Robert Altman wanted to captured a sense of what life was like in his hometown during the Depression, both in a story about the people who lived there and, more impressionistically, in the jazz that sprouted there before moving to New York. But his plot here is rambling and undramatic: A small-time hood double-crosses a vicious black gangster (Harry Belafonte) and is grabbed by him, marked for death. To save his life, the hood's dim blond wife (Jennifer Jason Leigh) kidnaps a rich politician's wife (Miranda Richardson) and spends the day driving around town with her, on the theory that the politician can convince the gangster to free her husband. Leigh is jittery, Richardson seems bored--and the lengthy jam sessions we see (involving contemporary musicians such as Joshua Redman) serve only to prolong an already slow-moving film. Possibly worth seeing for the silky menace of Belafonte, but there is little else to recommend it. --Marshall Fine
(15 votes)
2.
Robert Altman's hometown gets the director's signature treatment in this jazz-infused mobster tale set in the 1930s. KANSAS CITY takes place in the jazz-drenched, depression-era milieu of the eponymous city, focusing on a 24-hour relationship between two extremely different women. Trashy, brassy and uneducated Blondie O'Hara (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is desperately searching for her equally lowlife husband Jack (Dermot Mulroney) who has been captured by the vicious Seldom Seen (Harry Belafonte) after attempting to rob one of his casino’s greatest losers. In a move typical of her off-kilter personality, Blondie kidnaps Carolyn Stilton (Miranda Richardson), a rich, unhappy, drug-using socialite, and drags her around town as she searches for Jack. The experience these disparate women endure provides insight into themes Altman often explores in his films, including class differences, and the hypocrisy and delusion he finds extant in American culture. As in Altman’s prior films--notably NASHVILLE and SHORT CUTS--he includes a terrific musical backdrop to add depth to the story. Assembling a who’s who of modern jazz greats, KANSAS CITY captures perhaps some of the most invigorating musical performances that have been committed to celluloid, including an unforgettable tenor saxophone duel between James Carter and Joshua Redman.
(15 votes)
3.
In Kansas City during the Depression, a young man robs a gamblers and is held hostage by a mysterious night club owner. In response, the man's wife kidnaps a socialite, whom she tries to trade for her husband.
(15 votes)
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