A very feeble attempt at affirmatie action
... View MoreExcellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.
... View MoreThere are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.
... View MoreThe story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.
... View MoreHaving previously wrote and produced Boss N!gger-which I highly enjoyed-here Fred Williamson adds director to his resume. Unfortunately, unlike the work I just mentioned, Adios Amigo is more of a mess narratively with Fred a frequent fall guy for Richard Pryor's con games that aren't very funny with Richard's lines mostly improvised. I half thought when Pryor's character would encounter an old man named Noah (Thalmus Rasulala in convincing aging makeup) and his nubile young women that there might be some raunchy humor but results there and pretty much the rest of the picture was tepid at best. Another disappointment was the mention in the credits of The Ink Spots making an appearance but they don't sing here just do some steps and finger snappin' or that's what it looked like to me. Really, I just can't recommend Adios Amigo.
... View MoreThis is basically a series of vignettes with escaped prisoner Fred Williamson following conman/bandit Richard Pryor across the old west (Why?) and becoming the foil of Pryor's comedic schemes, after which he always takes off, leaving Williamson holding the bag.Though not really funny in a laugh-out-loud kind of way, it's all pretty laid back and easygoing, with Williamson and Pryor fairly likable, making this entertaining for awhile.About halfway through though, it starts to get a bit tedious, with a "plot" that's way too fluid and a budget that's too low to make this something I'd recommend to people who aren't already huge fans of the two stars.The worse things about this are the repetitive use of the corny funk theme song and the fact that the legendary vocal group The Ink Spots make an appearance but aren't given a chance to sing.
... View MoreFred Williamson plays a man who is set up and busted by racist town officials and sent to jail, on the way to jail his stagecoach is held up by a crazy thief (Pryor). Pryor leaves him and soon they cross paths again and this time Pryor ends up getting him in a fight while he runs off with the loot. Soon they cross paths again, and then again, and again and Fred knows every time he sees Pryor its going to mean bad news for him. Pryor is all about getting the money and saving his own skin and loves knowing he now has a fall guy. By the movies end half of Texas is after them.The movie was simply not funny. I love Pryor, but this is not his best work, although he did ad-lib a lot of stuff. One scene where he pretends to be a real estate agent was rather funny, but it was a weak laugh.Fred Williamson wrote, produced and directed this film and he didn't offer anything in either..The direction was OK, the production wasn't bad as a whole, but left a lot to be desired and the writing was horrible. His acting was okay though, he does some good stuff from time to time.I hated the stupid theme song and it got played every 5 minutes here, followed by an animated picture - it got old quick.This movie was rather boring and neither funny or pleasing to western fans...avoid at all cost, even if you love these heavyweights. 1/10 stars.
... View MoreThe ever-solid and charming Fred "the Hammer" Williamson stars as a rugged itinerant gunslinger who becomes the reluctant constant patsy for slick'n'shrewd con man Richard Pryor. The crafty duo experience a series of goofy misadventures in the Old West in this amiably inane and inconsequential piece of low-budget blaxploitation sagebrush fluff. Competently directed by Williamson (who also wrote the slight, but witty script), the rambling narrative saunters along at a pleasingly relaxed rate, the tone remains pleasant and playful throughout, and there's a winningly breezy'n'easy chemistry between the two leads, with Williamson engagingly playing the long-suffering straight man to Pryor's smartaleck joker. Moreover, Williamson stages the expected rough'n'tumble fisticuffs, heated shoot-outs, a daring jailbreak and frantic horseback chase sequences with a reasonable amount of skill and brio. Popping up in nifty supporting parts are Thalmus ("Blacula," "Cool Breeze") Rasulala as a rascally old coot with two hot daughters and former Tarzan Mike Henry as a dumb, ornery cuss. Both Luchi ("Friday Foster") De Jesus' cool soulful score and especially the funky R&B theme song really hit the groovy spot. Granted, "Blazing Saddles" this picture sure ain't, but it's a satisfyingly lightweight and good-natured diversion just the same.
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