity shot in the whole thing. Because "Palmetto" is not about nudity. It's more than that, like any good film noir is. It's about TEASING. About strutting and never showing all the goods. Rhea Malroux struts her stuff alright, but never strips. And that's much better than gratuitous sex and nudity. Much better. The film focuses more on the plot, about a fake kidnapping scheme that is sure to please everyone...if it goes smoothly. And of course, it doesn't. Bodies turn up, and people are not who they seem. Harry Barber quickly realizes he's gotten too deep in something he never should have gotten involved in. But after serving two years of a four-year sentence in an 8X10 jail cell for a crime he didn't commit, he feels someone owes him. So he agrees to participate in a fake kidnapping that will get the wife of rich Felix Malroux 500,000 dollars and Harry a nice whopping 50,000. But because Harry is not naughty by nature, he doesn't do well disguising his innocence and his guilt comes through, sweating profusely when the DA Renick calls him in to act as reporter, Harry can't take the "heat". He attempts to call the whole thing off, but once told the money's already been delivered, he can't help it. He wants back in. E. Max Frye is the brilliance here, for his script says it all. Based on an old pulp novel "Just Another Sucker" by European author James Hadley Chase, the film is directed by Volker Schlondorff, who should also be commended. The acting is first rate, and purposefully over-the-top by brilliant Elisabeth Shue as the best femme fatale I personally have ever seen grace the silver screen. This is not a must rent, it's a must BUY!

This slick thriller is entertaining from start to finish. Harrelson plays Harry Barber an ex con who is lured by mega rich temptress Rhea Malroux (Elizabeth Shue) in to helping set up a straight forward bogus kidnap scheme involving her stepdaughter Odette (Chloe Sevigny) It seems simple, he can earn a lot of money for doing very little. As the plot thickens Harry finds out that things, and people, are not what they seem and that is where the trouble begins. Harrelson is convincing in the lead and Sevigny is very good as the rich kid, although Elizabeth Shue tends to overact her part. The biggest crime in this film is that of Gina Gershon, who seems wasted in a weak role as Harry's girlfriend. The film on a whole is good though, and because of this you can almost forgive a 'Batman' style ending!