Rockne

 

 

 (imdb)

BLACK SAMSON-1974-Samson (Rockne Tarkington) is a righteous dude who owns a bar and a pet lion. White mobster Johnny Nappa (William Smith) wants to take over the turf despite opposition from his uncle (Titos Vandis). Samson's main squeeze is played by Carol Speed and John Alderman and Marilyn Joi have small roles, There's a lot of stupid fights and way too much talk. Gene LeBelle gets beat up. 

This interesting time capsule of a movie was directed by Charles Bail (also an actor) who went on to make CLEOPATRA JONES AND THE CASINO OF GOLD (1975) and THE GUMBALL RALLY (1976). Star Tarkington was well known to some for his role in “Danger Island”, a segment of TV's “The Banana Splits Show (1968-69).

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Super Sisters On Cycles

DARKTOWN STRUTTERS-1975-In some ways this is the ultimate “blaxplotation” film but it's also a set-up! 4 motorcycle riding black women in outrageous psychedelic “70’s clothes hit town and promptly beat up some white Marines. The quartet is led by Syreena (Trina Parks). They beat up some racist cops (one is played by Dick Miller) several times and then run into a male gang (led by Roger E. Mosley) who they humiliate in a drag race but then become friends with. When Syreena discovers her mother has been kidnapped she investigates which leads to a plot by a Col. Sanders like mad scientist who wants to clone black leaders so they will vote for white politicians!

There’s a lot of broad comedy with sped up action scenes, fart and fat jokes, dancing and singing, guys in weird KKK robes and slapstick. Everyone acts goofy (all the white people are particularly stupid) but the story turns kind of serious when Syreena is inquiring about her mom. The other gang members are played by Edna Richardson, Bettye Sweet and Shirley Washington. SOUL TRAIN host Frankie Crocker also has a role.

Gene Corman was the producer. It was directed by B-movie veteran William Witney who made his first movie in 1937 and by this time was working mostly in TV. I often read this was his last film but according to IMDB he made one more (QUELL AND CO. in 1982). Screenwriter George Armitage wrote GAS for Roger Corman. Star Parks had an unbilled role in DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER and was later in THE MUTHERS.

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Revenge Is His!

J.D.'S REVENGE-1976-This unheralded blaxplotation possession flick has Glynn Thurman as Ike, a hard working cabbie studying to be a lawyer getting taken over by a scar faced New Orleans gangster (named J.D.) killed in a slaughterhouse in 1942. He's coming back because he was framed for a murder.


Ike gets a lot of headaches so a doctor recommends he smoke some weed! He rants and cries, abuses his girlfriend and gives a white female passenger an unforgettable cab ride! Lou Gossett is a flamboyant preacher who may be responsible for setting J.D. up. When the ghost finally takes over completely Ike uses a razor on various gangster victims.

Thurman gives a nice shizo-performance. He had been in COOLEY HIGH the year before and was in Ingmar Bergman's THE SERPENT EGG (with David Carradine) the next year. In 1978 he married Aretha Franklin (they divorced in '84). He still makes occasional TV appearances but this movie is pretty much overlooked.

Producer/Director Arthur Marks made BUCKTOWN (with Fred Williamson) and FRIDAY FOSTER (with Pam Grier) and several other movies but worked mostly in TV.

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He's Tight, Together and Mean!

WILLE DYNAMITE-1974-Serious (but sometimes unintentionally funny) “blaxpoltation” film in the world of pimps and hookers.

Roscoe Orman (later a regular on SESAME STREET) is the title character an outrageous vicious pimp with a menagerie of women working for him. Diana Sands (in her second to last movie) co-stars as a social worker trying to put him out of business. Thalmus Rasulala is her district attorney boyfriend who tries to help. Meanwhile 2 cops (George Murdock and Albert Hall) try to nail him. 

Unlike a lot of other films like this the story doesn’t glorify Willie but the kind of happy ending ruins it. His pimp clothes are really something though!

