Cleópatra Jones e o Cassino de Ouro

'Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold' is even more enjoyable than 'Cleopatra Jones' (if such a thing is possible!), because it realizes that the best thing about the first movie was its sense of fantasy. The sequel doesn't even attempt to be realistic or socially aware, it goes for trashy Bond-like entertainment, and is all the better for it.

Special Agent Cleopatra Jones (the beautiful Tamara Dobson) arrives in Hong Kong after the disappearance of her friends the Johnson brothers (the always amusing Albert Popwell and Caro Kenyatta) in a drug sting gone wrong. She befriends a local street smart girl Mi Ling (Tanny) who helps her track them down. All paths lead to The Dragon Lady (Stella Stevens).

In the first movie Cleo's nemesis Momma was played by Shelley Winters, a drug pushing lesbian. In this movie it's Winters' 'Poseidon Adventure' co-star Stevens, again a drug pushing lesbian. What's up with that? I don't know, but The Dragon Lady beats Momma at her own game, she also runs a gold casino in Macao, has foxier girlfriends, and is pretty nifty with a sword.

This is fantastically entertaining silliness. Cleopatra wears her usual outrageous outfits, talks tough, kicks ass, and never runs out of wise-cracks or loses her cool. The relocation to Hong Kong and the ensuing increase in martial arts is a good thing. Don't ignore this movie if you're a fan of blaxploitation, 'Enter The Dragon' or James Bond. Great fun!

I was not a big fan of "Cleopatra Jones" and think it's one of the weaker examples of blaxploitation. Why? Because the leading character is sort of a 'Mary Sue'. This is a character who is too perfect...with no apparent weaknesses and simply too good to be true. In this film, Cleo is a master secret agent, expert at martial arts and is seemingly impossible to kill. She also is amazingly squeaky clean and instead of the usual anti-establishment black hero, this one is working for and supporting the System. As such, it seems like blaxploitation in name only. Why the studio thought this film deserved a sequel is beyond me. Now I am NOT against sequels. For example, I liked "Shaft" and it's sequels. I just don't understand a sequel to a mediocre (at best) movie.

"Cleopatra Jones and the Casino of Gold" begins with some undercover men in Hong Kong trying to buy drugs off a Chinese gang run by The Dragon Lady. But they soon disappear and no one can locate them. Cleo flies to Hong Kong to find them because she's so nice AND the men are her childhood friends.

Despite my disliking the first movie, I was totally shocked when I found I liked this sequel. I still don't feel like it's exactly blaxploitation, but it's a decent spy/martial arts film. Much of it is the nice location shoot in Asia and much of it is because the entire film does NOT rest on Cleopatra Jones. Instead, she has a lot of help...particularly from Mi Ling whose martial arts skills are much better than Cleopatra's (which isn't saying much).

Now I am also NOT saying it's a great film...more like silly escapism you can enjoy as long as you don't think to much! For example, the big gun battle in the casino...well, it's enjoyable but utterly ridiculous!

By the way, apart from Frankenstein, the Wolfman and a few other movie monsters, has anyone worn MORE makeup in a movie than Ms. Dobson as Cleopatra?! I really don't think so!

In some ways, you could be forgiven for considering this one only a borderline example of blaxploitation. It certainly isn't an exploitation film in any way and plays more like a standard secret agent action movie, where the heroine just happened to be black. The previous Cleopatra Jones film was another which was a little more family-friendly so-to-speak, with less salacious content than was normal for the genre and establishment friendly narcotic agent heroine, yet it still had Cleopatra kicking about the streets of L. A. knocking drug peddlers about. In this one, like in jet-setting action movies such as the James Bond series - the action is wholly switched to an exotic location, in this case Hong Kong. Of course, that allows the film to tap into the then massively popular kung-fu film craze. Two undercover agents go missing in Hong Kong and a female drug queen is thought to be responsible - Cleopatra Jones is sent over to sort it out.

It has to be said that this is an inferior sequel, with Cleopatra taking too much of a backseat, with the Hong Kong angle amplified at her expense. Its not to the films advantage, as the title character is the star attraction here and its her we want to see more than anything. It also feels like the blaxploitation element has been too diluted in general, which is hardly too surprising given the location. Statuesque Tamara Dobson is still a good presence here, with Stella Stevens doing some good things as the evil female gang boss role, covered by Shelley Winters in the previous movie. But mainly this one is too much of a generic action romp and it does lose the off-the-wall element which makes the best blaxploitation films so enjoyable.

Follow-up to 1973's far better "Cleopatra Jones" has statuesque black actress Tamara Dobson returning to her signature role as chic, super-tough narcotics agent, here busting a heroin ring in Hong Kong. Cross-pollination of blaxploitation action-flick and kung-fu B-movie is fun at the outset but eventually flags. The shoot-out finale is right off the assembly-line, and Dobson herself seems less energetic than before (she's still sexy, and she puts a unique spin on her comically-stilted dialogue, but these surroundings may have been too much of one thing for her--she's jaded). Stella Stevens plays the villainess this time; she's good, but can't match Shelley Winters in the predecessor. ** from ****

In CLEOPATRA JONES AND THE CASINO OF GOLD, Tamara Dobson is back in the title role. This time, Cleo's in Hong Kong, where she's been brought in to bring down the drug empire of the Dragon Lady (Stella Stevens) and her army of kung fu cohorts. With her new partner, Tanny (Ni Tien), at her side, the duo kick, chop, punch, and shoot their way through the HK underworld.

Ms. Dobson fills her character with grace and attitude, making her an imposing figure. Ni Tien adds some extra vigor, especially during her big fight sequences. Ms. Stevens plays up her sadistic role well, coming across as menacing and ruthless. This sequel is arguably better than the original film, making the best of its new location and utilizing some excellent chase scenes.

This all culminates in a memorable, rip-roaring, final confrontation...