Jumpin' Jack Flash (film)

Jumpin' Jack Flash
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Penny Marshall
Produced by	Lawrence Gordon Joel Silver
Written by	David Franzoni J.W. Melville Patricia Irving Chris Thompson
Starring	Whoopi Goldberg Jonathan Pryce Stephen Collins John Wood Peter Michael Goetz
Music by	Thomas Newman
Cinematography	Matthew F. Leonetti
Editing by	Mark Goldblatt
Studio	Silver Pictures Lawrence Gordon Productions
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date(s)	October 10, 1986
Running time	100 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$18 million
Box office	$29,844,101

Jumpin' Jack Flash is a 1986 spy comedy film starring Whoopi Goldberg, Stephen Collins, Carol Kane, John Wood, Annie Potts, and Jonathan Pryce. The film was directed by Penny Marshall in her theatrical film directorial debut.

The film was one of the first to feature online communications as a key part of the plot.

The soundtrack includes two versions of the song "Jumpin' Jack Flash"; one by The Rolling Stones, and the other by Aretha Franklin.

Plot

Teresa "Terry" Doolittle (Whoopi Goldberg) transfers funds for the First National Bank in Manhattan, New York. She does not quite fit with the bank's corporate image, despite being a good employee and popular with her coworkers. However, she is often chastised by her no-nonsense boss James Page (Peter Michael Goetz).

Set against the backdrop of the pre-Glasnost Cold War, Terry is contacted by a man calling himself "Jumpin' Jack Flash" who turns out to be a British Intelligence agent in Eastern Europe that is being pursued by the KGB. After being given a riddle for his password, Terry determines the password to be B-flat, after the key in which "Jumpin' Jack Flash" is supposedly written (as the actual song by The Rolling Stones is recorded in the key of B-flat). Jack sends her to the British Consulate to deliver the message "Dog's barking, can't fly without umbrella" to Department C. Despite feeling ludicrous, Terry delivers the message to Jeremy Talbot (John Wood) who is apparently puzzled and sends Terry away, telling her there is no Department C. Jack then asks her to enter his apartment in New York to retrieve a frying pan, on which are Jack's CIA contacts to acquire a passport.

Terry begins to be monitored. Peter Caen (Stephen Collins), a CIA agent working under the alias Marty Phillips, arrives at First National Bank as a new coworker of Terry. A computer technician (James Belushi) shows up to repair her terminal, but when Terry calls Sperry Corporation to confirm his identity, the technician vanishes. Terry is finally contacted by one of Jack's contacts, Mark Van Meter (Jeroen Krabbé), who meets her at the docks. After being stunned to realize Terry is a banker and has no relationship at all with the intelligence community, Van Meter notices they are being watched and pushed Terry off the docks and into the East River to save her life, but is shot and killed himself. The police dismiss Terry's claim of the murder and Peter bails her out of jail. Terry continues to follow leads and is nearly abducted by the computer tech, a KGB agent, but knocks him out with Jack's frying pan. Jack then tells her how to break into the British Consulate central computer. Conning her way in under the guise of an entertainer, she manages to enter the mainframe, but Talbot deactivates the computer link before Jack receives a contact. Going through one of Jack's romantic contacts, Lady Sarah Billings (Sara Botsford), Terry is rebuffed and then captured by the KGB, who lock her in a phone booth and drag her around the city. After escaping when the booth is knocked over, Terry is injected with truth serum by the computer tech posing as a police officer, but escapes after trapping his arm in a car window and rolling the car into traffic. Terry again contacts Sarah and makes an impassioned plea for her help. Sarah tells Terry she would rather let Jack be killed than risk losing face. A disgusted Terry chastises Sarah for her indifference to Jack's plight and walks out. She then stumbles into work and after embarrassing Mr. Page by yanking off his fake hairpiece in front of the entire office, passes out.

