The Movie Guys: New, improved ‘Shaft’ carries attitude of original

Friday, June 16, 2000 | 9:12 a.m.

The Movie Guys, starring Jeff Howard and Dave Neil, appears Fridays in the Sun. They can also be seen on the 11 a.m. Friday newscast on KVVU Channel 5. Plus, check them out online at lasvegassun.com/sun/sunlife/ movies and themovieguys.com.

Grade: Jeff B, Dave B+.

Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Vanessa Williams, Christian Bale, Jeffrey Wright.

Screenplay: Richard Price, John Singleton, Shane Salerno.

Director: John Singleton.

Rated: R for strong language.

Running time: 100 minutes.

Playing at: UA Showcase 8, UA Rainbow Promenade 10, Century Orleans, Century Desert 16, Century Cinedome 12 Henderson, Rancho Santa Fe 16, Las Vegas Drive-in, Regal Cinemas Boulder Station, Regal Cinemas Sunset Station, Regal Cinemas Colonnade 14, Regal Cinemas Texas Station 18, Regal Cinemas Village Square 18.

Synopsis: Crooked cops on the take, small-time drug lords, sleazy informers and sadistic rich kids ready to kill. For police detective John Shaft (Samuel L. Jackson), it's just another night in the underbelly of New York City, facing down cops and criminals who want him dead and a legal system that thrives on money before justice is served.

Dave: As leading man Jackson expresses in "Shaft's" theatrical trailer, "Can you dig it?" All one needs to do is witness the confident smile that brilliantly graces his face and know that he's "a bad mutha ..." Well, you should know the rest. The original "Shaft" was a popular icon of the early 1970s inspired by Ernest Tidyman's novel and brought to cinematic life by Richard Roundtree.

The film defined a film genre known as blaxploitation, spawned a series of sequels and a short-lived television series on CBS, and created an influential medium for aspiring young talent. Recently some of Hollywood's A-list filmmakers such as Quentin Tarantino and Steven Soderbergh have shown affection for the blaxploitive form and revitalized the film's unique noirish appeal. So it was really just a matter of time before "the black private dick who's a sex machine to all the chicks" would find his way back to the theaters.

Jeff: The filmmakers take careful steps not to turn "Shaft" into a stereotypical remake, which could have easily been done here. After a sad and jerky start of the summer season in the new millennium, I can breathe a sigh of relief and go to my grave a happy man. "Shaft" saves the day. Jackson was born to play John Shaft, a cop who works in and outside the law and is just too cool for his own good. He's all about justice and he serves up plenty with a tongue-in-cheek attitude, a badge and (quite possibly) the most infectious theme song ever to grace the silver screen.

The movie has all of the action and gun play that audiences expected to see and hear in the disappointing dud "Mission: Impossible 2." Director John Singleton (whose last feature was 1997's critically acclaimed "Rosewood") crafts a movie that pays tribute to the original and entertains contemporary audiences with great one-liners, car chases, drug dealers -- all the right elements for one groovy movie.

Dave: Shaft quits the police force after a spoiled rich punk named Walter Wade (Christian Bale) brutally kills a young black student and makes bail a second time. He rhetorically asks the notorious drug lord Peoples Hernandez (Tony award-winning actor Jeffrey Wright), "Do you think me without a badge makes me less dangerous?" Needless to say, he doesn't answer. However, the two thugs have their own agendas, which include ending Shaft's meddling life. Meanwhile, Shaft has to track down the one murder witness, Diane Palmieri (Oscar-nominee Toni Collette of 1999's "The Sixth Sense"), who can put all of his enemies away for good even as the toughest killers in the city close in on him.

As my colleague Jeff pointed out, Jackson was born for this role. He is in rare form, reminiscent of his darker charismatic characters from "Pulp Fiction" (1994) and "Jackie Brown" (1997), and visibly takes pleasure as the pride-conscious black hero. However, the film not only belongs to its headlining star, but to a strong supportive cast.

Jeff: Bale's portrayal of Wade is consummate and unforgiving, rendered with an upper-class mentality of being above the law. His racist comments and hot temper clash with Shaft and his philosophy. Bale is quickly becoming one of the hottest actors in Hollywood (his website gets thousands of hits daily) who has a taste for playing the heavy, as he did in his last film, "American Psycho."

Plus, Wright is absolutely splendid as a prideful Dominican seeking revenge on the detective who humiliated him in front of his people. "Shaft" will strike a chord with moviegoers fed up with crime, who will bask in his unorthodox approach to justice and borderline vigilantism. They feel drug dealers, murders, etc., all manipulate the law and abuse the overworked justice system to their advantage and most likely will walk free. Shaft cuts through the civil rights, administers his own brand of justice and takes care of business. Third World justice and a politically incorrect mentality equal a winning combination.

Dave: Thankfully Jeff, the film does not abide by today's strict political correctness by ditching Shaft's street talk or suave demeanor with the ladies. Instead, the film possesses the same slick dialogue and flash that the title character's own persona suggests, while the focal point behind the story is solid. Director/co-writer Singleton finally lands a project that once and for all exhibits his potential as a mainstream filmmaker, as he did with his controversial 1991 debut film, "Boyz N the Hood." The film is heavily rooted in dated transitional wipes and branded by the 1971 Oscar-winning song. Original composer Isaac Hayes, along with David Arnold, supplies the needed classic funk score of the '70s.

Jeff: In addition, veteran actor Roundtree reprises his role as a much older and wiser Shaft, supplying words of advice to his hot-tempered nephew who carries on the family name. "Shaft" is violent, bloody and just about the hippest retro film since "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery." After this film's sure-to-be high-grossing weekend, expect numerous sequels to spring into pre-production. I can't wait.