Director Gilbert Moses made THE FISH THAT ATE PITTSBURGH and did a lot of TV.

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Hammer's Other Time

BLACK CAESAR-1973-Blaxplotation classic starring Fred Williamson (who had starred in HAMMER the year before) as Tommy Gibbs who rises from abused shoeshine boy (who helps with a mob hit) to Black Caesar, the head of the Harlem underworld. He gets help from a phony black preacher (frequent co-star D’Urville Martin) and a corrupt white lawyer (William Wellman Jr.) to secure some ledgers that can expose some corrupt politicians and nearly kills his own father (Julius Harris). In the wildest scene he puts shoe polish on the face of a corrupt white cop (Art Lund) and makes him sing “Mammy” while beating him to death.

Gloria Hendry (who had a role in LIVE AND LET DIE the same year) plays his girlfriend who later betrays him. Val Avery is a mob leader Gibbs muscles out and Don Pedro Colley is Crawdaddy, Gibbs’s right hand man who causes a lot of trouble. The ending finds Gibbs seemingly dying near a burned out building in his old neighborhood after being beat up by local kids. 

He doesn’t die though. Gibbs/Williamson returned in HELL UP IN HARLEM later in the year.

BC was the second feature directed by Larry Cohen (who also wrote and produced). Besides the sequel he also made IT’S ALIVE around the same time and went on to make other quirky features. He and Williamson re-teamed (with Jim Brown, Pam Grier, among others) for ORIGINAL GANGSTAS in 1996.



HELL UP IN HARLEM-1973-This sequel was pushed into production and it shows. It’s a major letdown after the incredible BLACK CAESAR and has a lot of unintentional laughs.

Gangster Tommy Gibbs apparently didn’t die. Despite being shot and beaten he manages to phone his dad (returning Julius Harris) who comes to his rescue, hides the ledgers and gets “some brothers who can still be trusted” to help out. They take Gibbs to a hospital and hold the staff at gunpoint and force a surgeon to operate (with no anesthesia). This part is pretty funny. Eventually the Gibbs character is re-molded into a force for good battling drug dealers and corrupt politicians. For a while he turns over his gang to dear old Dad who starts a gang war and kills his ex-girlfriend (the also returning Gloria Hendry). D'Urville Martin repeats his role as the preacher who is now legit and believes Tommy is doing good.

It’s entertaining but kind of a letdown. It’s been said the role of Tommy Gibbs was first offered to Sammy Davis Jr. who turned it down!

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"Much violence is based on the illusion that life is a property to be defended and not to be shared." Henri Nouwen

Pam Grier!

COFFY-1973-Blaxplotation classic featuring Pam Grier as a revenge-seeking nurse out to kill the pushers who made her younger sister a dope addict. She blows a gang leader’s head away and forces his assistant to overdose. She then poses as a hooker from Jamaica to get close to the white businessman leader (Alan Arbus). Robert DoQui is King George, a dumb pimp and Sid Haig is a thug. Violence, nudity and a long catfight are features of this entertaining but dated ‘70’s tale.

Veteran exploitation director Jack Hill made FOXY BROWN (also with Grier) after this. Around this time Hill did some editing work on Boris Karloff’s Mexican horror films (sadly Karloff’s last film work).


FOXY BROWN-1974-In perhaps her ultimate “blaxplotation” film Pam Grier is the tough no nonsense title character who’s boyfriend (Terry Carter from TV’s McCLOUD) has just had plastic surgery and gets a new face. He was an undercover cop whose testimony put away some drug dealers. Ugly Antonio Fargas (Huggy Bear from TV’s STARSKY & HUTCH) is her drug dealing/user brother who although quite a dim-wit somehow figures out the whole scheme, rats on her boyfriend who is then gunned down by drug dealers. Foxy goes for revenge, shooting, burning and even castrating one thug. She also finds time to steal a plane owned by drug runner Sid Haig. All the bad guys are white but everyone spews racist dialogue. Jack Hill only made three more movies after this.



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