Dopo aver salvato una Pantera Nera da alcuni poliziotti razzisti, un prostituto maschio di colore fugge da «quell'uomo» con l'aiuto della comunità del ghetto e di alcuni Hells Angels disillu... Leggi tuttoDopo aver salvato una Pantera Nera da alcuni poliziotti razzisti, un prostituto maschio di colore fugge da «quell'uomo» con l'aiuto della comunità del ghetto e di alcuni Hells Angels disillusi.Dopo aver salvato una Pantera Nera da alcuni poliziotti razzisti, un prostituto maschio di colore fugge da «quell'uomo» con l'aiuto della comunità del ghetto e di alcuni Hells Angels disillusi.
- Regia
- Sceneggiatura
- Star
- Premi
- 1 vittoria in totale
- Sweetback - Kid
- (as Mario Peebles)
- Kid
- (as Megan Peebles)
Recensioni in evidenza
** (out of 4)
Male prostitute Sweetback (Melvin Van Peebles) gets tired of seeing a black man getting beaten by two white cops so he kills the cops. Sweetback takes off trying to evade the police who are hot on his trail.
Thanks to its classic title and the fact that it's a historically important film, SWEET SWEETBACK'S BAADASSSSS SONG has become somewhat of a folk/cult movie. There's no question that the film was a very important one for black cinema because it kick-started the blaxploitation genre but it also showed a different type of black man on the screen. White audiences were used to seeing Sidney Poitier and his kindness but none of that was to be seen with this film.
Instead of taking it from the man, Sweetback decided to give it to the man and kill any white person who tried to hold him back. I'm sure a lot of people would watch this film today and call it all sorts of things but I think it's important that people realize that this was released just a few years after black people were still being beaten by the police and had water hoses turned on them. There's no question that Melvin Van Peebles broke all sorts of new ground and he deserves a lot of credit delivering this type of movie.
With that said, there's still no question that the film itself isn't all that good. Basically we get a 97-minute running film where we see the hero bang several women, kill a few others and then he runs around the entire time. There's no question that the low-budget actually works for the film but at the same time everything is extremely slow and rather boring as well. Van Peebles is good in the role. He's given very little dialogue but that look tells you everything you need to know.
SWEET SWEETBACK'S BAADASSSSS SONG isn't a masterpiece but it deserves to be called a classic since it did break through so many new levels.
Thankfully, the mood of the film is positive enough that its deliriously illogical plot actually works in its favour. Greasy kid Mario van Peebles (minus the "van" here) is transformed into strapping man Melvin van Peebles in a meaningful encounter with a hooker, and you can buy it. On-the-lam hero Sweetback is challenged to a duel by bikers, and nobody so much as blinks when he suggests that it should be a duel of sexual prowess... hell, they don't even seem to care that he doesn't need to move in order to drive his women wild. He's even brought back from the dead by the chorused voices of The Black Community, and it all sort of makes sense, kind of.
In fact, it isn't until the very last shot of the movie, when you realize that 90 minutes and change have built up to... well, nothing much, really, except maybe a shred of belief in the power of an act of will, and perhaps the promise of a sequel, that you feel like taking the movie to task for its gaping technical flaws again. Even then, it's made so earnestly that I don't really have the heart to slag it for its ineptly-blocked camerawork and dreadful acting. I've seen much worse from filmmakers who weren't trying to change the world by giving a damn, so instead I'll talk it up by calling it the spiritual ancestor of the basketball-teleportation ending to He Got Game, and pretty much everything in The Matrix, too. That it was largely the work of one hugely inspired guy makes it all the cooler, so struggling filmmakers, take note! As long as you crib your technique from other places, Sweet Sweetback's Baad Asssss Song should be an inspiration to you.
Lo sapevi?
- QuizMelvin Van Peebles contracted gonorrhea from one of the actresses during filming of one of the sex scenes in the movie. He applied for compensation from the Directors Guild because he "got hurt on the job" and used the money to buy more film.
- BlooperThe fire truck that appeared at the end of the car explosion was not originally supposed to appear. Due to a permit still not filed, the fire department was unaware and proceeded to appear unannounced.
- Citazioni
Beetle: Like you gonna have to kinda lay out, stretch out a little while, be real cool. Kinda lay dead. Ol' Beetle'll let you know what's happenin', what's goin' down. You don't have to worry about nothin'. If you need anything, anything at all, brother, just keep the faith in Beetle, ol' Beetle goin' to bring you through, cause this is just a skirmish. You know how the game goes, baby. But you keep the faith in me and you my man. You my favorite man. Can you dig it, baby? Together, you know, maintain. They can't bother you as long as Beetle's with you. Now you go on and hibernate like that ol' bear and don't go nowhere, can you dig it? Yeah? Ha! Mellow. Go out the back door, now. Speed along and don't let nobody know where you at. Let sleeping dogs rest. You dig it, baby? Ha, ha, yeah.
- Curiosità sui creditiAfter the movie a "warning" for the white community appears: "Watch out - a baad assss nigger is coming to collect some dues."
- Versioni alternativeThe 2005 Region 2 DVD release from BFI Video has the opening sex sequences removed. A notice at the beginning of the DVD explains that the scenes were censored "in order to comply with UK law (the Protection of Children Act 1978),"
- ConnessioniFeatured in Sneak Previews: Take 2: Movies That Changed the Movies (1979)
- Colonne sonoreSweetback's Theme
Written by Melvin Van Peebles
Performed by Melvin Van Peebles featuring Earth Wind & Fire
I più visti
- How long is Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song?Powered by Alexa
Dettagli
Botteghino
- Budget
- 500.000 USD (previsto)