Be Cool

RELEASE DATE March 4

WHY WE CAN'T WAIT Chili Palmer, the loan shark turned movie producer (played with effortless Zen cool by John Travolta in Get Shorty), remains one of the best Travolta roles.

THE PREMISE Palmer sidesteps into the music business, teaming with a widowed record exec (Uma Thurman) and encountering a rogues' gallery of shady characters.

SOURCE Elmore Leonard's 1999 novel

THE BACK STORY Yes, Travolta gets to dance again with Pulp Fiction twist-contest partner Thurman — though ''it doesn't have that same kind of heroined-out feeling,'' Travolta says. ''We're healthier characters.''

BURNING QUESTION What happened to Rene Russo, Travolta's love interest in Shorty?

COME FOR That Travolta-Thurman reunion

STAY FOR Wacky cameos and supporting turns by André 3000, Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, Cedric the Entertainer, Vince Vaughn, and another Pulp alum, Harvey Keitel