I first heard about JD's Revenge on a TV special called 50 Worst Movies Ever Made (2004) and it made #8. Whatever Ebert camper wrote in to have this quite unique experience 28 places down the pecking order from Ishtar!, hoped that by just showing the trailer and having the obnoxious narrator do a a oh so no care at all description of the plot would be enough to convince people of it's apparent 'awfulness'. The possible hope that viewers would clutch their pearls at the sounds of a black man saying the n word aggressively and mistake an authentic representation of a 40's zoot suit clad black gangster as a then contemporary racial stereotype.
Either the makers of that actually quite high quality list compared to today's IMDb bottom 150 fare failed to recognise the Jekyll and Hyde parallels or got too much caught up in the game and thought being repulsed by intentionally repulsive scenes was a sure sign of bad film making.
Sure it has pacing problems, but what Blaxploitation film doesn't? Apart from Jack Hill's films, but their you go. On the whole though, it was just the style, regardless of the director's colour. From Fanaka to Parks Jr. to Marks here, audience gratification peaked at 40% regarding filmmaking intentions, there were always messages to be had, like the sideshow carnival like exploitation of black church goers for one instance.
J.D's Revenge ain't a popcorn film, but it's sure as hell still a white knuckle ride through sly and subtle racial political commentary and genuine and authentic feeling characters. On top of this, it is also one of the most vividly imaginative screen adaptions of Robert Louis Stevenson's Victorian novella that i can recall seeing since Borowczyk's Dr Jekyll and His Women, and that, is, a feat.
Though i haven't seen it, i doubt even Dr Black and Mr Hyde would be a better blaxploitation retelling of the Gothic classic than this truly overlooked gem.
It's a rough one though. Their's some awkward sex scenes to say the least and JD Walker is as a pure and jive incarnation of evil as I've ever remembered seeing on screen. Rape, incest, razors, it's all him and he takes it in his stride. These elements can be attributed to it's under-appreciated status in Blaxploitation cinema as there is little of the expected 'butt dancing' mentality in this one to quote the titular mean mother. Though admittedly, there is also a Ted V. Miekels atmosphere at times, especially with the ending.
The most striking element of this film and why it hooks you in so is the contrast between law student Issac and the fire breathing JD. Glynn Turman (what a voice) gives an astounding performance as two polar opposite walks of the black experience. Intelligent and compassionate one side, darkly charismatic and demonically energetic the other. It's a tour de force, simply put. Everyone else is given a lot of improv leeway and it surely gives the film a distinctive taste, for better and worse, mostly better though as some of the line deliveries of otherwise overblown dialogue feel loose and organic, which is uncommon in Blaxploitation and exploitation cinema in general.
In conclusion, JD's Revenge is defo a case of one of these is not like the others as it's a tough, mean and surprisingly moral affair that has so many striking elements, it's almost as tough as the film itself not to give it at least one watch. Highly recommended.
Either the makers of that actually quite high quality list compared to today's IMDb bottom 150 fare failed to recognise the Jekyll and Hyde parallels or got too much caught up in the game and thought being repulsed by intentionally repulsive scenes was a sure sign of bad film making.
Sure it has pacing problems, but what Blaxploitation film doesn't? Apart from Jack Hill's films, but their you go. On the whole though, it was just the style, regardless of the director's colour. From Fanaka to Parks Jr. to Marks here, audience gratification peaked at 40% regarding filmmaking intentions, there were always messages to be had, like the sideshow carnival like exploitation of black church goers for one instance.
J.D's Revenge ain't a popcorn film, but it's sure as hell still a white knuckle ride through sly and subtle racial political commentary and genuine and authentic feeling characters. On top of this, it is also one of the most vividly imaginative screen adaptions of Robert Louis Stevenson's Victorian novella that i can recall seeing since Borowczyk's Dr Jekyll and His Women, and that, is, a feat.
Though i haven't seen it, i doubt even Dr Black and Mr Hyde would be a better blaxploitation retelling of the Gothic classic than this truly overlooked gem.
It's a rough one though. Their's some awkward sex scenes to say the least and JD Walker is as a pure and jive incarnation of evil as I've ever remembered seeing on screen. Rape, incest, razors, it's all him and he takes it in his stride. These elements can be attributed to it's under-appreciated status in Blaxploitation cinema as there is little of the expected 'butt dancing' mentality in this one to quote the titular mean mother. Though admittedly, there is also a Ted V. Miekels atmosphere at times, especially with the ending.
The most striking element of this film and why it hooks you in so is the contrast between law student Issac and the fire breathing JD. Glynn Turman (what a voice) gives an astounding performance as two polar opposite walks of the black experience. Intelligent and compassionate one side, darkly charismatic and demonically energetic the other. It's a tour de force, simply put. Everyone else is given a lot of improv leeway and it surely gives the film a distinctive taste, for better and worse, mostly better though as some of the line deliveries of otherwise overblown dialogue feel loose and organic, which is uncommon in Blaxploitation and exploitation cinema in general.
In conclusion, JD's Revenge is defo a case of one of these is not like the others as it's a tough, mean and surprisingly moral affair that has so many striking elements, it's almost as tough as the film itself not to give it at least one watch. Highly recommended.