Terry awakes at home and is dropped in on by Sarah who has had a change of heart and gives her a contact. After passing the contact to Jack, she is again captured by the KGB and learns that the contact is a KGB mole who turns out to be Talbot himself. After nearly being tortured with a power sander, Terry escapes and is caught by police. After realizing the police are arresting her rather than protecting her, Terry escapes. She rushes to the bank and is again ambushed by the KGB and Talbot. After struggling with the KGB and biting Talbot's groin, she confirms to Jack that the contact will kill him. Marty identifies himself as Peter Caen and gives Jack the correct contact.

After initially not showing up at a restaurant where he and Terry plan to meet, Jack (Jonathan Pryce) appears in her office to thank her personally by taking her out to dinner.

Cast

• Whoopi Goldberg as Teresa "Terry" Doolittle, the film's protagonist, a bored bank worker adored by her colleagues for her sarcastic attitude and outspoken views, who gets involved with helping Jack escape his pursuers and return home safely.
• Jonathan Pryce as "Jack", a DIS agent trapped in an unnamed Eastern Bloc country who is being pursued by KGB agents. For most of the film, only his voice is heard when speaking to Terry over the computer. In the final scene of the movie he meets Terry at First National Bank where she works.
• Stephen Collins as Marty Phillips, a CIA agent (whose real name is Peter Caen) and friend of Jack's that has gone undercover as a new employee at First National Bank.
• John Wood as Jeremy Talbot, the film's primary antagonist. He is a KGB sleeper agent who works undercover at the British Consulate in New York City. He attempts to use Terry to lure Jack into a deadly ambush.
• James Belushi (credited as Jim Belushi) as Sperry Repairman / Furious Cab Driver / Injured Cop.
• Sara Botsford as Lady Sarah Billings, one of Jack's romantic contacts.
• Peter Michael Goetz as James Page, the manager of First National Bank and Terry's often frustrated, no-nonsense boss.
• Vyto Ruginis as Carl, another KGB agent; Talbot's menacing silent henchman.
• Carol Kane as Cynthia, a co-worker of Terry's at First National Bank.
• Jon Lovitz as Doug, a co-worker of Terry's at First National Bank.
• Lynne Marie Stewart as Karen, a co-worker of Terry's at First National Bank.
• Phil Hartman (credited as Phil E. Hartmann) as Fred, a co-worker of Terry's at First National Bank.
• Tracey Ullman as Fiona
• Michael McKean as Leslie

Production

Production of the film, originally conceived as a vehicle for Shelley Long, was problematic. The script was troubled and would often be rewritten on the set. It began with Howard Zieff as director. However, he was replaced early in the production by Penny Marshall.

Soundtrack

(Selected List)

1. "Jumpin' Jack Flash" – Aretha Franklin
2. "Jumpin' Jack Flash" – The Rolling Stones
3. "Set Me Free" – The Pointer Sisters
4. "You Can't Hurry Love" – The Supremes
5. "Window to the World" – Face to Face
6. "Trick of the Night" – Bananarama
7. "Hold On" – Billy Branigan
8. "Misled" – Kool & The Gang
9. "Rescue Me" – Fontella Bass

Uncredited

1. "Rule Britannia" – "Alfred"
2. "Roses from the South, Op.388" – Johann Strauß, Jr.
3. "Tales of the Vienna Woods, Op.325" – Johann Strauß, Jr.
4. "Artist's Life, Op.316" – Johann Strauß, Jr.
5. "Sabre Dance" – "Gayane"
6. "God Save the Queen" – Henry Carey
7. "Overture" – "La Nozze di Figaro"

Reception

Jumpin' Jack Flash received generally negative reviews from critics and fans, earning an approval rating of 28% on Rotten Tomatoes,.

External links

• Jumpin' Jack Flash at the Internet Movie Database
• Jumpin' Jack Flash at AllRovi
• Jumpin' Jack Flash at Box Office Mojo
• Jumpin' Jack Flash at Rotten Tomatoes
• Review of Jumpin' Jack Flash at TVGuide.com