The comparisons between Geena Davis' new flick "Long Kiss Goodnight"
and "Die Hard 3" are inevitable. There is Davis as the reluctant
action hero, Samuel L. Jackson as the wise-cracking sidekick and plenty
of imaginative gun play. But if "Die Hard" is testosterone-laden,
then is "Long Kiss Goodnight" estrogen-laden?
Geena is a six-foot-tall-bundle-of-sex-appeal small-town school teacher
who suffers from amnesia. Her new family gets it when an enemy from her
missing past shows up for vengeance. This sets in motion Davis' search for
her true identity, with the help of sleazy private detective Samuel L. Jackson.
No schoolteacher was she, you can be sure. The plot such as it is is an
excuse for the string of shoot-outs choreographed by Steve Davison, who
cut his teeth on "From Dusk 'Til Dawn" and "Desperado".
It is only Samuel L. Jackson's amazing ability to put more character on
the screen than he is given that saves this from being Renny Harlin's sequel
to "Cutthroat Island". (Harlin is Geena's husband and director
of the similarly snowy action fests "Cliffhanger" and "Die
Hard II"). If you like action movies, this one satisfies. If you
are very fond of Geena Davis, who has earned a following from performances
ranging from "A League of Their Own" to "Thelma and Louise",
this one satisfies. If you are expecting something above Shane Black's
"Lethal Weapon" level of writing, look around for "Emma"
or try the new Tom Hanks' movie "That Thing You Do". Rated R
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