Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song pretty
much invented the Blaxploitation genre. Released in 1971, the film was
about a man with a magic penis trying to escaping from white tyranny.
This involved a lot of sex, nudity, dead cops, Hells Angels and
violence. Also, a run for the Mexican border.
Melvin
Van Peebles was the visionary who put the whole thing together. Not
only did he star in the movie, he financed, wrote and directed it.
Hell, he even appeared in the (non-simulated) sex scenes and then sued
for compensation when he developed Gonorrhoea...
Anyway,
when it comes to Blaxploitation films, people are always talking up the
soundtracks, the cultural relevance and how they paved the way for new
generation of black filmmakers. While all that’s true, it ignores the
fact they had some of the best promotional posters of all time.
Coffy
Black Belt Jones
The Mack
Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song
Friday Foster