Grosse Pointe Blank

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Grosse Pointe Blank

The theatrical poster.
Directed by George Armitage
Produced by Jonathan Glickman
Lata Ryan
Written by Tom Jankiewicz
D. V. DeVincentis
Steve Pink
John Cusack
Starring John Cusack
Minnie Driver
Dan Aykroyd
Jeremy Piven
Alan Arkin
Joan Cusack
Music by Joe Strummer
Cinematography Jamie Anderson
Editing by Brian Berdan
Distributed by Buena Vista Pictures
Hollywood Pictures
Release date(s) April 11, 1997
Running time 107 min.
Country US
Language English
Budget US$15,000,000 (estimated)
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Grosse Pointe Blank is a 1997 American comedy movie, directed by George Armitage, and starring John Cusack and Minnie Driver.

In 2000, readers of Total Film magazine voted Grosse Pointe Blank the 21st greatest comedy film of all time. The film's soundtrack features mainly independent music hits from the 1980s.

Contents

[edit] Plot

John Cusack as Martin Blank.
John Cusack as Martin Blank.

Professional assassin Martin Q. Blank (John Cusack) finds himself depressed and irritable, dissatisfied with his work and the increasing competition from rival assassins, including Grocer (Dan Aykroyd), whose efforts to cartelize the business puts him at potentially lethal odds with the solitary Martin. Following a botched contract, Martin receives an invitation to his 10 year high school reunion in his home town of Grosse Pointe, Michigan. Initially reluctant to attend, he is pressured into it by both his (understandably nervous) therapist (Alan Arkin) and his secretary (Joan Cusack), already booking him for a contract to re-establish ties with a disgruntled client.

Upon arriving in Grosse Pointe, Martin seeks out Debi Newberry (Minnie Driver), now a radio DJ, whom Martin had abandoned on prom night to enlist in the Army. While Debi's visit suggests hope for redemption, Martin's subsequent visit to his family only heightens his depression; his father is dead, his mother is an Alzheimer patient in a nursing home and his childhood home has been demolished and replaced with a convenience store. Reconnecting with friends is likewise depressing, as many have integrated themselves with the local community through low-paying, overlooked jobs. When asked about his livelihood, Martin readily reveals that he is a professional killer, a response taken as a joke by everyone he meets. Meanwhile Martin is being stalked by rival hitmen, including Grocer and Felix LaPoubelle (Benny Urquidez), a Basque terrorist hired to kill him; as well as two awkward National Security Agency agents, briefed by Grocer, waiting for him to do his "job" so they can arrest him or kill him. Despite these dangers, Martin remains distracted by his desire to make amends and procrastinates, not even bothering to glance at the background dossier on the prospective target.

At the reunion, Martin mingles with his former classmates, one of whom hands him her newborn baby. Martin stares into the child's face and experiences an existential transformation, recognizing that his recent dissatisfaction with his work and his amends with Debi signify an opportunity to change his life. Moments later, reflecting on his decision while exploring the halls of his old high school, Martin is attacked by LaPoubelle, whom he kills in self-defense. Debi stumbles upon the scene and, horrified to find that Martin was not joking after all, flees the reunion. Later Debi confronts Martin in his hotel room, where he reveals that psychological testing in the Army revealed "a certain moral flexibility" that made him suitable for a CIA-sponsored "mechanical operations program." After leaving the CIA, he went into business for himself. His rationalizations for his work only horrify Debi even more; she rejects his attempts at reconciliation, and storms out. Martin, concluding that it is futile to attempt to change his life, finally opens the dossier containing the details of the contract that brought him to Grosse Pointe – and is startled to find that the target is Bart Newberry (Mitchell Ryan), Debi's father.

Grocer decides to stop waiting for Martin to kill Bart and attempts the job himself, to impress Martin's client and boost his own business. Out of loyalty to Debi, Martin abandons the contract and rescues Bart from certain death, speeding him to the Newberry house and holing up inside, narrowly ahead of Grocer and his team of mercenaries. During the siege, Martin finally reveals that he stood Debi up on prom night to enlist in the Army to channel his strong homicidal urges away from his family and friends. Martin gradually kills the team of mercenaries and Grocer himself, moments before proposing marriage to Debi. Debi, shell-shocked from the day's events, doesn't respond. Hours later she and Martin speed out of Grosse Pointe together.

