Grosse Pointe Blank (1997) ✦ Member of the Month: Full-Length Watchalong Reaction
Added 2025-04-23 20:00:10 +0000 UTCHi everyone! Thank you so much again to Jason for curating the poll that this movie won. I hope you all enjoy the reaction. [Direct link here.]
I'm looking forward to your comments! Cheers,
✦ KL
PS. I've been experimenting with some lighting adjustments after changing my lighting setup earlier this month, so the appearance of my reactions might look a bit different from each other for a bit. I'll get it nailed down soon!
Comments
Another quirky rom-com with John Cusack (non-crime, though) is "Must Love Dogs"... Diane Lane, supported by Stockard Channing and Elizabeth Perkins.
Cliff Adams
2025-04-25 03:30:38 +0000 UTCoooo this is one of my faves
MoulinNoir
2025-04-24 22:11:25 +0000 UTCOh, and last but not least: director George Armitage passed away in February. He had a very strange career, largely owing to working on many things that simply never got made. In the 1970s he directed six cheap movies, mostly for Roger Corman, following the trend of "sexy nurses." None of them are especially notable. He didn't direct anything from 1976 to 1990, when he made the cult thriller Miami Blues. Then, a gap of 7 years, after which he directed Grosse Pointe Blank, and then finally another 7 years, when he directed his last film, 2004's The Big Bounce, which was apparently significantly reworked to bring the rating down from an NC-17 (aiming for R) to a PG-13.
Tyler Foster
2025-04-24 20:04:27 +0000 UTCJust finished the reaction, hadn’t seen this movie in a while. Good times indeed. I love anything that’s 80’s centric and this was a pleasant surprise when it came out. Thanks for the excellent reaction 🙌🏼
boss435
2025-04-24 05:55:58 +0000 UTCAll four of these films would be my #1-anticipated reaction of a hypothetical week!
Tyler Foster
2025-04-24 05:22:35 +0000 UTCJason mentioned that John and Joan's sibling Ann was in this as the drunk in the restaurant. To that I would add: you would recognize her as Rebecca, Chuck McGill's ex-wife on "Better Call Saul." Another recurring face here is Mitch Ryan, the man playing Debi's dad. He was the bad guy in Lethal Weapon (someone who ends up being overshadowed by Gary Busey as his psychotic henchman).
Tyler Foster
2025-04-24 05:21:50 +0000 UTCGreat reaction. Glad you enjoyed it. One of my all time favorites. Other "crime rom-coms": Out of Sight (1998) Get Shorty (1995) Duplicity (2009) And one platonic crime rom-com: Midnight Run (1988)
Jonah Jackson
2025-04-24 04:38:14 +0000 UTCThis has been a favorite of mine for many years now, very unique premise and really funny to boot. If you have a desire to see other John Cusack films from that time period (90's/early 2000) I would say High Fidelity would be a great react, though it's more of a traditional drama/romcom. So along the lines of a "crime rom-com" I would recommend a movie called Shooting Fish. It's a low budget British film that I really enjoy with Kate Beckinsale, not one I'd suggest for a reaction as basically no one even knows it exists and therefore wouldn't draw in any viewers, but hey if you ever find it available on a streaming platform and have a couple hours to kill, give it a whirl! ;)
BJ Stephens
2025-04-24 03:03:12 +0000 UTCHmm... "Crime Rom-com". My fav might be close enough, kinda like adventure/crime Rom-com. Fool's Gold (2008) Matthew McConaughe and Kate Hudson. Fun stuff.
Christian Rennie
2025-04-24 00:49:58 +0000 UTCI think one of the reasons John Cusack is so good in this film is that he's one of the screenwriters for it. I'd suggest High Fidelity as a great followup as it's much the same writting team of Cusack, Steve Pink (who was the friend who was the security guard) and DeVincentis. It also is another family film with Joan appearing along with other sister Susie and their dad Dick all making an appearance.
