Kansas City *** (1996, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Miranda Richardson, Harry Belafonte, Michael Murphy, Dermot Mulroney, Steve Buscemi) – Classic Movie Review 7670

Producer-director Robert Altman’s tense, involving, tough-toned 1996 crime film Kansas City stars Jennifer Jason Leigh, Miranda Richardson, Harry Belafonte, Michael Murphy, Dermot Mulroney and Steve Buscemi.

In the screenplay by Altman and Frank Barhydt, a pair of kidnappings expose the complex power dynamics in the corrupt Thirties Kansas City, allowing the movie to take a long loving look at the big issues of love, crime, race and politics.

It is notable for its jazz soundtrack, integrated into the film, with 1996 musicians re-creating the Kansas City jazz of the Thirties. The soundtrack is produced by Hal Wilner and Steven Bernstein.  Some contemporary musicians play famous jazz musicians from the Thirties, with Craig Handy as Coleman Hawkins, Geri Allen as Mary Lou Williams, and James Carter as Ben Webster.

Leigh plays Blondie O’Hara, who embarks on a desperate plan to release her petty thief husband Johnny (Dermot Mulroney) after he is captured by Seldom Seen (Harry Belafonte) and held at the Hey Hey Club. Blondie kidnaps Mrs Carolyn Stilton (Miranda Richardson), the laudanum-addicted wife of local politician Henry Stilton (Michael Murphy) in order to blackmail him into helping to free Johnny. While Mr Stilton tries to free his wife by saving Johnny, Mrs Stilton befriends Blondie.

The music, productions designs (by Stephen Altman), cinematography (by Oliver Stapleton) and the performances of an intense Leigh and a cast-against-type, chilling Belafonte are the main high points, but it is well written and well set up too. It is all impeccable and it did not deserve its neglect. Like too many, under-appreciated Altman films, it crashed at the box office, taking only $2,500,000 worldwide (including $1,353,000 in the US) on a cost of $19,000,000.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 7670

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