Baadasssss a DVD review by Ryan Ellis June 9, 2005
I feel guilty. Why didn't I go see this terrific movie when it was still playing in theatres? Mario Van Peebles' docu-fiction about his pop, Melvin, and the struggle to bring 'Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song' to the big screen in the early '70s made about 60 bucks in spring 2004. EVERYONE should have lined up and slapped down some dough. 'Baadasssss' is funny, it's exciting, it's a film about filmmaking, it's about the black struggle in America, it's a father/son story, it's a battle-through-adversity fable, and it's ultimately a succeed-against-all-odds triumph.
Melvin's 1971 blaxploitation opus was a genuine trailblazer. Melvin himself plays a cool stud who goes on the run after killing some racist white cops (who were, after all, beating up anotha brotha). Sweetback runs & runs & runs---even more than Harrison Ford did in 'The Fugitive'---and he even survives in the end! Neither 'Shaft' nor 'Coffy' (its direct descendents) made as strong a statement as 'Sweetback'. I didn't always enjoy it, though, possibly because it wasn't made for me. The flick unabashedly shouts to the world that it's for all the brothers and sisters in the black community. Nevertheless, Mario's film tells us that Melvin was just as interested in trying to work with a crew of blacks, whites, Latinos, and women as he was in making a pure Black Power picture. "We're not supposed to be able to get along, let alone work together," he says with conviction.
There are plenty of parallels between Mario's filmmaking experience and Melvin's. Like his old man, Mario insisted on hiring a diverse cast and crew. He wrote (along with Dennis Haggerty), directed, produced, and starred. He struggled to get financing. He shot on some of same locations. He even spliced in some of the footage from 'Sweetback'. What's different about the 2 films is simple---Mario's is better. 'Sweetback' was an in-your-face trend-setter, but I saw it once and that's enough. I will watch and enjoy 'Baadasssss' over & over. Not only was it one of the best pictures of 2004, it's one of the best modern tales about the filmmaking process.
The "docu" part of this docu-fiction feels so real because we know Mario was right there while his dad suffered through the mental, physical, and financial torture of putting this thing together. Khleo Thomas plays Mario as a teenager, Mario plays Melvin, T.K. Carter plays Bill Cosby (a critical financial contributor), and Joy Bryant plays Priscilla (an assistant who desperately wants to be an actress). Character performers such as David Alan Grier, Saul Rubinek, Paul Rodriguez, Ossie Davis, Rainn Wilson, and the luminescent Nia Long have key roles too.
The keyest of the key roles might be Big T (Terry Crews), the audio assistant and head of security. Big T is a giant compared to his crewmates and he's one mean mo-fo. Melvin's movie exists for people like this guy. If the story is about "getting the man's foot outta your ass" (Mario's original title), then the aspiring sound engineer is the one who needs the biggest motivational kick. He's had his own foot up his ass for too long. At the end of the 'Sweetback' production, Big T has turned a corner. You'd want him on your side, not just because he could murder a water buffalo with his bare hands, but because now he knows a trick or two about the filmmaking business.
The head spins with who's playing whom. Proving that most of the major players really did exist, Mario sprinkles testimonials throughout the picture, some from the actual people and some from the actors playing them. The real Cosby, Melvin's agent, his producer, and his many co-workers and friends get some screen time during the end credits. They're all filled with admiration that 'Sweetback' became such a huge hit. They must have had doubts it would ever even be finished. With all that goes on, they didn't always like their leader. Melvin could be a bastard and he did some reprehensible things. Mario, for one, felts the sting more than once (although there's never child abuse or anything as serious as that). The stress burned everybody down to raw nerves. It got so bad for Melvin that he nearly went blind in one eye.
Perhaps what impressed me so much was the subject matter of the movie within the movie. 'Sweetback' was about disenfranchisement. That speaks to everyone, even if the blaxploitation aspects don't. Plus, I'm a sucker for a film about filmmaking, especially one made on a small budget that manages to get the period details so right. This story is set more than 30 years earlier, but 'Baadasssss' feels like a movie straight out of the '70s. It's authentic to the bone.
'Baadasssss', above everything else, is a great entertainment. The family portrait stuff gives it heart, especially since Mario (again, like his dad) used his own kids as actors. The story has a wonderfully emotional ending too. If you care about Melvin and his crew (or Mario and HIS crew), you'll smile when 'Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song'---the movie that everybody thinks will be a bomb---turns into a mega-hit. So let's get out there and buy those 'Baadasssss' DVDs, so Mario can have a hit too.
To collect some dues, write to ryan222@rogers.com or flickershows@hotmail.com
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