Black Dynamite
Director: Scott Sanders

Sadly going straight to DVD, instead of getting the theatrical release it deserves, this Sundance ’09 sensation gleefully rocks every black stereotype imaginable.

Director Scott Sanders lovingly riffs on the “blaxploitation” movie genre of the 1970s; low-budget actioners where black anti-heroes with names like John Shaft and Foxy Brown busted crime in the ghetto, all while flipping the bird to “whitey” and “The Man.”

It’s more than just a straight send-up. No one winks at the camera, except in one scene when a boom mike strays into the picture. Michael Jai White plays the title star. He could give Shaft a run for his gun — and also for the ladies.

Black Dynamite is a celebration of how much fun blaxploitation movies were, just as Austin Powers makes light of James Bond. You have to feel good about yourself if you’re willing to mock yourself.

Extras include a director and cast commentary, deleted and alternate scenes and a making-of featurette.

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