With a title like Black Gunn it had to be either a Blaxploitation film or a porno. There were moments I had to wonder. Gunn is sent by his girlfriend to hide out in her apartment. He is met at the door by two stewardesses and they tell him to take off his clothes, get into bed because they were told to take care of him. I thought I had jumped into another film for a second until his girlfriend shows up and kicks out the two other girls. She is played by the lovely Brenda Sykes who was later to show up in Mandingo and Drum but also I noticed with amusement one season of Ozzie's Girls - starring Ozzie and Harriet - in which she rents a room from them. Oddly, it only lasted a season. Sounds like a hit to me. I can imagine the dialogue from Ozzie "So do I refer to you as Negro or Colored?'. Harriet "Oh Ozzie, just call her the help".


No, this is Blaxploitation but it doesn't live up to its promise after the beginning, It stars the great Jim Brown and one of my favorite scenes was him running and dodging through a crowd of people. He still had the moves. I keep meaning to watch the Spike Lee documentary on him. Soon. He runs a swank night club for Blacks only called Gunn. He has made peace with the establishment - don't bother me and I won't bother you. His brother (Herbert Jefferson Jr.) though wants no part of the whitey establishment and along with other members of B.A.G. (Black Action Group) rob a mafia bookie joint and take their books as well. That means trouble. The mafia is run by a used car salesman so you know he is rotten to the core. Played by Martin Landau with racist malice but his righthand man really plays it to the hilt. A cretin played by Bruce Glover, father of Crispin Glover.


They rough up some people and figure out the brother was part of the robbery and kill him. That should get Gunn going. And it does. Slowly. He throws one guy down the bowling alley for a strike but not a lot happens till the end. The lovely Luciana Paluzzi (Thunderball) tries to seduce him but the Black Gunn wasn't up to it that night. It happens. She is mafia. The end has a big explosive fight between a zillion mobsters and Gunn and his Brothers. It was a long time coming. This fell between the two Slaughter films so I was expecting more action but it has a nice vibe to it, good score and a fine cast. Bernie Casey plays the head of B.A.G. and the great Vida Blue has a cameo in which he gets the crap beaten out of him by the mafia. Be careful of that left shoulder Vida.  Directed by Robert Hartford-Davis who was to direct The Take with Billy Dee Williams next.