Sugar Hill
Director: Paul Maslansky
Year: 1974
Rating: 7.0
Within the Blaxploitation
genre was a small sub-genre of horror. These were for the most part based
on horror of classic Hollywood characters. The first one was Blacula in 1972
with a vampire, then up was Blackenstein based on you know who in 1973, followed
by Abby in 1974 that was a take on the Exorcist, this film in 1974 and then
Dr. Black and Mr. Hyde in 1974 in which the black doctor turns into a white
monster. Voodoo and zombies go back to White Zombie in 1932, but this
has the addition of Baron Samedi, the Haitian mythical figure, the master
of the dead. We got a taste of him in the Bond film, Live and Let Die. This
is good fun without any real scares or suspense but some well-played scenes
of murder - by zombies and a fine job from Marki Bey as Sugar Hill. It is
directed by Paul Maslansky for AIP - the only film he directed but he got
rich producing all of the Police Academy films.
What is a poor girl to do when gangsters
kill the man she loves in cold blood and leave him face down in the parking
lot. The police Lt. Valentine (Richard Lawson) her ex-lover says he will
look into it but doesn't seem to know where to start. The viewer knows of
course - they had an argument with her lover two minutes before, put on nylon
masks to disguise themselves but are all in the same loud clothes. She cries
for him, mourns him, buries him and then decides to kill them all. Good for
you Sugar. She isn't Coffee or Cleopatra Jones though - so she turns to a
friend for help. Not just any friend, but a Voodoo Queen, Mama Maitresse
played by a fierce Zara Cully at 80-years old with her white blazing hair.
The following year she was to become the grandmother on The Jefferson. Here
she is terrifying as she cackles and smiles as vengeance is mete out.
But again, not by her. By her friends. She
and Sugar go out to a graveyard in the bayou and she calls for her good friend.
Baron Samedi played with glee by Don Pedro Colley in his top hat and cane.
He calls for the dead to arise. From a graveyard for slaves. A lovely scene
of the earth being upturned and hands first pushing their way to the sky
followed by one after another. An army of the dead. Boys we have some work
to do. They don't bother to clean up as dirt and cobwebs hang on them throughout.
Their eyes white and bulging. The Baron though is immaculate whether bartending
or driving a taxi. The main villain is Morgan (Robert Quarry) and his right-hand
man is played by Charles Robinson who in this same year was to be Mac on
Night Court. The killings begin - one at a time - cut to pieces, fed to the
pigs, suicide - not overly graphic but satisfying. They are all racist scum.
Sugar shows up for each one to witness in her newly formed Afro and white
jump suit showing just a hint of cleavage. A great finale.
