A couple years, when John Travolta was at the top of his game, he starred in Get Shorty, a funny comedy about a loan shark in Hollywood that seems to me like a more intelligent version of Snatch.

The movie plays on the premise of several different groups working against each other, some trying to find $300,000; others trying to make a movie. They are all linked in some way or another, but a lot is by coincidence, and that is what reminds me of the Guy Ritchie film. Of course, Snatch came out six years after Get Shorty, and the films aren't that similar - they both have very different plots and different forms of comedy... But I like Snatch, and I think I might like Get Shorty just a little more.

Travolta, along with a cast including Rene Russo, Danny DeVito, Gene Hackman, and Dennis Farina (also in Snatch), turns in a superb performance. He delivers tons of great lines just at the right time, and he is just flat out powerful on screen. Farina is also especially funny.

There really are no problems I can think of with Get Shorty. It has comedy, action, drama, and more comedy, and a good plot. The plot is very thought out and twisted, and I like that.

This is one of the shortest reviews I've written in a long time, and Get Shorty should respect that, since the shorter the reviews, the less complaints there are.

Review by Erik Samdahl unless otherwise indicated.