ELMORE Leonard's sequel to Get Shorty, adapted for the screen by Peter Steinfeld, plunges streetwise mobster-turned-movie producer Chili Palmer (John Travolta) into the cut-throat music industry.

When his good friend Tommy Athens (James Woods) is killed in a mob hit, Chili pledges to help Tommy's beautiful widow Edie (Uma Thurman) resuscitate her ailing record label.

To this end, Chili introduces Edie to talented R&B singer-songwriter Linda Moon (Christina Milian), with the intention of producing the girl's first album.

Annoyingly, Linda is already contracted to ruthless Nick Carr (Harvey Keitel) and his wannabe gangster associate Raji (Vince Vaughn).

They are understandably reluctant to relinquish control of their songbird and try to intimidate Chili with the help of Raji's bodyguard Elliot (The Rock), a tough guy desperate to break into Hollywood, and the Russian mob, who want Chili dead to prevent him identifying Tommy's killer.

To complicate matters, Edie's late husband owed $300,000 to music producer Sin LaSalle (Cedric The Entertainer) and he wants the money repaid as soon as possible.

Using his wise-guy skills and negotiation tactics, Chili attempts to stay one step ahead of his rivals.

At the very beginning of Be Cool, Chili conveys his disillusionment with the movies by whining: "I hate sequels".

It's a pity that Travolta the actor doesn't share the same artistic credo, because Be Cool does him no favours whatsoever.

Indeed, this lacklustre and tuneless remix of Get Shorty proves the bulky leading man has exhausted any goodwill he may have earned with Pulp Fiction.

In a nod perhaps to Tarantino's film, Travolta and Thurman take to the dance-floor for a hip-swivelling, jiving seduction to the strains of Sexy by the Black Eyed Peas.

Unfortunately, in the absence of any palpable sexual chemistry between the two leads, the scene fails miserably to live up to the song's title.

The music industry makes itself look ridiculous without any effort on Elmore Leonard's part, reducing this satire to a series of half-hearted sideswipes.

Travolta's non-performance is accompanied by a badly miscast Thurman, and forgettable supporting turns from Keitel and Cedric The Entertainer.

Benjamin, aka Andre 3000 from Outkast, is sporadically amusing and Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler cameos as himself, performing a duet of Cryin with Milian.

Vaughn's wannabe player ("He thinks he's black," explains Linda despairingly) is pure caricature; only The Rock makes any kind of positive impression, investing his gay hard man with a sweetness and vulnerability.

Elliot's audition piece for Chili - a scene from the teen cheerleading comedy Bring It On - is a rare moment of brilliance.

"When are you going to call me?" he asks excitedly. "When your phone rings," Chili replies drolly.

Rating: 4/10