In US cinema,Blaxploitationis the film subgenre of action movie derived from theexploitation filmgenre in the early 1970s, consequent to the combined cultural momentum of the Blackcivil rights movement,theblack power movement,and theBlack Panther Party,political and sociological circumstances that facilitated Black artists reclaiming their power of theRepresentationof the Black ethnic identity in the arts. The termblaxploitationis aportmanteauof the wordsBlackandexploitation,coined byJunius Griffin,president of the Beverly Hills–Hollywood branch of theNAACPin 1972. In criticizing the Hollywood portrayal of the multiracial society of the US, Griffin said that theblaxploitationgenre was "proliferating offenses" to and against the Black community, by perpetuating racist stereotypes of inherent criminality.[1]
![]() Poster of the Blaxploitation filmSweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song(1971) | |
Years active | 1970s |
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Location | United States |
Major figures | |
Influences | |
Influenced |
After the cultural misrepresentation of Black people in therace filmsof the 1940s, the 1950s, and the 1960s, the Blaxploitation movie genre presented Black characters and Black communities as the protagonists and the places of the story, rather than as background or secondary characters in the story, such as theMagical negroor as the victims of criminals.[2]To counter the racist misrepresentations ofBlacknessin the American movie business, theUCLAfinancially assisted Black students to attend film school. The cultural emergence of the Blaxploitation subgenre was facilitated by theHollywoodmovie studios adopting a permissive system of film ratings in 1968.[3]
Initially, blaxploitation films were black cinema produced for the entertainment ofBlack peoplein the cities of the US, but the entertainment appeal of the Black characters and human stories extended into the mainstream cinema of corporateHollywood.[4]Recognizing the profitability of the financially inexpensive blaxploitation films, the corporate movie studios then produced blaxploitation movies specifically for the cultural sensibilities of mainstream viewers. The movie-business magazineVarietyreported the filmsSweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song(1971) andShaftas themainstream blaxploitationfilms that followed the assimilation of blaxploitation into mainstream cinema, by way of the filmCotton Comes to Harlem(1970).[5]Blaxploitation films were the first to featuresoundtracksoffunkandsoul music.[6]
Description
editGeneral themes
edit[S]upercharged, bad-talking, highly romanticized melodramas about Harlem superstuds, the pimps, the private eyes and the pushers who more or less singlehandedly make whitey's corrupt world safe for black pimping, black private-eyeing and black pushing.
Blaxploitation films set in theNortheastorWest Coastmainly take place in poor urban neighborhoods. Pejorative terms for white characters, such as "cracker"and"honky",are commonly used. Blaxploitation films set in theSouthoften deal withslaveryandmiscegenation.[8][9]The genre's films are often bold in their statements and use violence, sex, drug trafficking and other shocking qualities to provoke the audience.[2]The films usually portray black protagonists overcoming "The Man"or emblems of the white majority that oppresses the black community.
Blaxploitation includes several subtypes, including crime (Foxy Brown), action/martial arts (Three the Hard Way),Westerns(Boss Nigger), horror (Abby,Blacula), prison (Penitentiary), comedy (Uptown Saturday Night), nostalgia (Five on the Black Hand Side), coming-of-age (Cooley High/Cornbread, Earl and Me), and musical (Sparkle).
Following the example set bySweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song,many blaxploitation films featurefunkandsoul jazzsoundtracks with heavybass,funky beats andwah-wahguitars. These soundtracks are notable for complexity that was not common to the radio-friendly funk tracks of the 1970s. They also often feature a rich orchestration which included flutes and violins.[10]
Blaxploitation was one of the first film categories to have female leads portray brave, heroic, active protagonists. Actresses such asPam GrierinCoffyandGloria HendryinBlack Belt Jonesopened the door for actresses to become action stars which inspired later films such asKill BillandSet It Off.
Following the popularity of these films in the 1970s, movies within other genres began to feature black characters with stereotypical blaxploitation characteristics, such as theHarlemunderworld characters in theJames BondfilmLive and Let Die(1973),Jim Kelly's character inEnter the Dragon(1973) andFred Williamson's character inThe Inglorious Bastards(1978).
Black Power
editAfeni Shakurclaimed that every aspect of culture (including cinema) in the 1960s and 1970s was influenced by theBlack Power movement.Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Songwas one of the first films to incorporate black powerideologyand permit black actors to be the stars of their own narratives, rather than being relegated to the typical roles available to them (such as the "mammy"figure and other low-status characters).[11][12]Films such asShaftbrought the black experience to film in a new way, allowing black political and social issues that had been ignored in cinema to be explored.Shaftand its protagonist, John Shaft, broughtAfrican-American cultureto the mainstream world.[12]SweetbackandShaftwere both influenced by the black power movement, containingMarxistthemes, solidarity and social consciousness alongside the genre-typical images of sex and violence.
Knowing that film could bring about social and cultural change, the Black Power movement seized the genre to highlight black socioeconomic struggles in the 1970s; many such films contained black heroes who were able to overcome the institutional oppression of African-American culture and history.[2]Later films such asSuper Flysoftened the rhetoric of black power, encouraging resistance within thecapitalistsystem rather than a radical transformation of society.Super Flystill embraced theblack nationalistmovement in its argument that black and white authority cannot coexist easily.
