Shaft (1971)

By Morpheus • June 22, 2005

Starring: Richard Roundtree, Moses Gunn, Charles Cioffi, Christopher St. John, Gwenn Mitchell

Director: Gordon Parks

Writer(s): Ernest Tidyman & John D.F. Black

Studio: Warner Bros.

Rating: R

Official Bar Score:

This is the movie that started it all, and is quite possibly the most well-known and well-loved film in the history of Blaxploitation cinema. In this classic 70’s flick, Richard Roundtree plays John Shaft, a bad mutha-shut-yo-mouth private detective working the city streets just trying to get by. Shaft finds himself working for an underworld gangster named Bumpy Jonas (Gunn) to find his daughter who has been kidnapped by one of his rivals. As Shaft continues to search for the missing woman, he finds himself teaming up with some unsavory individuals as he gets drawn deeper and deeper into a fight between two feuding syndicates, while taking just enough time to himself to get just a little bit of action on the side, ya dig? He plays it cool, as only one man can, and along the way proves exactly why Shaft is billed as “Hotter than Bond, Cooler than Bullitt.”

The DVD has a couple of special features worth noting on it. In addition to the much hyped Interactive Menu and Multiple Language Tracks, they also have 3 of the original theatrical trailers on the disc, as well as a behind-the-scenes featurette entitled Soul In Cinema: Filming Shaft On Location. Nothing spectacular to write home about, but how much can you expect from a 30 year old film, right?

This has been without a doubt one of my favorite movies since my Freshman year of college 8 years ago. It was my first real introduction to Blaxploitation films, which would go on to become one of my all-time favorite genres. Richard Roundtree does an absolutely amazing job bringing Tidyman’s Shaft character to life, and really personifies much of the black film movement of that time. Sound clips from this movie make their way into all sorts of things even today, which is a testament to the longevity of this film, and the characters it introduced to the world. The best word I can think of to describe this film is Badass, and if you haven’t seen this classic piece of cinematic history, the Dream Master commands you to get up off your lazy ass and check this one out! Official Movie Bar Score: Classic! Solid!