John Shaft is credited as the first black action hero. SHAFT, starring Richard Roundtree in the titular role, premiered in 1971 and was followed by two sequels over the next two years, SHAFT’S BIG SCORE! and SHAFT IN AFRICA. The character became an icon of Black Power, leading the charge for the colorful Blaxploitation genre during the seventies. These were the first Hollywood movies to target African-American audiences, the only feature films at the time to star non-caucasian leads. Blaxploitation films typically had low production values, glorifying violence and often perpetuating stereotypes, but they remain cherished snapshots of an era gone by.

The Blaxploitation movement initially trended right smack in the middle of KungFuMagazine.com’s favorite genre, dubbed Chop-Socky by the film industry’s trade journal Variety. Chop-Socky referred to the initial Kung Fu film imports from Hong Kong and Taiwan during the late 60s through to the early 80s. Both Blaxploitation and Chop-Socky were considered B-grade films, and for the most part still are. They played in third-run theaters often in disenfranchised and ghetto neighborhoods, long before home video entertainment was available. This led to a lot of crossover as Blaxploitation poached a page from the Chop-Socky playbook by adding flying kicks and Karate chops to gratuitous fight scenes. Stand out films of the Blaxploitation-Chop-Socky crossovers were some female-led actioners like CLEOPATRA JONES (1973) starring the Guinness-recorded ‘Tallest Leading Lady in Film’ Tamara Dobson, who stood 6’ 2”, and T.N.T. JACKSON (1974) starring Jean Bell, one of the first black Playboy playmates, which was partly set in Hong Kong. Another notable hybrids were BLACK BELT JONES (1974) starring Jim Kelly, who was ‘too busy lookin’ good’ when he played Williams in ENTER THE DRAGON the year before. And while comedian Rudy Ray Moore’s DOLEMITE (1975) was initially the product of his stand-up routine, he made a direct-to-video sequel titled SHAOLIN DOLEMITE in 1999. All of these were in the wake of John Shaft.

SHAFT (2019) marks the third film of this exact same title. Beyond the initial 70s trilogy, and a seven-episode TV show that ran in 1973 to 1974 (also titled SHAFT), the film franchise was rebooted as SHAFT in 2000. Unlike the ever-changing leads for Batman and James Bond, Roundtree has consistently played John Shaft throughout the entire series. The 2000 reboot was part homage and part parody, adding the omnipresent Samuel L. Jackson as John Shaft II, originally scripted the nephew of Roundtree’s character and now reimagined as his son by a quick-fixing quip in this new installment. SHAFT 2019 has both Roundtree and Jackson reprising their respective Shaft roles and adds another generation, Jessie Usher as J.J. Shaft, Jackson’s character’s son.

But never mind the bread slices in the Shaft sandwich, this is really all about Jackson. Samuel L. Jackson is ranked as the highest all-time box office star with over 180 acting credits according to IMDb. He's had ongoing roles in the biggest film franchises in the world: Nick Fury in MCU, Jedi Master Mace Windu in Star Wars and Augustus Gibbons in xXx. He's played the iconic roles of Neville Flynn on SNAKES ON A PLANE (2006) and Jules in PULP FICTION (1994). Speaking of Tarantino films, he also played Stephen in DJANGO UNCHAINED (2012) and by strange coincidence, Tarantino claims that Django is the long lost ancestor of John Shaft. The two post-millennial Shaft movies are all about Jackson. His extreme acting style makes John Shaft an ideal role for Jackson and he steals every scene with his unapologetic macho banter. Roundtree still plays his part well and respect is given where it is due, but Jackson has stolen the role with his take on it.

 

Shut Your Mouth

 

It's ironic that in Isaac Hayes' Grammy-award winning theme song SHAFT, the teased obscene lyric "You see this cat Shaft is a bad mother..." is cut short of dropping that F-bomb with a back-up singer saying "Shut your mouth," ironic because no one says 'Motherf**ker' like Samuel L. Jackson. When Jackson read Adam Mansbach’s 2011 parody bedtime story, Go the F**k to Sleep, it became a viral sensation. That book was Amazon's top selling title a month prior to its release. With an R-rating, SHAFT drops F-bombs on full-auto, even poking fun at the theme song lyrics on several occasions. The film stands on its own well enough, but gives continuous nods to its predecessor installments like any good homage should, playing with motifs of the Shaft franchise.

Usher's character J.J. is a hipster millennial and the straight man to Jackson's old skool ways. It's a father-and-son buddy flick, and from the perspective of a character like John Shaft, millennials are easy pickings for mockery. SPOILER ALERT J.J.'s transition from hacker nerd to an righteous member of the Shaft bloodline feels a little abrupt, particularly with a bar fight scene where he reveals his drunken Capoeira skills. It's mediocre fight choreography, sad to say, but Shaft was never an exemplary example of the Blaxploitation-Chop-Socky connection. END SPOILER.

The bulk of the action in Shaft films is gunplay, however Shaft is also credited as a practitioner of several styles of martial arts including Shaolin Kung Fu, Wing Chun, Judo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and Shotokan and Kyokushin Karate according to Wikipedia. Despite Jackson’s numerous fight scenes throughout his mammoth movie career, he’s doesn’t claimed to be a martial artist. Given how hard he works in Hollywood, when would he even have the time to practice? In contrast, Usher says that he's practiced Archery, Kenpo and the Korean Martial Art of Tang Soo Do from an early age. This makes his fistacuffs scene even more disappointing, but his redemption lies within the comic chemistry between Shaft II and Shaft III.

That being said, should the Shaft franchise continue (and here's hoping it does) Usher will have to really step up his game to carry on the family tradition. As long as Jackson is involved, there's potential for another sequel solely because this cat Jackson is a bad mother...