Stereotypes
editThe genre's role in exploring and shapingrace relationsin the United States has been controversial. Some held that the blaxploitation trend was a token of black empowerment, but others accused the movies of perpetuating commonwhite stereotypes about black people.[13]As a result, many called for the end of the genre. TheNAACP,Southern Christian Leadership ConferenceandNational Urban Leaguejoined to form the Coalition Against Blaxploitation. Their influence in the late 1970s contributed to the genre's demise. Literary criticAddison Gaylewrote in 1974, "The best example of this kind of nihilism / irresponsibility are the Black films; here is freedom pushed to its most ridiculous limits; here are writers and actors who claim that freedom for the artist entails exploitation of the very people to whom they owe their artistic existence."[14]
Films such asSuper FlyandThe Mackreceived intense criticism not only for the stereotype of the protagonist (generalizing pimps as representative of all African-American men, in this case) but for portraying all black communities as hotbeds for drugs and crime.[15][16][17]
Blaxploitation films such asMandingo(1975) provided mainstream Hollywood producers, in this caseDino De Laurentiis,a cinematic way to depict plantation slavery with all of its brutal, historical and racial contradictions and controversies, including sex, miscegenation, rebellion. The story world also depicts the plantation as one of the main origins of boxing as a sport in the U.S.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, a new wave of acclaimed black film makers, particularlySpike Lee(Do the Right Thing),John Singleton(Boyz n the Hood),andAllen and Albert Hughes(Menace II Society) focused on black urban life in their movies. These directors made use of blaxploitation elements while incorporating implicit criticism of the genre's glorification of stereotypical "criminal" behavior.
Alongside accusations of exploiting stereotypes, the NAACP also criticized the blaxploitation genre of exploiting the black community and culture of America, by creating films for a profit that those communities would never see, despite being the vastly misrepresented main focus of many blaxploitation film plots. Many film professionals still believe that there is no truly equal "Black Hollywood" as evidenced by the "Oscars So White"scandal in 2015 that caused uproar when no black actors were nominated for"Best Actor"at the Academy Awards.[12]
Slavesploitation
editSlavesploitation, a subgenre of blaxploitation in literature and film, flourished briefly in the late 1960s and 1970s.[18][19]As its name suggests, the genre is characterized by sensationalistic depictions of slavery.
Abrams, arguing thatQuentin Tarantino'sDjango Unchained(2012) finds its historical roots in the slavesploitation genre, observes that slavesploitation films are characterized by "crassly exploitative representations of oppressed slave protagonists".[20]
One early antecedent of the genre isSlaves(1969), which Gaines notes was "not 'slavesploitation' in the vein of later films", but which nonetheless featured graphic depictions of beatings and sexual violence against slaves.[21]Novotny argues thatBlacula(1972), although it does not depict slavery directly, is historically linked to the slavesploitation subgenre.[22]
By far, the best-known and best-studied exemplar of slavesploitation isMandingo,a1957 novelwhich was adapted into a1961 playand a1975 film.Indeed,Mandingowas so well known that a contemporary reviewer ofDie the Long Day,a 1972 novel byOrlando Patterson,called it an example of the "Mandingo genre".[23]The film, panned on its release, has been subject to widely divergent critical assessments.[24]Robin Wood,for instance, argued in 1998 that it is the "greatest film about race ever made inHollywood,certainly prior to Spike Lee and in some respects still ".[25]
Legacy
editInfluence
editBlaxploitation films have had an enormous and complicated influence on American cinema. Filmmaker and exploitation film fanQuentin Tarantino,for example, has made numerous references to the blaxploitation genre in his films. An early blaxploitation tribute can be seen in the character of "Lite", played bySy Richardson,inRepo Man(1984).[26][27]Richardson later wrotePosse(1993), which is a kind of blaxploitationWestern.
Some of the later, blaxploitation-influenced movies such asJackie Brown(1997),Undercover Brother(2002),Austin Powers in Goldmember(2002),Kill Bill Vol. 1(2003), andDjango Unchained(2012) featurepop culturenods to the genre. The parodyUndercover Brother,for example, starsEddie Griffinas anafro-topped agent for a clandestine organization satirically known as the"B.R.O.T.H.E.R.H.O.O.D.".Likewise,Austin Powers in Goldmemberco-starsBeyoncé Knowlesas theTamara Dobson/Pam Grier-inspired heroine,Foxxy Cleopatra.In the 1977 parody filmThe Kentucky Fried Movie,a mock trailer forCleopatra Schwartzdepicts another Grier-like action star married to arabbi.In a scene inReservoir Dogs,the protagonists discussGet Christie Love!,a mid-1970s blaxploitation television series. In the catalytic scene ofTrue Romance,the characters watch the movieThe Mack.
John Singleton'sShaft(2000), starringSamuel L. Jackson,is a modern-day interpretation of a classic blaxploitation film. The 1997 filmHoodlumstarringLaurence Fishburneportrays a fictional account of black mobsterEllsworth "Bumpy" Johnsonand recasts gangster blaxploitation with a 1930s twist. In 2004,Mario Van PeeblesreleasedBaadasssss!,about the making of his father Melvin's movie (with Mario playing Melvin). 2007'sAmerican Gangster,based on the true story of heroin dealerFrank Lucas,takes place in the early 1970s in Harlem and has many elements similar in style to blaxploitation films, specifically its prominent featuring of the song "Across 110th Street".
Blaxploitation films have profoundly impacted contemporaryhip-hop culture.Several prominenthip hopartists, includingSnoop Dogg,Big Daddy Kane,Ice-T,Slick Rick,andToo Short,have adopted the no-nonsensepimppersona popularized first by ex-pimpIceberg Slim's 1967 bookPimpand subsequently by films such asSuper Fly,The Mack,andWillie Dynamite.In fact, many hip-hop artists have paid tribute to pimping within their lyrics (most notably50 Cent's hit single "P.I.M.P.") and have openly embraced the pimp image in theirmusic videos,which include entourages of scantily-clad women, flashy jewelry (known as "bling"), and luxuryCadillacs(referred to as "pimpmobiles"). The most famous scene ofThe Mack,featuring the "AnnualPlayers Ball",has become an often-referencedpop cultureicon—most recently byChappelle's Show,where it was parodied as the "Playa Hater's Ball". The genre's overseas influence extends to artists such as Norway's hip-hop duoMadcon.[28]
InMichael Chabon's novelTelegraph Avenue,set in 2004, two characters are former blaxploitation stars.[29]
In 1980, opera directorPeter Sellars(not to be confused with actorPeter Sellers) produced and directed a staging ofMozart's operaDon Giovanniin the manner of a blaxploitation film, set in contemporary Spanish Harlem, with African-American singers portraying the anti-heroes as street-thugs, killing by gunshot rather than with a sword, using recreational drugs, and partying almost naked.[30]It was later released on commercial video and can be seen onYouTube.[31]
A 2016 video game,Mafia III,is set in the year 1968 and revolves around Lincoln Clay, a mixed-race African-American orphan raised by"black mob".[32]After the murder of his surrogate family at the hands of theItalian mafia,Lincoln Clay seeks vengeance on those who took away the only thing that mattered to him.
