The Slams

This film begins with a robbery. It's a nasty affair--as they use poisonous gas to get the money. After leaving with the loot, one of them Curtis Hook (Jim Brown), betrays his partners--shooting them and hiding the money. Unfortunately for Hook, he's soon caught and sent to prison. Hook plans on just doing his time on a minor charge and collecting the money after he is released. But when he learns that the place where he hid the money is about to be demolished, he decides he must escape and reclaim the money instead. Plus, if he doesn't get out of the slammer soon, someone is bound to kill him, as practically EVERYONE seems to have it out for him.

For fans of old-time TV, this is an interesting film, as two of the most deadly tough guys in this prison are played by Frank DeKova ("F-Troop") and Ted Cassidy ("The Addams Family"). However, it's not the sort of film you might expect from these guys---it is VERY rough--with foul language and lots of violence. Plus, EVERYONE seems bad in this one--everyone. While Hook is terrifically amoral, so is everyone else--the guards, the gangs, the blacks and the whites. Because of this and because Hook is affiliated with no one, it is clearly NOT a blacksploitation film--just a very gritty prison flick. While it's not a great film (mostly because I hated EVERYONE), it was very good and well worth seeing.

A robbery crew steals drugs and money from criminals. Curtis X. Hook (Jim Brown) beats his comrades to the double-cross and is the final survivor. He dumps the drugs and hides the money in an abandoned dock. He gets locked in prison and has to deal with many different sides. It's black against white. Others want him to work for them. Everyone who knows about the money wants it.

I'm not sure if this is considered blaxploitation. It's produced by Gene Corman, brother of B-movie legend Roger Corman. Blaxploitation is intended for a black audience. This is a more general B-movie. Legendary football player Jim Brown is not that great as an actor. He has some natural charisma and his size gives him just enough command. His amiability makes him a functional lead. This is undeniably a B-movie and it's a functional one.

A year before directing Isaac Hayes in the violent yet breezy blaxploitation TRUCK TURNER, director Jonathan Kaplan put Jim Brown in prison for a more sparse and serious THE SLAMS, mostly taking place behind bars, and without relying on melodramatic prison tropes, since everything that goes down... from bullies to shiv-fights to mean guards... is tightly connected to the plot...

Where Jim Brown, an idealistic criminal from a groovy heist prologue, stole and hid loot from the mob, and, once in prison, a locked-up gangster hires gigantic convict Jack Cassady to attempt getting the formidable Brown to confess...

Making the more cerebral than physical, fast-talking prison captain Roland Bob Harris a far more effective villain (better than a typical tyrannical warden or henchman guard), connecting to Brown's newscaster girlfriend Judy Pace while working with pimp Paul Harris (also a pimp in TURNER), to either locate the money or plan a mutual escape...

And while the predictably safe and self-contained Jim Brown's tough enough from any interior adversary, Jonathan Kaplan's creative 70's-style direction keeps the suspense on par with the non-stop action.

Despite having a lead actor who was one of the prominent actors in the 1970s blaxploiation film genre, "The Slams" has been all but forgotten since its theatrical release, not even getting a release on VHS or DVD. Watching the movie, it becomes pretty easy to figure out why no one has been clamoring for its resurrection. Even for 1973, I am sure audiences found nothing really that original here. Every plot turn will be familiar to people who have seen their share of prison films or prison television shows. As a result, there is no excitement, even though there are plenty of prison beatings and fisticuffs along the way. Jim Brown tries, but there is little he can do with such a flat script. Recommended only for die hard fans of the blaxploitation genre.

Jim Brown was such a stud. Retired as the NFL's all-time leading rusher, falling short of 1,000 yds/season only twice in 9 years and both times only barely. And that was back when they only played 12 (and then 14) game seasons.

He quit after one of his best seasons (and was named NFL MVP for the 3rd time) and headed to Hollywood. Everybody knows he was Jackson in The Dirty Dozen. But how many people have seen this little gem?

Heist goes wrong. Accomplices die but Brown manages to escape long enough to hide the loot before getting arrested and landing in jail. There rest is prison-drama fun between the whites, the blacks, the corrupt prison captain and the jailed mafioso. There are a bunch of good fights and some really good performances. It all climaxes in a clever escape attempt, which isn't a spoiler because Brown is hatching it from the get-go.

Doesn't make any big statements, but it sure is fun.