Another area where the film works well is in its Personality who's partially charming and partially annoying, a combination at which she excels. Still, most everyone but Goldberg may as well be a cardboard cutout Kane is the only one beyond Goldbergįinds some spunk, and that's thanks to her ability to cut through the script and play the character she so frequently plays, that of the background The film does enjoy a good bit of star power that's a who's-who of 1980s names and faces, from Whoopi Goldberg and Jim Belushi down to characterĪctors like Carol Kane and Jon Lovitz. It's a film with unrealized potential, even as it maneuvers through very basic plot pieces. Humor, to create a dark and mysterious spy game atmosphere, to find the deeper drama of the greater story, and to craft action scenes with moreĪppeal and less lethargy. Ultimately, the movie stutters on every front, failing to really nail a broader Goldberg certainly tries her best to find a happy medium, to establish her character beyond stock and unearth some humor where none exists, butĮnergy is sadly overwhelmed by the behemoth that surrounds her. Who want to put a hole in her leg or saw off her fingers. One folly after another as Terry bumbles her way around embassies, apartments, parties, and run-ins with gun-toting and tool-wielding bad guys Threads are easy enough to follow, the film becomes so lost in every moment that the bigger picture never has time to settle in. It's a script largely devoid of excitement, if not purpose.
Script suffers compared to the charm and flavor of her later projects. Then-rookie Director Penny Marshall - who would mature in her craftĪnd direct some fantastic films like Big and A League of Their Own - shows a timidity here, though certainly the There's a clumsiness to the film's routine and an evident absence of purpose. Some ruthless enemies if she's to succeed and walk away unscathed from a brewing international incident. He tasks Terry with carrying out delicate intelligence maneuvers to aid in his escape, but she'll have to face off against When she does, she learns that her chat partner is a British agent Jack Flash." Terry is left to decipher the meaning and, thereby, the password. A line of text appears on her screen that's said to be from the handle "Jumpin' Russian television programming and, one day, something more. Nevertheless, her computer terminal occasionally picks up Interpersonal relationships she's formed and keep her communications strictly business. Unfortunately, she's told from up high to She's quite the talented computerĮxpert and regularly lets loose with a bubbly personality that her co-workers enjoy and her clients love.
Terry Dolittle (Goldberg) works a rather mundane job handling computerized money transfers from overseas.
To the big movies with bigger stars that the decade produced and fans have long embraced. Tidy little ending, but for one of the bigger names in 1980s fare it sure does prove rather disappointing both in hindsight and compared and contrasted but despite the best efforts of its star the movie barely leaps off the ground rather than boldly asking, "how high?" It's a movie with its moments It's not short on enthusiasm - Star Whoopi Goldberg sees to that Jumpin' Jack Flash, contrary to its name, lacks in the way of kinetic energy. Jumpin' Jack Flash might beīig star movie factory gone wrong, particularly in contrast to movies like Lethal Weapon and Beverly Hills Cop that represent the opposite end of the spectrum. That's certainly a simplification and notĮncompassing of everything in the decade, but it also holds rather true on a macro, big-budget, big-name level. It wasn't so much an era of originality but certainly of huge star vehicles cranked out all assembly line-likeĪnd planted in theaters that hoped to draw audiences on name recognition more so than plot specifics. The 1980s enjoyed a very healthy dose of big movies with big stars and unforgettable moments that have carried on a legacy now decades removedįrom its prime and time on the calendar.