Ok so I never heard of the Long Kiss Goodnight before Samuel L. Jackson brought it up in an interview where he said it was his favourite role to play because of how much fun he had. So I figured it had to be worth watching if out of the 100s of roles that he's played he singled this one out...

I was keeping my expectations low when I first saw that Shane Black was the writer because I was disappointed with The Nice Guys and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, to a lesser extent. Thankfully this movie is much better than either of those two. IMO large credit goes to the director who also made Die Hard 2 and you can see his influence all over this movie when it comes to the action. A lot of it is admittedly over the top, like almost every 90s film, but I can't stress enough how cool it was to see real squibs being used in the shootouts. Such an underrated special effect that's unfortunately been replaced by CGI these days. There were some shoddy rear projection moments though.

Regarding the performances it does look like SLJ is having a great time. He has some fantastic lines and I love how he sings whatever he's currently doing. You could argue it's completely unnecessary but it adds character. His arc could've been a little better though. I was hoping he'd get some of the money in the end rather than just clear his name with his kid. But maybe the point is that he's a changed man and he'll cope without money he didn't legit earn. But you have to remember that this was made in the mid 90s so it kinda needs a wholesome ending. But this was one of my issues with the film: what the hell is the tone meant to be? One second it's a corny xmas movie a la Home Alone and the next it's an R-rated torture porn movie. The former was harder to watch honestly. The "it's what chefs do line" was nails on a chalkboard the second time. And what were they thinking during the ice skating chase? Anyways, the darker moments far outweighed the light-heartedness. Shane Black goes full snark with the dialogue and I love it. The 'two frenemies on a mystery' trope of his is done to perfection with SLJ and Geena Davis who play off each other really well. I like how they subverts many clichés of the genre as well. For example they don't believe the guy saying that Charly is a gov agent so they beat him up and steal his car. Or after Mitch is kicked out of the van for being useless, instead of ending the scene and doing a long reconciliation montage she just drives round the block.

Speaking of Caine/Charly, I have mixed feelings about Geena Davis. She's not a great actress. It's as simple as that. She wasn't that realistic as the mother because of how deadpan she gave some lines. Seemed forced whenever she had to act empathetic or cute. The chefs line is a great example. The scenes with the mirrors were weird as hell too. But even when talking to her daughter she seemed really distant and rushed her lines with a certain bluntness to them (even before remembering her real identity). However, Davis REALLY sold the Charly personality. Like damn she was a completely different human when they let her go 100% cold-hearted killer. I could suspend disbelief enough to think she could really snap a dude's neck or snipe a whole army of trained soldiers. After the scene where she dyes her hair blonde she gets a million times better and overall just seems more confident/comfortable playing that person. That scene in particular is one of the best in the film because of it. (I gotta learn that shot glass trick she does.) From that point on in the film she can keep up with SLJ's acting. This is a big difference from that earlier scene after nearly shooting Mitch (great moment btw) where she's crying to continue the journey and SLJ gives a literal lecture in acting with his response.

Overall I was really impressed with the scale and wittiness of the movie. Definitely something worth watching if you love all-out 90s action films.