[edit] Cast

[edit] Soundtrack

Grosse Pointe Blank
Soundtrack by various artists
Released March 13, 1997 (Volume 1)
October 7, 1997 (Volume 2)
Genre Rock
New Wave
Punk rock
Post punk
Ska
Pop
Label PolyGram
Professional reviews

The score for Grosse Pointe Blank was composed by Joe Strummer, formerly of The Clash, and includes two songs from The Clash, "Rudie Can't Fail" (from the album London Calling) and their cover version of Willi Williams' "Armagideon Time".

In addition to The Clash, the tracks featured are a mix of popular 1980s punk rock, ska and New Wave from such bands as Violent Femmes, Echo & the Bunnymen, The Specials, The Jam, Siouxsie & the Banshees and a-ha.

The soundtrack album reached No. 31 on the Billboard 200 chart, prompting the release of a second volume of songs from the film.

While most songs played throughout the movie, and even more specifically the reunion, are true to the period of the students' graduation (circa 1986), several songs are anachronisms:

Several songs in the film are not featured on the soundtrack albums. One is "99 Luftballons" performed by Nena, which is used in the scene following the death of Felix LaPoubelle.

[edit] Track listing

[edit] Volume 1

  1. "Blister in the Sun" (Violent Femmes) – 2:08
  2. "Rudie Can't Fail" (The Clash) – 3:31
  3. "Mirror In The Bathroom" (English Beat) – 3:09
  4. "Under Pressure" (David Bowie and Queen) – 4:03
  5. "I Can See Clearly Now" (Johnny Nash) – 2:46
  6. "Live and Let Die" (Guns N' Roses) – 3:02
  7. "We Care a Lot" (Faith No More) – 4:03
  8. "Pressure Drop" (The Specials) – 4:18
  9. "Absolute Beginners" (The Jam) – 2:50
  10. "Armagideon Time" (The Clash) – 3:53
  11. "El Matador" (Los Fabulosos Cadillacs) – 4:34
  12. "Let My Love Open the Door (E. Cola Mix)" (Pete Townshend) – 4:58
  13. "Blister 2000" (Violent Femmes) – 2:58

[edit] Volume 2

  1. "A Message to You, Rudy" (The Specials) – 2:53
  2. "Cities in Dust" (Siouxsie & the Banshees) – 3:49
  3. "The Killing Moon" (Echo & the Bunnymen) – 5:44
  4. "Monkey Gone to Heaven" (Pixies) – 2:56
  5. "Lorca's Novena" (The Pogues) – 4:35
  6. "Go!" (Tones on Tail) – 2:32
  7. "Let it Whip" (Dazz Band) – 4:24
  8. "The Dominatrix Sleeps Tonight" (Dominatrix) – 3:40
  9. "War Cry" (Joe Strummer) – 5:58
  10. "White Lines (Don't Don't Do It)" (Grandmaster Flash & Melle Mel) – 7:24
  11. "Take on Me" (a-ha) – 3:46
  12. "You're Wondering Now" (The Specials) – 2:37

[edit] Trivia

 Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones.
  • Martin, the hitman played by John Cusack, is accused of being a psychopath. His response, "Don't rush to judgment on something like that until all the facts are in," is an echo of Buck Turgidson's response to the same assertion made about General Ripper in Stanley Kubrick's 1964 film Dr. Strangelove.
  • In a scene at the reunion, an alumna (played by Jenna Elfman) wearing an odd neckbrace contraption talks with Martin. This is reminiscent of Sixteen Candles, another movie which featured both John and Joan Cusack, in which Joan Cusack wears a similar neckbrace during a school dance.
  • The film features four of the five Cusack siblings. John as Martin; Joan as Marcella, Martin's secretary; Ann as Amy, the drunk girl in the Hippo Club; and Bill as the waiter who serves them in the same club. The fifth sibling, Susie, is not primarily an actress.
  • The movie features a Doom II arcade machine, a prop made for the movie. Doom was never made into an arcade video game. Also, the game is shown to jump between cuts through multiple levels.
  • Only two scenes of the film were actually shot in Grosse Pointe: the shootout in the home, and a helicopter view of Lakeshore Drive. The city of Grosse Pointe did not allow the filmmakers to use any shots of Grosse Pointe South High School for the movie. Nor was any other part of the city filmed. Large portions of the film were shot in Monrovia, California.
  • Benny Urquidez, who plays LaPoubelle, was referenced by John Cusack's character in Say Anything, Lloyd Dobler. Dobler was an aspiring kickboxer and mentioned Urquidez when listing famous kickboxers. As a result of his role in Say Anything, Cusack became a fan of kickboxing as well as a student of Urquidez's. Cusack was responsible for casting his instructor in Grosse Pointe Blank.

(Benny was also in another Cusak movie...1408 as one of the ghosts)

[edit] External links

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