Cultural references
editThe notoriety of the blaxploitation genre has led to many parodies.[33]The earliest attempts to mock the genre,Ralph Bakshi'sCoonskinandRudy Ray Moore'sDolemite,date back to the genre's heyday in 1975.
Coonskinwas intended to deconstruct racial stereotypes, from earlyminstrel showstereotypes to more recent stereotypes found in blaxploitation film itself. The work stimulated great controversy even before its release when theCongress of Racial Equalitychallenged it. Even though distribution was handed to a smaller distributor who advertised it as an exploitation film, it soon developed a cult following with black viewers.[5]
Dolemite,less serious in tone and produced as a spoof, centers around a sexually active black pimp played by Rudy Ray Moore, who based the film on hisstand-up comedyact. A sequel,The Human Tornado,followed.
Later spoofs parodying the blaxploitation genre includeI'm Gonna Git You Sucka,Pootie Tang,Undercover Brother,Black Dynamite,andThe Hebrew Hammer,which featured a Jewish protagonist and was jokingly referred to by its director as a "Jewsploitation" film.
Robert Townsend's comedyHollywood Shufflefeatures a young black actor who is tempted to take part in a white-produced blaxploitation film.
The satirical bookOur Dumb Centuryfeatures an article from the 1970s entitled "Congress Passes Anti-Blaxploitation Act: Pimps, Players Subject to Heavy Fines".
FOX's network television comedy,MADtv,has frequently spoofed theRudy Ray Moore-created franchiseDolemite,with a series of sketches performed by comic actorAries Spears,in the role of "The Son of Dolemite". Other sketches include the characters "Funkenstein","Dr. Funkenstein"and more recentlyCondoleezza Riceas a blaxploitation superhero. A recurring theme in these sketches is the inexperience of the cast and crew in the blaxploitation era, with emphasis on ridiculous scripting and shoddy acting, sets, costumes, and editing. The sketches are testaments to the poor production quality of the films, with obvious boom mike appearances and intentionally poor cuts and continuity.
Another of FOX's network television comedies,MartinstarringMartin Lawrence,frequently references the blaxploitation genre. In the Season Three episode "All The Players Came", when Martin organizes a "Player's Ball" charity event to save a local theater, several stars of the blaxploitation era, such asRudy Ray Moore,Antonio Fargas,Dick Anthony WilliamsandPam Grierall make cameo appearances. In one scene, Martin, in character as aging pimp "Jerome", refers to Pam Grier as "Sheba, Baby"in reference to her 1975 blaxploitation feature film of the same name.
In the movieLeprechaun in the Hood,a character played byIce-Tpulls a baseball bat from his Afro. This scene alludes to a similar scene inFoxy Brown,in whichPam Grierhides a small semi-automatic pistol in her Afro.
Adult Swim'sAqua Teen Hunger Forceseries has a recurring character called "Boxy Brown" – a play on Foxy Brown. An imaginary friend ofMeatwad,Boxy Brown is a cardboard box with a crudely drawn face with a French cut that dons an afro. Whenever Boxy speaks, '70s funk music, typical of blaxploitation films, plays in the background. The cardboard box also has a confrontational attitude anddialectsimilar to many heroes of this film genre.
Some of the TVs found in the action video gameMax Payne 2: The Fall of Max Paynefeature a Blaxploitation-themed parody of the originalMax Paynegame calledDick Justice,after its main character. Dick behaves much like the original Max Payne (down to the "constipated" grimace and metaphorical speech) but wears an afro and mustache and speaks inEbonics.
Duck King,a fictional character created for the video game seriesFatal Fury,is a prime example of foreign black stereotypes.
The sub-cult movie shortGayniggers from Outer Spaceis a blaxploitation-like science fiction oddity directed by Danish filmmaker, DJ, and singerMorten Lindberg.
Jefferson Twilight, a character inThe Venture Bros.,is a parody of the comic-book character Blade (a black, half human, half-vampire vampire hunter), as well as a blaxploitation reference. He has an afro, sideburns, and a mustache. He carries swords, dresses in stylish 1970s clothing, and says that he hunts "Blaculas".[34]
A scene from the Season 9 episode ofThe Simpsons,"Simpson Tide",shows Homer Simpson watchingExploitation Theatre.A voice-over announces fake movie titles such asThe Blunch Black of Blotre Blame.
Martha Southgate's 2005 novelThird Girl from the Leftis set in Hollywood during the era of blaxploitation films and references many blaxploitation films and stars such asPam GrierandCoffy.
Notable blaxploitation films
edit1968
edit- Uptight,a 1968 American drama film directed by Jules Dassin. It was intended as an updated version of John Ford's 1935 filmThe Informer,based on the book of the same name by Liam O'Flaherty, but the setting was transposed from Dublin to Cleveland. The soundtrack was performed byBooker T. & the MG's.This movie follows the story of a Black nationalist organization in Cleveland (largely based in the Hough and Glenville neighborhoods) that becomes disillusioned with non-violence after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr and prepares for urban guerilla warfare.
1970
edit- The Black Angelsis about a black motorcycle gang and is part of theoutlaw biker filmgenre.
- They Call Me MISTER Tibbs!A sequel toIn the Heat of the Night,it is a pre-Shaftblaxploitation, and stylistically different from the original film.
- Carter's Armyis atelevision filmabout a unit of black soldiers in World War II.
