I saw
'SUPERFLY' this week, and
here we have a remake of the 1972 Blaxploitation action crime drama film of the same name, this time Directed by Director X (aka Julien Christian Lutz). This Canadian film and music video Director has been shooting music videos since 1998, but this is only his third outing helming a feature film since
'Across the Line' in 2015 and
'Centre Stage : On Pointe' in 2016. Released in the US in mid-June and in the UK not until Mid-September, the film cost US$16M to make, has so far grossed US$21M and has garnered generally mixed Reviews. The 1972 film incidentally, cost under US$500K to make and grossed in excess of US$30M, and is perhaps best remembered for its memorable Curtis Mayfield soundtrack. A sequel was released in 1973
'Super Fly T.N.T.' which tanked commercially and critically, and in 1990 a second sequel was released
'The Return of Super Fly' which performed no better. Now in 2018 its time to dust off those street hustlers and underworld crims of yesteryear and package them up into this polished fast talking hard hitting 21st Century offering.
The film opens up with Youngblood Priest (Trevor Jackson) pulling up to some local nightclub and marching in as though he owns the joint . . . and perhaps he does! He swaggers up to the apparent owner - all bleached blond dreadlocks, heavy gold neck chains and surrounded by his brother and sistahood with gangsta rap blaring out from the stereo of his newest 'acquisition' - a latest model Lamborghini. Priest asks him where his money is, and the dreadlocked dude surrounded by his two armed homies spins a confident yarn stating that he has no intention of coughing up. Priest retorts with a spin on the dudes mother and his beliefs in God, which ultimately sees the guy hand over the keys to his prized Lamborghini as collateral against the debt owed.
From here, en route to his next port of call, we learn that Priest has been hustling the streets of Atlanta since he was aged eleven, running cocaine ultimately, creating jobs and making a very comfortable living for himself along the way thank-you very much. He has never killed another, never been arrested, and runs a clean, tidy, well organised business, albeit an underworld business that is off the Police radar. And to thank for his success at his comparatively young age are his mentor Scatter (Michael Kenneth Williams), his inspiration Georgia (Lex Scott Davis) and his partner in crime and bestie Eddie (Jason Mitchell).
He pulls up to another nightclub and again waltzes in. This high end strip joint is owned and run by 'The Snow Patrol' who all sit above the crowd dressed in white, sucking on expensive Champagne and stogies, and flicking $20 bills into the crowd below like they're going out of fashion. Q (Big Bank Black) is the leader of Snow Patrol who walks around in what resembles a polar bear skin coat and a full set of gold teeth. Q and Priest share a mutual respect for each other despite their rivalry, but Q's young protege Juju (Kaalan 'KR' Walker) has a disliking and a mistrust for Priest and would rather see him dead - a fact that he constantly niggles his his gang leader about.
When the evening is done, Priest and his girlfriend Georgia exit the club and while waiting for his car to be brought around, is heckled by a decidedly drunk and possibly stoned Juju. A fist fight breaks out between the two which quickly sees Priest dispense with Juju and a couple of other Snow Patrol goons. After the fracas has subsided, and with his back turned Juju rises, pulls his gun and fires. In that split second, Priest has turned around and dodges the bullet, literally, as it hurtles past him and into the stomach of a young girl standing nearby with two friends. Juju is quickly bundled into a car and whisked away. Priest hands the girls a wad of rolled up bank notes and says get to the hospital, and quickly exits stage left. And so the scene is set.
Next Priest meets with his best mate and right hand man Eddie. Priest overnight has made up his mind to exit the game after that violent attack that so easily could have taken his life. He discusses the fact with Eddie who is less inclined to give up the good life and the wealth they have accumulated, and are still yet to make. Priest convinces Eddie to take on one last job, but a big one, that will see them be able to 'retire' somewhere else but here, and never have to worry about money again.
Priest visits his mentor Scatter who took him in when he was but a young lad, but showed a lot of promise, and they have been firm friends ever since. Scatter now runs a 'legitimate' mixed martial arts and kickboxing gym, whilst running coke on the side. Priest attempts to convince Scatter to give him a greater slice of the pie and to divulge his source in attempt to build his empire and establish connections much further afield. Scatter is however, nonchalant about Priest's motives and declines. Priest and Eddie follow Scatter as he drives the long journey from Atlanta down to El Paso, where the pair spy Scatter having a roadside conversation with a shady looking Mexican type watched over by several heavily armed goons. The meeting is brief and they part company. Priest and Eddie follow the Mexicans car as it crosses the border into Mexico and parks up behind a busy street market.
