Blaxploitation
Blaxploitation is an American film genre that had its heyday in the 1970s. The name is a suitcase word made up of black , the English word for black, and exploitation , the name for a film genre with cheap production and explicit representations. The term refers to exploitation films made from the perspective of African Americans .
history
At the end of the 1960s, many films were made as a reaction to the new self-confidence of the Afro-American population that was created by the civil rights movement and wanted to recognize itself in the cinema. The film industry began to focus on this neglected market segment and relied on "black" themes in order to enter the market of black moviegoers. Many exploitation filmmakers were also involved, using the reality in the black ghettos and emancipatory issues as a hook to make low-budget gangster films with clear depictions of sex and violence . Due to their content, the films were initially only shown in so-called grindhouses .
Blaxploitation was mainly shaped by black actors and directors , including for example director Melvin Van Peebles and the actresses Pam Grier ( Coffy - the big cat , Foxy Brown ) and Tamara Dobson ( A case for Cleopatra Jones ; Cleopatra Jones against the dragon lady ) . One of the most successful and style-defining films of this era is Shaft , based on the novels by Ernest Tidyman with Richard Roundtree .
The blaxploitation films are usually about rough, potent heroes, crime , pimping (see also Pimp ), drugs and a mafia-dominated milieu . These gangster and crime films were set in black neighborhoods. The films are also known for their soundtracks, often featured by black stars like Isaac Hayes (Shaft , Truck Turner , Tough Guys) , Curtis Mayfield (Superfly) , James Brown (Black Caesar) , Don Julian (Savage!) , Willie Hutch ( The Mack , Foxy Brown) or Marvin Gaye (Trouble Man) .
After blaxploitation films had become a great success with black audiences, materials were filmed with classic "white" themes that were tailored to the black audience. The best example is the Black series (e.g. Dr. Black & Mr. Hyde , Blacula and Blackenstein ).
Few films were of high quality, most of the films were low-budget productions, optimized for quick market success in order to skim off the blaxploitation wave commercially. Today, Blaxploitation has achieved cult status, and the films enjoy worldwide recognition, including among film buffs. In Japan, for example, Nakata Ryo, front man of the funk ensemble Osaka Monaurail , financed the distribution of several blaxploitation films, which were also released on video for the first time in addition to the new cinema screenings. Nakata also published The Soul Of Black Movies in homage to the Blaxploitation era.
Blaxploitation films also had a great and significant influence on American directors. One of the most famous fans is Quentin Tarantino , who has adopted countless elements of the blaxploitation genre in his films. In Tarantino's Jackie Brown (1997), Pam Grier, one of the most famous representatives of the genre, plays. But also Kill Bill - Volume 1 (2003), Death Proof - Todsicherheit (2007), Inglourious Basterds (2009) and Django Unchained (2012) show clear elements of the blaxploitation films. Other films with blaxploitation influence are e.g. B. Austin Powers in Goldstands (2002), Superbad (2007) and the genre parodies Undercover Brother (2002) and Black Dynamite (2009).
Movies
literature
- Harry M. Benshoff: Blaxploitation Horror Films: Generic Reappropriation or Reinscription? In: Cinema Journal . Vol. 39, No. 2, Winter, 2000, ISSN 0009-7101 , pp. 31-50.
- Darius H. James: That's blaxploitation! Roots of the baadasssss' tude. St. Martin's Griffin, New York NY 1995, ISBN 0-312-13192-5 .
- Mikel J. Koven: Blaxploitation Films. Pocket Essentials, Harpenden 2001, ISBN 1-903047-58-7 .
- Alan McQueen, Martin McCabe: The Superfly Guide to Blaxploitation. Titan, London 1998, ISBN 1-85286-944-5 .