- Cotton Comes to Harlem(dir.Ossie Davis) is based ona novelbyChester Himes.Features two black NYPD detectives,Coffin Ed Johnson(Raymond St. Jacques) andGravedigger Jones(Godfrey Cambridge), on the hunt for a money-filled cotton bale stolen by a corrupt reverend named Deke O'Malley.
1971
edit- Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Songis written, produced, scored, directed by and starsMelvin Van Peebles.The hero, named Sweetback because of his sexual powers, is an apolitical sex worker. His pimp, Beadle, makes a deal with a couple of police officers to let them take Sweetback into the station so it looks like the cops are picking up suspects. While Sweetback is in custody, the police arrest a young black militant and take him to a rural area to torture him. Sweetback steps in and beats the police unconscious. With the police chasing him, Sweetback comes to understand the power of the black community sticking together. He uses his ingenuity and survival skills to outwit the police and escape to Mexico.[35]Music byEarth, Wind & Fire.
- Shaft(dir.Gordon Parks) featuresRichard Roundtreeas detectiveJohn Shaft.The soundtrack features contributions fromIsaac Hayes,whose recording of the titular song won several awards, including anAcademy Award.Shaftwas deemed culturally relevant by theLibrary of Congress,and it spawned two sequels,Shaft's Big Score(1972) andShaft in Africa(1973), as well as ashort-lived TV seriesstarring Roundtree.[36]The concept was revived in 2000 with an all-newsequelstarringSamuel L. Jacksonas the nephew of the original John Shaft, with Roundtree reprising his role as the original Shaft. A direct sequel to the 2000 film was released in 2019, also titledShaft.
- The Bus Is Comingis a 1971 American drama film about a young black soldier who returns home to Los Angeles from combat in Vietnam to find out that his brother had been killed by a gang of racist cops. He struggles between maintaining his beliefs surrounding liberalism and centrism, or being radicalized from his brother's death, and possibly joining the black nationalist organization the Black Fist. This movie was directed by Wendell James Franklin and starred Mike B. Simms and, Burl Bullock.
1972
edit- Come Back, Charleston Blue,starring Godfrey Cambridge and Raymond St. Jacques, loosely based on Chester Himes' novel The Heat's On. It is a sequel to the 1970 film Cotton Comes to Harlem. All tracks written byDonny Hathawayexcept "Little Ghetto Boy"
- Hit Man(dir.George Armitage) is the story of anOaklandhit man, played by formerNFLplayerBernie Casey,who comes toLos Angelesafter his brother is murdered. He learns that his niece has been forced into pornography. She is eventually murdered. He sets out to murder everyone directly involved, from a porn star (Pam Grier), to a theater owner (Ed Cambridge), to a man he looked up to as a child (Rudy Challenger), and a mobster (Don Diamond).
- Super Fly(dir.Gordon Parks Jr.) features a soundtrack byCurtis Mayfield.Super Flyis one of the most controversial, profitable and popular classics of the genre.[37]
- The Legend of Nigger Charley(dir. Martin Goldman) is written by, co-produced by and starsFred Williamson.It was followed by the sequelThe Soul of Nigger Charley(1973).
- Hammer(dir. Bruce D. Clark) stars Fred Williamson as B.J. Hammer, a boxer who gets mixed up with a crooked manager who wants him to throw a fight for the Mafia.
- Across 110th Street(dir.Barry Shear) is a crime thriller about two detectives (played byAnthony QuinnandYaphet Kotto) who try to catch a group of robbers who stole $300,000 from the Mob before the Mob catches up with them. Thetitle trackbyBobby Womackreached #19 on theBillboard Black Singles Chart.
- Black Mama, White Mamais awomen in prison filmpartly inspired byThe Defiant Ones(1958) starringPam GrierandMargaret Markovin the roles originated bySidney PoitierandTony Curtis.
- Blaculais a take onDraculawhich features an African prince (played byWilliam H. Marshall) who is bitten and imprisoned byCount Dracula.Once freed from his coffin, he spreads terror in modern-day Los Angeles.
- Melinda(dir. Hugh Robertson) features music by Jerry Peters and Jerry Butler.[38]
- Slaughterstars Jim Brown as an ex-Green Beret who seeks revenge against a crime syndicate for the murder of his parents. It spawned the sequel,Slaughter's Big Rip-Off(1973).
- Trouble ManstarsRobert Hooksas "Mr. T.", a hard-edged private detective who tends to take justice into his own hands. Although the film itself was unsuccessful, it did enjoy a successful soundtrack written, produced and performed byMotownartistMarvin Gaye.
- The Final Comedown(dir. Oscar Williams) features music by Grant Green and Wade Marcus, and stars Billy Dee Williams. The film is an examination of racism in the United States and depicts a shootout between a radical black nationalist group and the police, with the backstory leading up to the shootout told through flashbacks.
- Black Gunnis a 1972 American neo-noir crime thriller film, directed by Robert Hartford-Davis and starring Jim Brown, Martin Landau, Brenda Sykes, Herbert Jefferson Jr. and Luciana Paluzzi. The film is considered an entry blaxploitation sub-genre, but is unique to the genre in several different ways. The film is set in Los Angeles where a nighttime robbery of an illegal mafia bookmaking operation is carried out by the militant African-American organization BAG (Black Action Group). Though successful, several of the bookmakers and one of the burglars are killed. The mastermind behind the robbery, a Vietnam veteran named Scott, is the brother of a prominent nightclub owner, Gunn. Seeking safe haven, Scott hides out at his brother's mansion after a brief reunion.
1973
edit- Black Caesar,Tommy Gibbs (Fred Williamson) is a street-smart hoodlum who has worked his way up to being the crime boss of Harlem. Music byJames Brown.
- Blackensteinis a parody ofFrankensteinand features a blackFrankenstein's monster.
