Thomasine & Bushrod

Thomasine & Bushrod (1974) is a movie I recently watched on Tubi. The storyline for this picture follows a man who does his best to make ends meet until his former lover returns to town and challenges him to get a house, picket fence and some land to raise children. They decide the best way to do that is become notorious bank robbers. Will their lifestyle end in dreams coming true or go down in a blaze of glory?

This movie is directed by Gordon Parks Jr. (Super Fly) and stars Max Julien (The Mack), Vonetta McGee (Repo Man), George Murdock (Orange County), Glynn Turman (Super 8) and Herb Robins (The Funhouse).

This is a very well done character piece that contains a worthwhile storyline that is entertaining to watch unfold. The movie does a good job of depicting racism from this era. Some of the kill special effects were dated but the shootouts were fun. The car references and scenes in this are well done and the elements of hope were feel good moments; however, the ending felt very realistic and concludes this picture perfectly.

Overall this is a very unique addition to the western genre that is definitely worth your time. I would score this a 7.5/10 and strongly recommend it.

Max Julian probably got this screenplay of his produced because of his success in "The Mack" the previous year, though the studio seems to have still had some reluctance because it was obviously made with a limited budget. Julian himself doesn't help things; he gives a really bland performance here, enough so that it may explain why he didn't act again in a motion picture for more than 20 years later! Vonetta McGee shows talent, though she never really gets to break out, even though the screenplay focuses much more on her character than Julian's. Perhaps she was beaten down by the drab storyline; there's not much exciting or really interesting here. Possibly it was originally even more long and dull, since the movie seems to have been extensively reworked in the editing room (take that long sepia-colored montage sequence, for example.) Pretty unmemorable - goes to show it's not always music rights that have prevented a video or DVD release of a movie.

This movie is very dated. It is so corny that we found ourselves laughing at the attempts to be "cool". The worst scene was when the couple played in a muddy river I expected to see them running through a grassy field in slow motion next. There isn't any resemblance to Bonny and Clyde except for the fact Thomasine is a female and Bushrod is a male. You might enjoy watching it as an example of the use of stereotypes in a movie or as a lesson in cinematic history. The photography was better than the rest of the movie.

I saw the movie when it originally came out in 1974, and it was very entertaining. I can't believe it is not available for purchase. I know Max Julien wrote and produced it, but where's the movie? Max if you read this, please make this movie available. (not enough lines) repeat.... saw the movie when it originally came out in 1974, and it was very entertaining. I can't believe it is not available for purchase. I know Max Julien wrote and produced it, but where's the movie? Max if you read this, please make this movie available.

saw the movie when it originally came out in 1974, and it was very entertaining. I can't believe it is not available for purchase. I know Max Julien wrote and produced it, but where's the movie? Max if you read this, please make this movie available.

Amazing how you can see a movie, not think of it for a decade or even 2, but then remember some parts. The ending was so special and I called it right before it happened making me think I saw it years ago. My claim that it is blaxploitation comes in way of looking at the clown white sheriff and looking at how our 2 heroes can ride in a car that goes 4 miles per hour and escape all bullets as if mythical characters, a trademark of blaxploitation super hero films. Even though Glenn Thurman is in this one, the film would have had a bigger push, following and lasting impact had a James Earl Jones or Rosie Grier been secured in the lead role. As it stands, the actors involved did an admirable job.