Dolemite1974

The selection process by which our culture chooses what is and isn't a classic is dark and muddled. By all accounts a piece of work such as Dolemite should have long been forgotten but here we are. Amaze your friends, confound your enemies, feel kind of racist! Dolemite! For the real experience, drink every time the boom mic is on screen, every time our man Rudy blatantly misses with his "karate" moves, every time you see naked man ass, and every time someone is referred to as "motherfucker."

Can you dig it! Dolemite, Super-Badass among mere mortal Badasses, is back in town. This is one wild flick, a low, low budget blockbuster packed with unintentional goofs (count how many times you see the boom mic drop into the shot), but it’s really all about the incomparable Rudy Ray Moore, and the righteous, two-fisted charisma he brings to the screen, along with an outrageous assortment of characters strutting their way through the streets of 1974 Los Angeles. Guns, cars, female kung fu assassins, stone-cold dudes wearing gigantic fuzzy hats, and a wicked soundtrack that kicks out the Funk make “Dolemite” one of the legendary B-Movie/Drive-In films of the 70’s.

'Dolemite' is a kitschy and pretty bad film. For me it barely squeaks over the threshold of 'it's-so-bad-it's-good.' Rudy Ray Moore as Dolomite (never really figured out the purpose for the difference in spelling) is compelling at times (and at times compellingly bad), but at times he can seem a little disinterested. But whenever he breaks out 'mothafucka' he is incomparable in his swag. The other actors are really nothing to write home about, but there are some that are laughably bad, and props for that. The fight scenes are very shambled and forced, which make for some laughs, and it's always good to see a boom mic nuzzle its way into the shot. It just kinda felt like a hot mess most of the time, but definitely an enjoyable one!

I enjoy 'bad' movies, but can't recommend this one. It lacks the earnestness, in both acting and story line, that other so-bad-they're-good films typically have. Mr. Moore acts as though he's constantly distracted, as if what we as the audience are supposed to be enthralled with, isn't worth his time. Poor acting is expected in such films, indifference is not. If blaxploitation is a favoured genre, this may be worth your time. Otherwise, pass.

Not quite as deranged as Rudy Ray's later stuff, but as the comedy went on to greater things, the fight scenes declined. A solid Blaxploitation flick, but no PETEY WHEATSTRAW...

It's taken me a minute to really decide how to review this. The movie is full of lots of filler but I've been talking like Dolemite for over a week now. And Hamburger Pimp is the greatest. Watch it, you'll enjoy it!

Rudy Ray Moore is a great American and a 20th century treasure. Watch this at least once in your life while you have the chance.