Priest orders Eddie to keep the motor running, to wait and he'll be back soon. As Priest goes on foot stealthily searching out his quarry, he rounds a truck to come face to face with a loaded weapon, and the Mexican head honcho Adalberto Gonzalez (Esai Morales), whose henchmen bind and blindfold him, and bundle their captive into a private jet. Flying high above Mexico, Gonzalez questions Priest and threatens the worst when satisfactory answers are not forthcoming. Priest maintains his cool, and starts up a conversation about the Mexican Soccer Team about which they are both knowledgeable and passionate. Priest then starts on about the matriarch of the family, Gonzalez mother, and how his brother is languishing in some Mexican jail courtesy of Gonzalez who put his elder sibling away for the good of the family. As a result of Priest's fast talking he is spared from being thrown out of the plane at 20,000 feet, and instead strikes up a deal with his new supplier to move three times the quantity of coke that Scatter was moving. Priest though has to come up with the front money to pay for his first consignment, which he is able to do.
Gonzalez releases Priest, and he meets up with Eddie some hours later, and explains what went down. The pair are now in the big league and back home in Atlanta the first consignment of packaged cocaine in five kilo bags makes its way across the border and into Priest's hands. Expanding his distribution network through close business associates, Priest and Eddie are quickly counting more money than they know what to do with. They celebrate with a party at their house to thank their colleagues.
On the way home one of Priest's cohorts, Racks (Rick Ross) is getting up to some front seat shenanigans with a certain lady. They are spied by a passing Police patrol car, who pulls them over. Looking in the trunk of the car, the Police Officer Turk Franklin (Brian Durkin) uncovers a five kilo bag of cocaine. But rather than haul their asses in, he drives them to rendezvous with Detective Mason (Jennifer Morrison) who questions the pair about their supplier and who is behind the organisation. Racks remains silent but when a gun is pointed at his head, his lady friend blurts out Priest. Neither Franklin nor Mason had heard of Priest before, but now, he is firmly on their radar. Racks and his girl are returned to their car and told to go about their business. They drive off, and seconds later are pulled over once again by Franklin. This time he plugs both with several rounds of bullets killing them both, all under the fictionalised auspices that they were armed and had intended to shoot first. The shooting is beamed across the news channels and Franklin is hailed a hero for acting in self defence and bringing down a drug king-pin.
The next day Priest and Eddie are paid a visit by Mason and Franklin who want in on their action 50/50, plus a good will down payment of one million dollars to be collected by the end of the week. Reluctantly Priest agrees. Eddie is mortified. The pair fight out of frustration with the situation and Eddie's lack of faith now in his long term partner. They go their separate ways. Immediately following Racks funeral, Mason and Franklin pull up in their car, and Priest hands over a stash of cash amounting to a million bucks. Meanwhile, Eddie ordered a hit on Snow Patrol without Priest's knowledge. Several of Snow Patrol's goons are killed in the barber shop where they all congregated. Juju narrowly escaped and swore vengeance on Priest. Q now is also convinced that Priest was behind the hit.
Later, Scatter realises that Priest has betrayed him and has muscled in on his supply chain and is none too pleased. He takes him to meet up with Gonzalez, hoping for a reconciliation, but the Mexican drug lord has other plans. He shoots Scatter dead saying that he was small time compared to Priest and that he was skimming a little off the top every month for many years hoping that Gonzalez wouldn't notice. But he did, and Scatter paid the price for his betrayal. Gonzalez also says that he had heard that Priest was looking to get out, a fact that Priest denies to remain in favour for the time being. Priest remains calm, but lets rip with his emotions when he is alone again in his car.
And so, Priest has formed an unfriendly alliance with two crooked cops; his Mexican supply chain has killed his long term mentor and has said that he can never leave the business; a rival gang is hot on his tail trying to rub him out; and he has fought with his best buddy and business partner. It looks like Priest's world is about to come crashing down on him. But Priest is Superfly, street smart, fast talking, quick thinking, well connected, level headed and always has a plan, and of course, needless to say it all comes out sunshine and rainbows for the Superfly guy in the end. He and Georgia relax on the back of a yacht sailing into the sunset somewhere off Montenegro, while Eddie is back in Atlanta having made up his differences with Priest, doing what he does best.
I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by this film. Priest is a likeable rogue, a career criminal who really doesn't know any different but knows his limits and how to play the game. He is a Superfly superhero - after all he can dodge a bullet, has remained off the radar of the authorities his entire life, is successful, wealthy, drives a fast car, has the bling, is fast talking, quick witted, street smart, sharp dressed, can handle himself amiably, cares about his posse, has two live in girlfriends on the go at once who just happen to be best mates too and has the most perfectly coiffed inky black straightened hair style that you have ever seen. His life is practically perfect in every respect, and this is where any sense of realism flies out the door, in favour of a more glitzy extended pop music video look and feel that Director X is more renowned for. The plot is full of twists and turns and stylised action that we have seen a thousand times before, backed up by gangsta dialogue at which you need to strain to decipher and a gloss that paints over the underbelly of the metropolis that captivates the interest but leaves you feeling ho-hum at the end.
'Superfly' merits three claps of the Odeon Online clapperboard from a possible five.
-Steve, at Odeon Online-
