Black Cinema Matters

Even if the Golden Stakes went all the way back to 1995 Kiss By a Rose wouldn't have done well in any category given that its use in the actual movie was minimal.  Gangsta's Paradice also wouldn't have had much of a place given that it isn't really source music.... that and the fact that I most likely wouldn't have gone to see Dangerous Minds in the theater given that it looks completely ridiculous.

Death Dimension (1978)



It's a tragedy that the NAACP essentially killed the Blaxploitation film, since it was the primary employer of black actors on the Silver Screen in Hollywood throughout the seventies.  

Death Dimension is a fairly typical example of the genre, in that the film features a black actor who was featured in a small role in a well received movie in the lead role, and a relatively known white actor as the villain.  In this case, it's Jim Kelly from Enter The Dragon (1973) as the hero and George Lazenby (On Her Majesty's Secret Service [1969]) as one of the bad guys.  To further the 007 theme of the film, the main villain is played by Harold Sakata, who played Odd Job in Goldfinger (1964).  In concept, Death Dimension is supposed to be a James Bond style action thriller, full of international intrigue, but the basic plot is from an obscure sci-fi movie made the previous year.

It is a time of Cold War.  A rogue scientist at a hidden desert brothel has just completed a successful test of a new weapon for an evil pimp called The Pig.
During the test, a loyal American managed to steal the secret plans to The Pig's ultimate weapon, the FREEZE BOMB, a weapon with enough power to freeze an entire city solid.
Pursued by The Pig's sinister agents, Felicia races to Los Angeles, custodian of the stolen plans that can save her people and restore freedom to the world...

Blaxsploitation movies are an often misunderstood genre.  As the name of the genre suggests, they are known primarily as being stories about downtrodden African Americans being used and abused by white men.  While this is certainly true of many of these films, most of them featured strong black men and women who were unafraid to stand up to The Man and do what's right.  Death Dimension is no exception.  

He went bald and the second he no longer had hair standing up like that he lost his mojo.  As for L.V... I'm not exactly sure what was up with that guy to begin with. 

I'm not taking food advice from a guy who got kicked off Celebrity Chopped for cheating.

I prefer The Principal with James Belushi.

L.V. had the audacity to do a version of Gangsta’s Paradise without Coolio.

I think he died of obesity.

Of course he did.

SHE’S GOTTA HAVE IT (1986)



Long before the Black Klansman, there was the Black Slut. Spike Lee’s feature length debut wasn’t simply a breakthrough, it kicked the door down. It was a milestone for Black cinema and independent films, but also widely accessible through its themes of sexuality. Earlier in life, I wasn’t particularly impressed with She’s Gotta Have It because I found it tame for a Spike Lee joint. This is the man who gave us socially and politically charged works like Do The Right Thing and Malcolm X. The story about a sexually promiscuous woman isn’t gonna shake the ground. But viewed within the context of how and when it was made, it’s a very impressive and notable debut.

I want more blaxploitation movies!

COOLEY HIGH (1975)



Written by the co-creator of Good Times, Eric Monte, and based on his teenage years in the projects of Chicago, Cooley High is a slice-of-life of two boys on the verge of leaving the hood. One is an aspiring writer and the other received a scholarship to play college basketball. The movie is a series of vignettes showing their escapades and ultimately culminating in the realities of their surroundings crashing in on them. The film was groundbreaking in its day, as it displays a realistic portrayal of Black youths, but it lacks a strong directorial vision to make it hold up today. There's a reason the TV show it inspired, What's Happening, is more fondly remembered. But if you watch the movie as a time capsule it can be fun to watch. It's certainly not poorly made.

MISSISSIPPI BURNING (1988)



I was quite fond of this movie as a young lad. Now not so much. It's like if you took Michael Bay and gave him a civil rights story to tell. There's literally a montage of explosions. The gist of it is the tale of three students trying to set up voter registrations in the South. The KKK murder them and so Gene Hackman and Willem Dafoe are sent to bring justice. By justice I mean having Gene Hackman play Popeye Doyle and turning this into French Connection III. Yes. There was a French Connection II. Believe it or not. Anyway, the movie is entertaining. You won't dislike it. But it's quite ridiculous.