Starring Pam Grier, Robert Forster, Samuel L. Jackson and Robert De Niro Directed by Quentin Tarantino Rated R, with strong profanity, racial epithets, violence, sex Running time 154 minutes Jack gives this film a rating of 9 out of 10

(Dec. 25, 1997) -- (Dec. 26, 1997) -- In his wonderfully entertaining Jackie Brown, filmmaker Quentin Tarantino sidesteps any notion that he'll be saddled with a career of Pulp Fiction retreads.

Casting aside that earlier film's off-the-wall energy, quick cuts and loony narrative style, Tarantino wisely uses his new crime caper to explore slower rhythms, more leisurely scenes -- and significantly more meaningful character development.

Tarantino shows his developing maturity as a filmmaker as well as his appreciation of the quirky style of Elmore Leonard, the author of Rum Punch, upon which Jackie Brown is based.

The Leonard-Tarantino match is a marriage made in movie heaven; Jackie Brown is an effervescent crime tale in which the filmmaker's trademark dialogue, camera work and musical choices all blend marvelously with the author's well-defined characters and goofball plotting.

If that's not enough, Tarantino also uses his distinctive eye for nearly forgotten talent to cast his story. (Remember, this is the guy who saved John Travolta from movies with talking babies.)

Tarantino correctly saw the central characters of Jackie Brown as middle-aged under-achievers who could finally get something right in life.

He cleverly cast two overlooked veteran actors who know firsthand how their characters feel. Pam Grier and Rochester native Robert Forster make memorable acting comebacks, delivering delightful, contrasting performances that approach perfection. They hold our attention and sympathy throughout the film -- and even manage to outshine such talented co-stars as Robert De Niro and Samuel L. Jackson.

As the strong, resourceful title character, trying to outsmart cops and criminals alike, Grier takes the independent spirit and warrior-like edge she brought to her '70s blaxploitation flicks and adapts them to a more grounded and appealing tale of the '90s.

But if she's the heart of Jackie Brown, Forster's decent, diligent and devoted Max Cherry is its soul. The least flashy of the film's main characters, Max eventually emerges as its conscience.

Jackie is a Los Angeles-based stewardess for a budget airline with flights to Mexico. Two cops (Michael Keaton and Michael Bowen) bust her for carrying currency across the border for L.A. gun dealer Ordell Robbie (Samuel L. Jackson).

Jackie is just one of several women Ordell employs to run his errands. (Another is a world-weary California druggie, played by Bridget Fonda.) On the advice of Max, her smart, sweet-natured bail bondsman, Jackie offers to help the cops catch Ordell. But meanwhile she sets up a con game of her own.

Ordell is a formidable ally -- he's as street-smart as they come, and he has absolutely no scruples about killing to conduct business. Ordell also has a partner named Louis who is even more dangerous, mostly because he's as dense as he is deadly. (Louis is played in a slow-building gem of a performance by De Niro.)

Rather than telling Leonard's tale slam-bang, writer-director Tarantino eases into the relationships, fully exploring each of the eccentric characters and how they fit into the puzzle.

He ultimately shifts gears -- quite winningly -- to romance, hinting at sparks developing between Jackie and Max. (When Max first gazes longingly at Jackie, he shows a restrained but remarkably moving reaction; it may be Forster's best moment yet as an actor.)

To help flavor the saga, Tarantino dips into his record collection to rediscover black soul classics of the '70s, including songs from earlier Grier blaxploitation films, such as Coffy and Foxy Brown.

Tarantino also pulls back a bit from the violence that is another trademark of his films. Though gunplay is key to the plot of Jackie Brown, Tarantino shows it from afar.

His language, though, is as salty and irreverent as always. He's already upset some viewers with the heavy use of the "N" word that peppers Samuel L. Jackson's dialogue, though the distasteful word seems at home in the mouth of a distasteful character like Ordell.

Ultimately, Jackie Brown won't make the same sort of splash as Pulp Fiction (few films could). But if viewers are willing to watch Tarantino's new film on its own terms, they'll be richly rewarded.