- Cleopatra Jones(1973) and its sequel,Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold(1975), starTamara Dobsonas a karate-chopping government agent, with the mutual support of the Black Nationalist B&S (Brothers & Sisters) House. The first film marks the beginning of a subgenre of blaxploitation films focusing on strong female leads taking an active role in shootouts and fights. Some of these films includeCoffy,Black Belt Jones,Foxy BrownandT.N.T. Jackson.
- Coffy,Pam Grierstars as Coffy, a nurse turned vigilante who takes revenge on all those who hooked her 11-year-old sister on heroin.Coffymarks Grier's biggest hit and was re-worked forFoxy Brown,Friday FosterandSheba Baby.
- Detroit 9000is set inDetroit, MIand features street-smart white detective Danny Bassett (Alex Rocco) who teams with educated black detective Sgt. Jesse Williams (Hari Rhodes) to investigate the theft of $400,000 at a fund-raiser for Representative Aubrey Hale Clayton (Rudy Challenger). Championed byQuentin Tarantino,it was released on video byMiramaxin April 1999.
- Gordon's WarstarsPaul Winfieldas a Vietnam vet who recruits ex-Army buddies to fight the Harlem drug dealers and pimps responsible for the heroin-fueled death of his wife.
- Hell Up in Harlemis the sequel toBlack Caesarand starsFred WilliamsonandGloria Hendry,with a soundtrack by Motown singerEdwin Starr.
- Live and Let Die,aJames Bondmovie directed byGuy Hamiltonand starringRoger Moore.Many of the villains and allies are based on stock blaxploitation characters.
- The Mackis a film starring Max Julien andRichard Pryor.[39]It was produced during the era of such Blaxploitations asDolemite.It is not considered by its makers a true blaxploitation picture. It is more a social commentary according toMackin' Ain't Easy,a documentary about the making ofThe Mack,which can be found on the DVD edition of the film. The movie tells the story of the life of John Mickens (a.k.a.Goldie), a former drug dealer recently released from prison who becomes a big-time pimp. Standing in his way is another pimp: Pretty Tony. Two corrupt white cops, a local crime lord, and his own brother (a black nationalist), all try to force him out of the business. Set inOakland, California,it was the highest grossing blaxploitation of its time. Its soundtrack was recorded by Motown artistWillie Hutch.
- Scream Blacula Screamis the sequel toBlacula.William H. Marshall reprises his role as Blacula/Mamuwalde.
- The Spook Who Sat By the Dooris adapted fromSam Greenlee's novel and directed byIvan Dixonwith music byHerbie Hancock.A token blackCIAemployee, who is secretly ablack nationalist,leaves his position to train a street gang in CIA tactics and guerilla warfare to become an army of "freedom fighters".The film was reportedly pulled from distribution because of its politically controversial message and depictions of an Americanrace war.Until its 2004DVDrelease, it was hard to find, save for infrequentbootlegVHScopies. In 2012, the film was included in the USA Library of Congress National Film Registry.[40]
- Superfly TNT(dir. Ron O'Neil)
- That Man Bolt,starringFred Williamson,is the firstspy filmin this genre, combining elements ofJames Bondwith martial arts action in an international setting.
- Trick Babyis based on the book of the same name by ex-pimpIceberg Slim.
- Willie Dynamite,Roscoe Orman(Gordon fromSesame Streetfame) plays a pimp. As in many blaxploitation films, the lead character drives a customized Cadillac Eldorado Coupe (the same car was used inMagnum Force).
1974
edit- Abbyis a version ofThe Exorcistand starsCarol Speedas a virtuous young woman possessed by a demon. Ms. Speed also sings the title song.William H. Marshall(ofBlaculafame) conducts the exorcism of Abby on the floor of adiscotheque.A hit in its time, it was later pulled from the theaters after Warner Bros. successfully sued AIP over copyright issues.
- Black Belt Jones,Jim Kelly,who is better known for his role as "Mister Williams" in theBruce LeefilmEnter the Dragon,is given a leading role. He plays Black Belt Jones, a federal agent/martial arts expert who takes on the mob as he avenges the murder of a karate school owner.
- Black Eyeis an action-mystery starring Fred Williamson as a private detective investigating murders connected with a drug ring.
- The Black GodfatherstarsRod Perryas a man rising to underworld power based onThe Godfather.
- The Black Sixis about a black motorcycle gang seeking revenge. It combines blaxploitation andoutlaw biker film.
- Claudine:Music byCurtis MayfieldandGladys Knight & the Pips.Cast/Diahann Carroll.[41]
- Foxy Brownis largely a remake of the hit filmCoffy.Pam Grier once again on a vendetta against a drug ring, who seeks help from the Black Panthers.[42]Originally written as a sequel toCoffy,the film's working title wasBurn, Coffy, Burn!.The soundtrack was recorded by Willie Hutch.
- Get Christie Love!is a TV movie later released to some theaters. This police drama, starring an attractive young black woman (Teresa Graves) as an undercover cop, was later made into a short-lived TV series.
- Johnny Toughstars Dion Gossett andRenny Roker.
- Space Is the Placeis a psychedelically themed blaxploitation film featuringSun Ra& His Intergalactic Solar Arkestra.
- Sugar Hillis set in Houston and features a female fashion photographer (played byMarki Bey) who wreaks revenge on the local crime Mafia that murdered her fiancé with the use ofvoodoomagic.
- Three the Hard Wayfeatures three black men (Fred Williamson,Jim Kelly,andJim Brown) who must stop a white supremacist plot to eliminate all blacks with a serum in the water supply. Directed byGordon Parks Jr.
- Three Tough Guysstars Isaac Hayes and music by Isaac Hayes.
- TNT JacksonstarsJean Bell(one of the first blackPlayboyplaymates) and is partly set in Hong Kong. It is notable for blending blaxploitation with the then-popular "chop-socky" martial arts genre.
- Together Brothersis set inGalveston, Texas,where a street gang solves the murder of a police officer (played byEd Bernard) who had been a mentor to the gang leader. This was the first blaxploitation film to feature atransgendercharacter as the villain. Galveston, TX nativeBarry Whitecomposed the score. The soundtrack features music by theLove Unlimited Orchestra.
