06/27/06 Foxy Brown

Foxy Brown (1974), directed by Jack Hill

watched w/ Leslie (partially); DVD (personal copy) @ home

Here it is...or perhaps in the words of lanky supporting actor Antonio Fargas (Foxy's brother Link here, and of Huggy Bear fame on TV's "Starsky & Hutch")...What it is?! Mmmm Hmmm, that's right. I ain't jiving you bro, but this is one bad-ass blaxploitation film. The famous Pam Grier stars in the titular role (even though this word means one thing in the dictionary, you better believe she shows what your dirty little mind is thinking in the movie...and it is nice), as she seeks revenge on pretty much everybody she comes across. Forever dealing with her delinquent brother Link and her struggling inner-city neighborhood, Foxy tries to follow the straight-and-narrow path. With the help of her government agent boyfriend, she hopes that the law will serve justice and clean up the town. Unfortunately, her world is shattered when her brother's weakness leads to ratting her boyfriend out & getting him killed by local gangsters. She takes it upon herself to take action by taking down all that are corrupt and violent with sexual cunning, strong female pride and her own brand of vigilante justice. Her aim stretches all boundaries, as she takes on crooked judges, kinky brothel owners, rich bitches, drug dealers and pimps. This role, along with her previous estrogen warrior princess "Coffy" (which this film was originally slated to be a sequel to), solidified powerful female African-American roles in cinema the way films like "Shaft" did for African-American males. This is a gritty, violent, sensational and pervasive film...as it has become a cult-classic of blaxploitation cinema. I'm proud to be the owner of the great DVD box-set "Fox In A Box" (B-day present from my friend Jason), which highlights some of Pam Grier's powerful roles. Everyone should try to see this one, at least to understand the pop-culture awareness that it produces. Plus, Pam Grier is one sexy mama (and born in North Carolina).

4 out of 5 stars