sâmbătă, 31 martie 2018

Shaft, based on the novel by Ernest Tidyman


Shaft, based on the novel by Ernest Tidyman


Shaft was surely a cornerstone, one of the first films to promote and celebrate an African American hero, an actor in a leading role that was nominated for a Golden globe for Most Promising Newcomer- Male.

The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made list has included this appreciated, groundbreaking film:

Yet, even if Samuel L. Jackson has started in a re-make and seems to be intent on making another soon, one may wonder what is so special about this detective, crime thriller.
Maybe this should be repeated: it certainly opened some roads- even today, minorities are not well represented: African Americans and other groups are seldom given preeminence, the actors are not awarded, sometimes even nominated; women are paid much less than men- the recent case of All the Money in the World and the huge gap between the co-stars, Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg, made headlines.

It is also very possible that Shaft was one of the first to present what is now such a familiar story, audiences having seen so many similar narratives that looking at this they would be tempted to say that they know this, they have seen this before, only this déjà vu feeling is experienced because others have travelled on the road opened by Shaft.
For whatever reason, one could wonder why this is among the best 1,000 Movies Ever Made.

John Shaft is different and part in that he is an African American private investigator and we do not really see many- if any (?)- of those on the big screen, or in literature for that matter, given the aforementioned scarcity of black heroes in general and the now destroyed prejudice- actually it seems a racist statement- that productions with black stars do not sell well- Black Panther broke records and annihilated that premise.
The hero is smart, socially intelligent, brave, honest, kind, persistent, wise, curios, creative, has perspective and he is engaged in a difficult and challenging task, to try and save a young woman.

Bumpy Jonas is one of the leaders of the underworld, involved in all sorts of illegal activities that bring not just the antipathy, but the hatred and the wrath of competitors who want to eliminate him or, at the very least, kill his business and take over territory and profits.
This gangster is looking for Shaft in a vicious manner, sending two hatchet men after him, when a fight breaks out; one of the bandits is going through the window of the higher floor and lands on the pavement, killed.

The police are taking Shaft at the station to interrogate him and press the witness and the suspect into confessing or at least testifying and informing the law about who the other man was and what happened.
The private detective is not a “rat” and he knows the law very well, the details that are needed for a case to stand in court, evidence that he did something wrong and that he can sue, if they take away his license and livelihood in the process.

When Shaft meets with Bumpy, there is a confrontation with the thugs that are keeping the gate and have to search all those entering to see the Big Man, to make sure that they carry no weapons.
Bumpy has a first version, in which he says that his daughter had been kidnapped, he has multiple enemies and they should come to confront him, not the innocent child who had had no role in the wars over territory and illegal business developments and the gang leader wants the African American investigator to search for and find his daughter.

In order to do that, Shaft is asking his connections and has to trace Ben Buford- when they finally face each other, a shooting spree erupts and they all have to run for cover, while five of Buford’s men are killed and this leader of Black Nationals has to find refuge- that he at first refuses vehemently- with the detective.
Shaft finds that Bumpy was behind this attack and furthermore, his client had lied- that is he did not give the investigator the information he dad, deceiving by omission-and actually knew who was behind the kidnapping- the mafia, which wanted to push him out and force his hand.

In order to defeat the powerful white criminal organization, John Shaft arranges for Bumpy and Ben Buford to work together in what looks like a race war, on the one side the Italian organized crime and on the other an outré alliance between otherwise antagonistic African American groups.

It is not at all easy, the operation requires wisdom, courage, brilliance, self-sacrifice, dedication, tactical thinking, astuteness and a good deal of good luck, as shootings and firearm use are not just likely, but only to be expected- indeed, they do happen.
What is different in all this?

The race of the protagonists- very rarely do we see this prominence of Black Power, the arrangement of the various clashing groups, amusing elements and yet, the final production still lacks some sophistication, refined achievement.



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