- Truck Turner(dir.Jonathan Kaplan) stars Isaac Hayes, Yaphet Kotto andNichelle Nichols.A former football player turned bounty hunter is pitted against a powerful prostitution crime syndicate in Los Angeles. Music by Isaac Hayes.[43]
1975
edit- Sheba, Baby,a female private eye (Pam Grier) tries to help her father save his loan business from a gang of thugs.
- The Black Gestapo,Rod Perry plays General Ahmed, who has started an inner-city People's Army to try to relieve the misery of the citizens of Watts, Los Angeles. When the Mafia moves in, they establish a military-style squad.
- Boss Nigger,along with his friend Amos (D'Urville Martin), Boss Nigger (Fred Williamson) takes over the vacated position of Sheriff in a small western town in thisWesternblaxploitation film. Because of its controversial title, it was released in some markets asThe Boss,The Black Bounty KillerorThe Black Bounty Hunter.
- Coonskin(dir.Ralph Bakshi) is a controversial animated/live-action film about Br'er Fox, Br'er Rabbit and Br'er Bear in a blaxploitation parody ofDisney'sSong of the South.It features the voice ofBarry Whiteas Br'er Bear.
- Darktown Strutters(dir. William Witney) is a farce produced byRoger Corman's brother,Gene.AColonel Sanders-type figure with a chain of urban fried chicken restaurants is trying to wipe out the black race by making them impotent through his drugged fried chicken.
- Dr. Black, Mr. Hydeis the retelling ofthe Jekyll and Hyde tale,starringBernie Casey.
- Dolemiteis also the name of its principal character, played byRudy Ray Moore,who co-wrote the script. Moore had developed the alter-ego as a stand-up comedian and released several comedy albums using this persona. The film was directed byD'Urville Martin,who appears as the villain Willie Green. The film has attained cult status, earning it a following and making it more well-known than many of its counterparts. A sequel,The Human Tornado,was released in 1976.
- Mandingois based on a series of lurid Civil War novels and focuses on the abuses of slavery and the sexual relations between slaves and slave owners. It featuresRichard WardandKen Norton.It was followed by a sequel,Drum(1976) starringPam Grier.
- The Candy Tangerine Manopens with pageantry pimp Baron (John Daniels) driving his customized two-tone red and yellow Rolls-Royce around downtown L.A at night. His ladies have been coming up short lately and he wants to know why. It turns out that two L.A.P.D. cops - Dempsey and Gordon, who have been after Baron for some time now, have resorted to rousting his girls every chance they get. Indeed, in the next scene they have set Baron up with a cop in drag to entrap him with procurement of prostitutes.
- Lady Cocoa(dir.Matt Cimber) starsLola Falana.
- Let's Do It Again,Music: Composed by Curtis Mayfield.
- Welcome Home Brother Charles.After being released from prison, a wrongfully imprisoned black man takes vengeance on those who previously crossed him by strangling them with his penis.
1976
edit- Black Shampoois a take-off of theWarren BeattyhitShampoo.
- Ebony, Ivory & Jade(dir.Cirio Santiago) (also known asShe Devils in Chains,American Beauty Hostages,Foxfire,Foxforce), features three female athletes who are kidnapped during an international track meet in Hong Kong and fight their way to freedom. This is another cross-genre blend of blaxploitation and martial arts action films.
- The Muthersis another Cirio Santiago combination of Filipino martial arts action and women-in-prison elements. Jeanne Bell and Jayne Kennedy rescue prisoners held at an evil coffee plantation.
- Passion Plantation(a.k.a.Black Emmanuel, White Emmanuel)is a blend of theMandingoandEmmanuelle,erotic films with interracial sex and savagery.
- Velvet Smooth,Johnnie Hill is a female private detective hired to infiltrate the criminal underworld.
- The Human Tornadoa.k.a.Dolemite II,Rudy Ray Moorereprises his role as Dolemite in the sequel to the 1975 filmDolemite.
- J. D.'s Revenge,a cab driver is possessed by a dead gangster who seeks revenge for his murder over 30 years ago.
1977
edit- Black Fistfeatures a street fighter who goes to work for a white gangster and a corrupt cop. The film is in the public domain. Cast members includeRichard LawsonandDabney Coleman.
- Black Samurai(dir. Al Adamson) is based on a novel of the same name by Marc Olden, and starsJim Kelly.The script is credited to B. Readick, with additional story ideas from Marco Joachim.
- Bare KnucklesstarsRobert Viharo,Sherry JacksonandGloria Hendry.The film is written and directed by Don Edmonds and follows L.A. bounty hunter Zachary Kane (Viharo) on the hunt for a masked serial killer.
- Petey Wheatstraw(a.k.a.Petey Wheatstraw, the Devil's Son-In-Law) is written byCliff Roquemoreand stars popular blaxploitation genre comedianRudy Ray Moorealong with Jimmy Lynch, Leroy Daniels, Ernest Mayhand and Ebony Wright. It is typical of Moore's other films of the era,DolemiteandThe Human Tornado,in that it features Moore's rhyming dialogue.
1978
edit- Death Dimensionis a martial arts film directed by Al Adamson and starringJim Kelly,Harold Sakata, George Lazenby, Terry Moore, andAldo Ray.The film also goes by the namesDeath Dimensions,Freeze Bomb,Icy Death,The Kill FactorandBlack Eliminator.A scientist, Professor Mason, invents a powerful freezing bomb for a gangster leader nicknamed "The Pig" (Sakata).
- The Wizis a musical fantasy film which reimaginesThe Wonderful Wizard of Ozwith an African-American cast.
1979
edit- Disco Godfather,also known asThe Avenging Disco Godfather,is an action film starringRudy Ray MooreandCarol Speed.Moore's character, a retired cop, owns and operates a disco and tries to shut down the localangel dustdealer after his nephew becomes hooked on the drug.
