BLACK DYNAMITE - Blu-ray review

Nunchucks. Kung fu. Afros. Heroin. Racial stereotypes. Male and female nudity. Laughter. In the mood for a film that blends all these diverse elements together and manages to somehow still be fun? If so, the "Black Dynamite" Blu-ray from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is right up your alley.

This film is part throwback, part satire and all funny. In many ways, it pays homage to the blaxploitation genre that got its start during the 1970s. Like so many before it, "Black Dynamite" features sex, drugs and alcohol as key elements that interconnect its characters and plot. If you factor in the costumes, music and dialogue but deny access to the production year, you might be able to fool an unsuspecting movie watcher. In other regards, it mocks the genre and the somewhat silly platforms its films stood on by injecting moments where the characters look at each other with that, "Uh, this whole things seems pretty ridiculous" facial expression. And then, the laughter. "Black Dynamite" is laugh out loud funny in small doses, and generally pulls at least a chuckle during its brief 84-minute run time.

So, with all that going for it, where are the flaws? Sadly, they come in the performances and the over the top attempts at action and adventure that slow to a rapid halt. We'll get there, though.

Set in 1972, the film opens with a violent mob murder. A Black man is shot dead during a drug deal gone wrong, and when the police show up to tend the scene, the officer who examines the body just about loses it. The violence will escalate, the paranoia will be tangible and the unease will engulf daily life thanks to this crime. Why? Well, because the man killed was not only a CIA agent, but Black Dynamite's (Michael Jai White) brother. And as we soon discover, Black Dynamite is not the sort of man you want to piss off.

As he punches, kicks and brutalizes his way through a dozen or so Asian trainers during a kung fu session, Black Dynamite receives word that his brother is dead. He thinks back to his days in the CIA, and is jogging his brain to unearth who may be behind this crime. Shortly thereafter, O'Leary (Kevin Chapman) pays him a visit. His old partner asks him to come back into the agency to solve this crime, and maybe the heroin epidemic that has overwhelmed the local neighborhoods while he's at it. Black Dynamite accepts, but with one condition: he does the job his way, and his way only.

As he knocks on doors and beats up thugs, Black Dynamite runs over anyone and anything in his way. Some bad guys like Tasty Freeze (Arsenio Hall) and Cream Corn (Tommy Davidson) do their best to obstruct him, but this man is on a mission that takes an interesting turn or two. He meets Gloria (Salli Richardson), an elegant and gorgeous woman who begs him to salvage the local orphanage from a drug called smack. The children are addicted, and Black Dynamite eventually learns that the conspiracy behind the drug is fueled by marketing and selling a popular malt liquor to Black men. This particular brand has a side effect that renders a man's manhood less lengthy than he'd prefer. Furious and enraged, he hunts down the Fiendish Dr. Wu (Roger Yuan) and demands answers. Black Dynamite traces the plot to the top of the United States Government, and eventually gets into a climactic fistfight with President Richard Nixon (James McManus) before he achieves his own personal justice.

Mixed in with the plot and events above is a bundle of goodies, including blaring funk and disco music with a reggae influence, outlandishly detailed costumes, some really intense hair styles (not to mention the sideburns) and a desire for vengeance. The filmmakers apparently filled in some gaps with actual footage from other blaxploitation films made decades ago, thereby enhancing the desired authenticity. And the humor is, while often outlandish and frequently beyond belief, pretty decent. The scene where Black Dynamite and his entourage manage to figure out how to track down the scheme plaguing their community is particularly memorable, and features references to popular culture and Greek mythology.

What bugged me most was how the performances work so hard to be overdone, and exude that sentiment without any tact. Original blaxploitation films were supposed to be rich with farce, and the acting played a major role in making that element seep through. "Black Dynamite" is no exception, but its characters seem to display how hard they are trying just a bit too much, and it is visible enough to impact the viewing experience. The authenticity they desire is indirectly impacted during this process, which is too bad because I otherwise enjoyed the film as a whole.

On top of this are the action scenes, which are clearly staged and choreographed despite the actors doing their best to make them look impromptu. To compensate for this, there is music, weapons and noise. Don't be fooled.

When "Black Dynamite" arrived, I anticipated my review would comment on the racial stereotypes the film displays. Instead, I noticed the film, and most other blaxploitations, actually wants to mock those stereotypes. They do so in a way that works because it is methodical and creative rather than analytical, and that was a welcomed change. Don't anticipate "Black Dynamite" to provide any citations on the research that went into it. Instead, try to enjoy the fact that it recognizes there is some truth in all stereotypes, but combats that mentality by employing aggressively artistic and overdone extremes that flip this discourse on its head.

Far from earth shattering and equally distant from awfulness, "Black Dynamite" has plenty going its direction, but not enough to make it superb. Still, it helps reintroduce an important and sometimes overlooked film genre that defined a people and a period, not just one of the two.

Video:
Presented in 1080p High Definition and an original theatrical 1.85:1 video transfer, "Black Dynamite" is an interesting looking piece on Blu-ray. At certain times, its picture is grainy and unrefined, but that is clearly intentional, emphasizing the throwback element the filmmakers wanted to reach. At other moments, the characters and their well-done costumes are crisp and pop with a natural vibe that I appreciated greatly. I mostly remembered how well the colors appear regardless of the moment during the film, and that goes for both brights and darks. Sets and costumes are artistically creative, and you'll understand what that means quite thoroughly thanks to the video.

Audio:
Everything does its job very well in the film's English 5.1 DTS-High Definition Master Audio soundtrack. Expect some 1970s disco and funk tunes to come through loudly during "Black Dynamite," and those are complimented with easy to pick up dialogue mixed among natural background noises, including explosions, car accidents and over the top laughter. There is specific balance incorporated, and nothing really overwhelms anything else when it comes to the audio. The music is most memorable, however, thanks in large part to Music Supervisor David Hollander. Subtitles can be selected in English and French.

Extras:
A healthy offering to choose from here, including audio commentary with some filmmakers and players, a behind-the-scenes/making-of featurette, some deleted and alternate scenes and a look at the film's publicity during the annual Comic-Con gathering. You can also play around with a Blu-ray exclusive titled "The ‘70s: Back in Action" via movieIQ and BD Live. The audio commentary is humorous and also pokes into how the filmmakers used elements from similar films to make this one look and feel authentic.

A Final Word:
As much as I enjoyed "Black Dynamite," I cannot give it as high a rank as I would prefer. Sure, it's funny and entertaining, but it also doesn't do anything new or adventurous for this genre that it has not seen prior. The script is creative but not necessarily inventive, although the general silliness is pleasant to experience. If you can spare the time, I imagine it will make you laugh more than once.