Highly Overrated But Still Good

I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Blistering performances.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

John Shaft (Richard Roundtree) is a street smart private detective. Gangsters are looking for him and he throws one out the window. Bumpy (Moses Gunn) is after him. Friendly cop Vic Androzzi gives him 48 hours before bringing him back in. Bumpy's daughter has been kidnapped and he hires Shaft to find her. His first lead is Ben Buford but he doesn't seem to know anything about it and his gang is massacred. Ben and Shaft escape. Vic tells Shaft that outsider muscle have gathered in town. The white Mafia is going to war with Bumpy which could spark a race war.What a great song! As a blaxploitation, the story isn't half bad. It puts race front and center without the noble black man trope. It is violent. It's not exactly realistic. It is a stylized hard-boiled detective story in a black world. It is low budget action. There is quite a bit of filler. The pacing does have the 70s meandering quality. It makes up for it with a lot of attitude. That's what Roundtree brings. The man exudes attitude. It's also cool to see the gritty 70s NYC streets.

I can understand why modern viewers aren't too impressed with „Shaft". Compared to modern action movies there isn't really much action here and it isn't anything spectacular – no huge shootouts , kung fu fights , big explosions , car chases and so on. There is lot of dialogue and the pacing is rather slow.You know what ? Those are the reasons why I really like "Shaft" . It feels like a REAL LIFE story . Not every movie has to be an over the top spectacle for simple minded audience. For me less is more . I can hardly care for action hero when he's doing impossible stuff like jumping over the missile with a truck. Here the danger feels real . There is no villain . A simple bad guy with a gun can end your life and you have to be very careful . Shaft uses his muscles only when necessary . He prefers to outsmart his enemy , because violence can lead you as far. When he's fighting for life , you FEEL that he's fighting for life.The movie captures the gritty atmosphere of 70's New York City . In this world everybody is walking a thin line between law and law of street . I also like that Shaft is a detective and the investigation actually plays important part through whole movie . Not to mention that characters here feel like they could exist in real life.Richard Roundtree is great as the charming bad ass Shaft who is one foot in the world of black people and the other foot in the world of white people. He easily dominates the whole movie with his tough , confident and wise cracking personality. Women , both black and white are attracted to him (We get to see naked women – something you can't see in action movies anymore). The other actors give him solid support. I liked Charles Cioffi as Vic Androzzi and Moses Gunn as Bumpy.The movie is worth watching for the delightful dialogue. Believe me – there is more tension in a scene when Shaft talks to Bumpy than in many car chases. The movie is very dialogue heavy , yet it's a true pleasure to listen how characters talk with each other . Most of the dialogue is quite humorous . You should prepare pen and paper to note .The action scenes are nicely photographed . There is a great title song by Isaac Hayes (it won Oscar) and during the movie you can hear few other nice songs. "Shaft " is mostly entertainment , but it was also an important movie for black people. It's one of those rare movies where the black guy is a hero . The situation now changed , but long time ago it was a breakthrough movie . "Shaft" also captures really good the tension between white and black people back in the 70's.I give it 7/10.

Shaft is not the first Blaxploitation but it is the most accomplished and most memorable. A workaday script is launched into cultural orbit by the charismatic performance of RIchard Roundtree and the unforgettable theme by the late Isaac Hayes. The importance of this movie is not that it was hugely successful (although it was), but that it was produced and performed by a crew and cast that was predominantly black. It proved that there was a significant audience for movies that represented black culture on its own terms and treated the audience with respect. Importantly, Shaft isn't a wholly sympathetic character: Through the prism of the 21st Century he could be construed as both misogynist and racist (see his treatment of the female characters and the portrayal of the Italian mobsters) But he is also loyal, brave resourceful and charming. This complexity is one of the strengths of the movie. The sequels lack the energy of the original and suffer from diminishing marginal returns and Roundtree was never as good again. He didn't need to be, most actors never achieve the level of charisma even once. Nor do they have the chance to create what is a truly iconic role. Samuel L Jackson in the remake certainly failed to. Here's a link to an animated review of this movie. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qqm4f9-xzRY

This early Gordon Parks' film is a first in many ways. In the long list of Black movies which follow, this is the cornerstone. After the success of this film, Black actors became Gris for the Hollywood mill. It was called " Blxploitation " as in the Exploitation of the Black world. The innovative Movie is called " Shaft " and tells the story of John Shaft (Richard Roundtree) a Black Private investigator who is hired by 'Bumpy Jonas' (Moses Gunn) a ranking gangster for the Harlem district. Shaft is wrongly informed Ben Buford, (Christopher St, John) the head of the black underground has kidnapped his daughter. With a New York police detective (Vic Androzzi) Shaft enters the search only to discover the Mafia is involved. The world of John Shaft is dangerous, infested with mounting tensions and violent men. Still, this 'cool' private eye is a match against the elements and the sexy women who he seems to attract. In the annals of movie making this is a first in many ways and Roundtree is excellent in the first of several sequels and other black films which follow. ***