- Penitentiary(dir. Jamaa Franklin) follows the travails of Martel "Too Sweet" Gordone (Leon Isaac Kennedy) after his wrongful imprisonment. Set in a prison, the film exploits all of the tropes of the genre, including violence, sexuality and the eventual triumph of the lead character.
Post-1970s Blaxploitation films
edit- The Last Dragon(1985) is a martial arts action film with blaxploitation elements.
- I'm Gonna Git You Sucka(1988) is a comedic spoof of classic 1970s blaxploitation and features many of its stars:Jim Brown,Bernie Casey,Antonio FargasandIsaac Hayes.
- Action Jackson(1988) is a film where the protagonist Jericho Jackson (Carl Weathers), uses catchphrases to taunt his opponents.Craig T. Nelson,Sharon StoneandVanityalso star.
- Tales from the Hood(1995, dir.Rusty Cundiff) is a Comedy horror anthology film with Urban themes.
- Original Gangstas(1996) brings together 1970s blaxploitation stars Pam Grier, Richard Roundtree, Fred Williamson and Jim Brown.
- Jackie Brown(1997, dir.Quentin Tarantino) starsPam GrierandSamuel L. Jacksonin an homage to the blaxploitation genre. Based on theElmore LeonardnovelRum Punch,Tarantino's title change, casting of Grier and 1970s-style poster art, are all references to Grier's 1974 filmFoxy Brown.
- Pootie Tang(2001) incorporates many blaxploitation elements comedically.
- The Return of Dolemite(2002), the third chapter to theDolemiteseries, later retitled asThe Dolemite Explosionfor the DVD release.
- Undercover Brother(2002) starsEddie Griffinas a blaxploitation-style secret agent.
- Full Clip(2004) is made in thegraphic novelstyle.
- Hookers In Revolt(2008, dir.Sean Weathers). With its prevalence of pimps and prostitutes, it is an inventive throwback to early 1970s blaxploitation.[44]
- Black Dynamite(2009) starsMichael Jai Whiteand spoofs blaxploitation films.
- Proud Mary(2018) is an action thriller starringTaraji P. HensonandDanny Glover.[45]
- Get Christie Love!(2018), a made-for-TV remake of the 1974 film starringKylie Bunburywhich, unlike the original, was never picked up for a TV series.
- Superfly(2018) is a remake of the 1972 film, starringTrevor JacksonandJason Mitchell.
- Undercover Brother 2(2019), a sequel to the 2002 film starringMichael Jai White.
- The Harder They Fall(2021) is aNetflixWesternfilm starringJonathan MajorsandIdris Elba.
- They Cloned Tyrone(2023) isNetflixAfrofuturistic neo-Blaxploitation film starringJohn Boyega,Teyonah ParrisandJamie Foxx.
Other
edit- Baadasssss!(2003), abiopicabout the making ofSweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song,starringMario Van Peebles.
- Dolemite Is My Name(2019), a biopic about the making ofDolemite,starringEddie MurphyasRudy Ray Moore.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^Anderson, Tre’vell (June 8, 2018)."A Look Back at the Blaxploitation Era through 2018 Eyes".Los Angeles Times.Archivedfrom the original on June 8, 2018.RetrievedMay 22,2022.
- ^abcLyne, Bill (April 1, 2000)."No Accident: From Black Power to Black Box Office".African American Review.34(1):39–59.doi:10.2307/2901183.JSTOR2901183.
- ^"Say It Loud! The Black Cinema Revolution".Harvard Film Archive.October 21, 2016.RetrievedJanuary 31,2024.
- ^Denby, David (August 1972). "Getting Whitey".The Atlantic Monthly:86–88.
- ^abJames, Darius (1995).That's Blaxploitation!: Roots of the Baadasssss 'Tude (Rated X by an All-Whyte Jury).St. Martin's Press.ISBN0-312-13192-5.
- ^Ebert, Roger (June 11, 2004)."Review ofBaadasssss!".Chicago Sun-Times. Archived fromthe originalon February 17, 2007.RetrievedJanuary 4,2007.
- ^Canby, Vincent (April 25, 1976)."Are Black Films Losing Their Blackness?".The New York Times.p. 79.ISSN0362-4331.RetrievedFebruary 25,2018.
- ^"Blaxploitation: A Sketch - Bright Lights Film Journal".March 1, 1997.
- ^Holden, Stephen (June 9, 2000)."FILM REVIEW; From Blaxploitation Stereotype to Man on the Street".The New York Times.RetrievedApril 26,2010.
- ^"Music Genre: Blaxploitation".Allmusic.RetrievedJune 21,2007.
- ^Boyd, Herb (1996). "African-American images on television and film".The Crisis.103(2):22–24.
- ^abceztha_zienne (June 29, 2016)."BaadAsssss Cinema Documentary 2002"– via YouTube.[dead YouTube link]
- ^"Despite its incendiary name, Blaxploitation was viewed by many as being a token of empowerment".Seattle Times.Archivedfrom the original on September 27, 2016.RetrievedSeptember 26,2016.
- ^Addison Gayle, Black World, December 1974
- ^Strachan, Ian Gregory; Mask, Mia (May 19, 2016).Poitier Revisited: Reconsidering a Black Icon in the Obama Age.Bloomsbury Publishing USA. p. 249.ISBN978-1-5013-1982-2.
- ^Berra, John (May 1, 2010).Directory of World Cinema: American Independent.Intellect Books. p. 86.ISBN978-1-84150-385-1.
- ^Hamlet, Janice D.; Coleman, Robin R. Means (2009).Fight the Power!: The Spike Lee Reader.Peter Lang. p. 257.ISBN978-1-4331-0236-3.
- ^Bernier, Celeste-Marie; Durkin, Hannah, eds. (2016). "Strategic Remembering and Tactical Forgetfulness in Depicting the Plantation: A Personal Account".Visualising Slavery: Art Across the African Diaspora.Liverpool:Liverpool University Press.p. 70.ISBN978-1-78138-267-7.
