Cast:
Lawrence Cook (Dan Freeman), Janet League (Joy), Paula Kelly (Dahomey Queen), J. A. Preston (Dawson), Paul Butler (Dean "Do-Daddy Dean"), Don Blakely ("Stud" Davis), David Lemieux (Willie "Pretty Willie"), Jack Aaron (Carstairs), Joseph Mascolo (Senator Hennington), Elaine Aiken (Mrs. Hennington), Beverly Gill (Willa), Bob Hill (Calhoun), and Martin Golar (Perkins) Directed by Ivan Dixon.
Review:
In the end, some movies are just star-crossed. Ivan Dixon made only two films as a director, and this was the last one. Trouble Man (1972), a blaxploitation thriller, had been his debut feature after having started acting in the 1950s, where he worked it theater, television, and film. He is best known for his role in the film Nothing But a Man (1964) and his role in the TV series Hogan's Heroes (1965-70). From 1970 until his retirement in 1993, he would serve as a television director for a number of television shows; he died in 2008 at the age of 76. The film is adapted from the 1969 novel of the same name by Sam Greenlee. The Chicago native had studied political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison before serving as an officer in both the United States Army and the United States Information Agency (1957-1965) before quitting to dedicate his time to writing. However, with this book, he went through a bit of trouble in getting the book published (he described the experiences in the USIA as identical to the ones depicted to the main character in his book). Apparently, years later he was told by a former FBI recruit that the book was now required reading at the FBI Academy. Greenlee believed that the film was pulled from theaters shortly after its release as a suppression by the FBI (United Artists did not exactly take kindly to it either as distributor); he wrote one further novel before spending time around the world along with teaching screenwriting and talk-radio before his death in 2014 at the age of 84. He lived long enough to see the film finally get a proper release on home video, since it did not receive a release on home video (DVD) until 2004, for which one can thank Tim Reid for finding the negative (packed under a false name by Dixon). Even finding a location to film was a trouble, since the novel was set in Chicago, Illinois, which at that time had Richard J. Daley as Mayor, five years removed from his dubious attempt at presenting the city as a shining achievement with the 1968 Democratic National Convention (incidentally, only his son would exceed his 21-year run as mayor, complete with allegations of corruption just like his father), so Gary, Indiana was chosen for filming. One might be curious about the meaning of "spook", and it is a slang word for espionage alongside a racial slur. The film was written by Melvin Clay and Sam Greenlee while Herbie Hancock (a famed jazz pianist) provided the music.
Keep in mind, Greenlee wanted to show a message of how urban guerilla warfare could be utilized to protect black communities. In fact, most of the $1 million budget would come from black investors. Dixon would only direct one other film before he retired from filmmaking, but he was proud about the film for expressing everything he felt about race. It is a strange thing that this film did not become more popular in a decade when Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song (1971), a film lauded by the Black Panthers as the "first truly revolutionary Black film made" was allowed to flourish (incidentally, that film was rated X while this was given a PG rating). Of course, one may be able to make a film about militancy but making one with anti-establishment ideals to go with that...is not as easy; of course, a television adaptation of the book is planned for release, so there is that. I applaud the efforts of Dixon when it comes to making a fascinating and provocative film in the power of community that strikes with careful precision in building its radical foundation without becoming a pastiche of cliches with easy outs (i.e. it is quite diverting without becoming melodrama-orama). As it would stand, this ended up being the most notable film credit for Cook amidst a handful of film roles. He does quite well in terms in pressurized charm that works the tight rope of determination and restraint. Kelly proves the curiosity in a role that is present for just the start and near-climax, which results in quality moments with Cook (League on the other hand is there to show just what one is missing in chemistry between two adults). Preston is the authority figure destined for conflict that we know is inevitable, but it doesn't make his scenes with Cook any less engaging, since they make a quality pair between the parallels in friends with distinct beliefs. The movie hits most of its marks when it comes to carefully planned moments of satire with regards to the reaction to hypocrisy in the name of affirming action by white people. Of course, the film presents the best way to get back at the system by turning it into a guerilla nightmare, one not just based on hatred for white people (as mentioned in one scene with Cook and Lemieux, who is utilized as "white-passing" member of their group for propaganda). The 102-minute run-time is efficient enough without becoming outright fantasy while having a punching end-sequence to go with it. As a whole, movies like this deserve a look because of just what manages to land in terms of impact in terms of viewpoints and execution, particularly ones that did not get a fair shake back in its day. Nearly a half-century, one can see where we have moved from in the 1970s and where we still have to go in the 2020s when it comes to what it means to be free.
Overall, I give it 9 out of 10 stars.
Next Time: The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars & Motor Kings (1976)
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