Shorty Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld. Specifically it

¶ … Shorty directed by Barry Sonnenfeld. Specifically it will discuss how the film fits into the rubric for a detective story. "Get Shorty" seems more like an adventure or action film at first, but it is really a finely woven detective story that leaves the viewer second-guessing the characters up until the very last minute of the film. It fits the rubric of a detective-mystery story quite well, and is entertaining and funny, too. There are several crimes rolled into one in this film.

At first, the crime seems to be Lou the dry cleaner's crime of running off with Mr. Bones money, but that is only the beginning in a string of crimes that include Harry Zimm's owing the Vegas casino, Bo, the limo company owner's money that Harry lost, and finally the South American drug lord whose nephew and $500,000 are missing. So there are several crimes that the viewer has to keep track of, and they all revolve around Chili Palmer, John Travolta's character.

At first, it is not clear which crime is the most important, and there is another storyline underneath the crimes revolving around money. That is the storyline of the business in Hollywood, and how Chili fits into it so well and so quickly. This could indicate that the real "crime" in the story is the crime that just about anyone who has money can make some kind of a name for himself in Hollywood, regardless of talent or any kind of knowledge.

The milieu or setting and environment of the film encompasses Miami, Brooklyn, and most of all Los Angeles and Hollywood. The environment also includes the life of the mobster or underworld figure, and how it compares with the life of a Hollywood producer. The milieus of the two are very similar, as the film points out quite clearly. The real victim in this mystery is Mr.

Bones, who is trying to collect his money and then is set up by Chili to collect the drug money at the airport, when he has nothing to do with the money at all. However, there is another victim, the moviemaking business, as the "B" horror movie producer Zimm clearly shows.

He succeeds in Hollywood because he is just as much of a con man as Chili is, and again this shows the theme that there is not that much difference between the mob's activities and the activities of the "movers and shakers" in Hollywood. Bones himself is a two-bit mobster who thinks he is smarter and has more power than he does, and that is why it is so simple for Chili to set him up.

Chili is savvy, and that is why he can succeed in the movie business so easily. Throughout the film there are several suspects, including Zimm, Lou, Mr. Bones, Bo, the drug lord, and more. There are so many story lines and crimes that it is hard to keep the suspects straight. Chili is also a suspect when he takes Lou's money, and of course Bear is a suspect as is Bo's sidekick.

As the film goes on, many of the suspects are eliminated, narrowing down the field and the viewer's analysis of the suspects. This is like any good mystery or detective story, where there are more suspects than necessary to keep the viewer interested and guessing what will happen next. This film is loaded with clues from the very first.

When Bones steals Chili's coat it shows that Chili will always have the upper hand over Bones, and that is the first clue that the final outcome has to include these two characters. As the film progresses and the crimes get more convoluted, there are many other clues, from Bo wanting in on the action, to finding Lou and his money, Chili getting into the movie business, Zimm getting beaten up and moved quietly to the sidelines, and Bones showing up in Hollywood.

The film is full of clues and watching it once is not enough to see them all. However, throughout the film Chili shows that he is one step ahead of everyone else, and that is one of the biggest clues that he will win out in the end, and the "villain" Bones will end up being the fall guy. There is only one motive in this film, and it is the motive of greed or money.

All the characters are after money in one form or another -- money that has been stolen from them, money they think is rightfully theirs, and money they need to succeed in Hollywood. Money is the ultimate motive, and the thing that gets so many people killed in this film. The ulterior motive is for Chili to succeed in Hollywood and become a producer, leaving the mob lifestyle behind but entering one that is not really that much different.

The opportunity in this film is the opportunity that presents itself to Lou (the plane crash that gives him $300,000), and the opportunity for Chili to break away from the mob lifestyle. The other opportunity is the money at the airport, which ultimately allows Chili to set up Bones and break free. The things that lead to these opportunities are all the other characters that are continually chasing the money, from Bo to the drug lord. They all create opportunities.