Jumpin' Jack Flash (1986)

User Rating:

5.3/10   

Director:

Penny Marshall

Writers:

David Franzoni (story)
David Franzoni (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

10 October 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

A Dangerously Funny Movie

Plot:

Terry works for a bank, and uses computers to communicate with clients all over the world. One day she gets a strange message from an unknown source...

Plot Keywords:

Bank | Computer | Telephone Booth | KGB | Apartment

Cast

Whoopi Goldberg	...	Terry Dolittle
Stephen Collins	...	Marty Phillips
John Wood	...	Jeremy Talbott
Carol Kane	...	Cynthia
Annie Potts	...	Liz Carlson
Peter Michael Goetz	...	James Page
Roscoe Lee Browne	...	Archer Lincoln
Sara Botsford	...	Lady Sarah Billings
Jeroen Krabbé	...	Mark Van Meter (as Jeroen Krabbe)
Vyto Ruginis	...	Carl
Jonathan Pryce	...	Jack
Tony Hendra	...	Hunter
Jon Lovitz	...	Doug, 1st National Bank
Phil Hartman	...	Fred, 1st National Bank (as Phil E. Hartmann)
Lynne Marie Stewart	...	Karen, 1st National Bank

Also Known As:

Knock, Knock (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

100 min | West Germany:105 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L | West Germany:12 | Australia:M | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R (certificate #27449)

Filming Locations:

Greystone Park & Mansion - 905 Loma Vista Drive, Beverly Hills, California, USA

Company:

Lawrence Gordon Productions

Trivia:

Howard Zieff was the original director.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: During the entire movie, Terri is constantly only hitting six keys over and over again when she types. Many times the number of keys she presses between pauses and lapses do not correspond with the sound or what appears on the screen.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Male Broadcaster: [click] ... House has issued a series of clarifications of several of the President's statements at his nationally televised news conference last night. In addition to responding to a question about abortion with a three-minute answer about taxes and confusing his Attorney General with his Chief of Staff...

Movie Connections:

References Metropolis (1927)

Soundtrack:

You Can't Hurry Love

"It's a gas, gas, gas."

"Jumpin' Jack Flash" is a very funny comedy-thriller starring comedienne and current "Hollywood Squares" star Whoopi Goldberg in the movie she made after her outstanding performance in "The Color Purple". This was her first big comedy and she's terrific in it. Goldberg stars as Terry Doolittle, a computer operator at a New York bank. At the end of a long day of work, she gets an awkward message from a British spy who's in trouble. As a result she gets plunged into a world of international intrigue and danger. Sure the premise of "Jumpin' Jack Flash" is silly. But it's an entertaining movie, thanks to Goldberg's performance. She's the whole show here. One of the best moments in the film is the one when the spy asks her to "sing with me and find the key", and she listens to the lyrics of the Mick Jagger song "Jumpin' Jack Flash" so she can find the word or words to crack the spy's code. This scene is a classic. Just get a load of the way Goldberg acts in this scene. It's hilarious. This scene proves that Goldberg is a great comic actress. There's also the scene where, after almost getting killed, Goldberg confronts a police detective played by "Pretty Woman" and "Runaway Bride" director Garry Marshall (who oddly enough is the brother of the director of this film, former "Laverne & Shirley" star Penny Marshall making her directorial debut here). Get a load of the foul language displayed by Goldberg in this scene. I was laughing hysterically out loud. There are also action scenes that really aren't necessary, but they're exciting and thrilling. And there are good supporting performances by Stephen Collins, Carol Kane, John Wood, Annie Potts, Roscoe Lee Browne, Jim Belushi, Jon Lovitz, and the late Phil Hartman. But the real star here is Whoopi. She alone makes "Jumpin' Jack Flash" worth seeing. And it's far better that Whoopi's next two movies after this: "Burglar" and "Fatal Beauty".

*** (out of four)