- ^Ball, Erica L. (November 2, 2015). "The Politics of Pain: Representing the Violence of Slavery in American Popular Culture". In Schmid, David (ed.).Violence in American Popular Culture.Vol. 1. Santa Barbara, California:ABC-Clio.p. 36.ISBN978-1-4408-3206-2.
- ^Abrams, Simon (December 28, 2012)."5 Spaghetti Westerns & 5 Slavesploitation Films That Paved the Way for 'Django Unchained'".IndieWire.RetrievedJuly 26,2020.
- ^Gaines, Mikal J. (2005).The Black Gothic Imagination: Horror, Subjectivity, and Spectatorship from the Civil Rights Era to the New Millennium(MA thesis).College of William and Mary.p. 239.OCLC986221383.
- ^Lawrence, Novotny (2007)."'Deadlier than Dracula!': Blacula and the Horror Genre ".Blaxploitation Films of the 1970s.pp.45–61.doi:10.4324/9780203932223.ISBN978-0-203-93222-3.
- ^"Review ofDie the Long Dayby Orlando Patterson ".Kirkus Reviews.June 26, 1972.See alsoChristmas, Danielle (2014).Auschwitz and the Plantation: Labor and Social Death in American Holocaust and Slavery Fiction(PDF)(PhD thesis).University of Illinois at Chicago.p. 59.
- ^Symmons, Tom (2013).The Historical Film in the Era of New Hollywood, 1967–1980(PhD thesis).Queen Mary University of London.p. 87.
- ^Wood, Robin(1998).Sexual Politics and Narrative Film: Hollywood and Beyond.New York:Columbia University Press.p. 265.ISBN978-0-231-07605-0.
- ^Wall, B. (March 12, 2013).Theodor Adorno and Film Theory: The Fingerprint of Spirit.Springer. p. 62.ISBN978-1-137-30614-2.
- ^Fischer, Dennis (December 14, 2011).Science Fiction Film Directors, 1895-1998.McFarland. pp.134–135.ISBN978-0-7864-8505-5.
- ^"Beggin'".Youtube.com. November 22, 2007.Archivedfrom the original on December 21, 2021.RetrievedAugust 8,2013.
- ^"Michael Chabon, Telegraph Avenue: Read an exclusive excerpt".National Public Radio. August 12, 2012.RetrievedSeptember 25,2014.
- ^BERNHEIMER, MARTIN (December 13, 1990)."TV REVIEW: Peter Sellars Has His Modern Way With Mozart: Opera:Conventional ideas of Baroque drama are blithely tossed aside as Figaro gets married in the Trump Tower"– via Los Angeles Times.
- ^Opera Nerd (January 20, 2014)."Mozart: Don Giovanni - dir. Peter Sellars (Part 1 of 3) [English Subtitles]".Archivedfrom the original on December 21, 2021 – via YouTube.
- ^Takahashi, Dean (September 18, 2016)."How developers created the story behind Mafia III and its lead character Lincoln Clay".VentureBeat.RetrievedJanuary 7,2017.
- ^Maynard, Richard (June 16, 2000)."The Birth and Demise of the 'Blaxploitation' Genre".Los Angeles Times.RetrievedJanuary 29,2011.
- ^Bacon, Simon (2024).The Palgrave Handbook of the Vampire.Springer Nature. p. 1328.ISBN978-3-031-36253-8.
- ^Symmons, Tom (2015). "'The Birth of Black Consciousness on the Screen'?: The African American Historical Experience, Blaxploitation, and the Production and Reception ofSounder(1972) ".Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television.35(2):277–299.doi:10.1080/01439685.2014.933645.
- ^Andrew Dawson, "Challenging Lilywhite Hollywood: African-Americans and the Demand for Racial Equality in the Motion Picture Industry, 1963–1974" The Journal of Popular Culture, Vol. 45, No. 6, 2012
- ^Ed Guerrero,FRAMING BLACKNESS.Temple U. Press. pp. 95–97.
- ^"Melinda (1972) - Overview - TCM.com".Turner Classic Movies.RetrievedNovember 10,2021.
- ^Dutka, Elaine (June 30, 1997)."ReDiggin' the Scene".Los Angeles Times.RetrievedJanuary 30,2011.
- ^News from the Library of Congress: December 19, 2012 (REVISED December 20, 2012)Retrieved: 29 December 2012
- ^CBS News - Diahann Carroll, pioneering actress and Oscar nominee, has died at age 84Retrieved 3 November 2021
- ^"Pam Grier looks back on blaxploitation: 'At the time some people were horrified'".Los Angeles Times.RetrievedJanuary 29,2011.
- ^Unterberger, Richie.Review:Truck TurnerAllmusic Retrieved 2021-10-30
- ^"Filmfanaddict.com review of the film".Shockingimages.com. Archived fromthe originalon August 15, 2018.RetrievedAugust 8,2013.
- ^"Five Pam Grier Classics to Stream After 'Proud Mary'".ScreenCrush.January 12, 2018.
Further reading
edit- BlaxploitationFilmsby Mikel J. Koven, 2010, Kamera Books,ISBN978-1-903047-58-3
- "The Rise and Fall of Blaxploitation" by Ed Guerrero, inThe Wiley-Blackwell History of American Film,eds. Cynthia Lucia, Roy Grundmann, Art Simon, (New York, 2012): Vol 3, pp. 435–469,ISBN978-1-4051-7984-3.
- What It Is... What It Was!; The Black Film Explosion of the '70s in Words and Picturesby Andres Chavez, Denise Chavez, Gerald MartinezISBN0-7868-8377-4
- "The So Called Fall of Blaxploitation" by Ed Guerrero,The Velvet Light Trap#64 Fall 2009
- Wright (2014). "Black Outlaws and the Struggle for Empowerment in Blaxploitation Cinema".Spectrum: A Journal on Black Men.2(2): 63.doi:10.2979/spectrum.2.2.63.