Paul Howard
2025-04-24 00:09:28 +0000 UTCI'm not going to read this comment fully as I like not knowing anything about movies! But I'll leave this for others. Love your passion, thank you!
kaiielle
2025-04-23 23:58:09 +0000 UTCI can't be upset that GPB won the poll. I absolutely love this movie. However, I feel obligated to campaign for the three films that did not win. As if they were my children, I love each equally. Rob Roy - Liam Neeson plays a Scottish highlander in the early 1700s. I like to describe this movie as Braveheart on a smaller and more personal scale. Rob Roy isn't fighting to free his whole country. He's fighting for his family and to maintain his honor. While Neeson's performance is great, it's Tim Roth and Jessica Lange that steal the show. Roth was nominated for an Oscar and it's a crime that Lange wasn't as well. It also has stellar performances by Brian Cox and John Hurt. Drop Dead Gorgeous - A hilarious "mockumentary" about small town beauty pageants in the American mid-west turn deadly as contestants start dying. Great performances by Allison Janney, Ellen Barkin, Kirstie Alley, and a young Kirstin Dunst. Heck, even the beautiful but wooden Denise Richards surprisingly does well in this film. As a bonus, we also get to see a young Brittany Murphy (RIP) and Amy Adams in her first movie role. Layer Cake - Directorial debut of Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass, X-Men: First Class, Kingsman). Before this, he was only really known as Guy Richie's right-hand producer. Layer Cake is a smart and fun British crime film with a wonderful performance by Daniel Craig just a couple years before he became a household name with 007. Other standout performances can be seen from Colm Meaney of Star Trek TNG and Deep Space Nine fame, and Sir Michael Gambon (Dumbledoor 2.0). There's even a very young Tom Hardy in one of his earliest supporting roles. I won't discuss the plot because I'd rather not spoil anything, but it is whip smart and very well made. I cannot recommend these movies highly enough. I hope anyone reading this will be persuaded to give these films a chance, and KL, I hope you eventually react to each of these gems.
Jason Irwin
2025-04-23 23:48:35 +0000 UTCAhh that's fun! Thanks for the fun fact. And thank you again! Congrats on the win.
kaiielle
2025-04-23 23:04:01 +0000 UTCNice! Glad you enjoyed it too.
kaiielle
2025-04-23 23:03:28 +0000 UTCThank you KL for reacting to one of my favorites. Here's a little tidbit about the "ghoul" Martin fought (and killed) in the school hallway. He was played by John Cusack's martial arts teacher and world-class champion kick-boxer, Benny Urquidez. In an interview during the press junket for Con Air, Danny Trejo was asked of all his costars, who would he least like to fight. His surprising answer was John Cusack. During the filming of Con Air, Trejo had watched John and Benny sparing daily and wanted nothing to do with that action. Did you spot John and Joan's other sibling Amy Cusack in the film? She was the drunk that joined "Marvin" and Debbie at the Hippo Club.
Jason Irwin
2025-04-23 23:03:27 +0000 UTCPost-movie thoughts Such a fun film. This was a first-time watch for me. Actually found myself laughing in several parts. The humor was so on-point and the story was lovely. Easy 4 out of 5 for me.
Nathan Jasper, the Artist Formerly Known as Primary
2025-04-23 23:02:02 +0000 UTCNeat!
kaiielle
2025-04-23 20:55:13 +0000 UTCStill need to watch that one!
kaiielle
2025-04-23 20:55:02 +0000 UTCThank you!
kaiielle
2025-04-23 20:54:57 +0000 UTCReally fun movie. I have never heard much praise for it, but there is an off-brand sequel to GPB. Apparently Cusack and the other producers tried to convince Disney to let them have the rights to the characters, but they were denied, so War, Inc. (2008) changes the names but otherwise behaves the way they apparently thought Martin Blank might have, ten years later. Perhaps this will be my cue to finally watch it. Touchstone was on a roll in 1997, releasing not just this but another high school reunion comedy that I also love, which is totally different from this one. Maybe I'll put that one on my list of potential requests next...
Tyler Foster
2025-04-23 20:48:59 +0000 UTCIt was linked in the update post yesterday or a couple of days ago.
Tyler Foster
2025-04-23 20:45:03 +0000 UTCAm I blind or is the May Member of the Month form not live yet? Related... where did April go?
nouvelle_vague
2025-04-23 20:28:40 +0000 UTCOne of my favorites! Definitely my favorite John Cusack movie...although High Fidelity is a close second.
Steve Mercier
2025-04-23 20:19:25 +0000 UTCPre-movie thoughts: Those glasses are FABULOUS
Nathan Jasper, the Artist Formerly Known as Primary
2025-04-23 20:04:11 +0000 UTC
