Black Belt Jones (1974)

Director:

Robert Clouse

Writers:

Alexandra Rose (writer)
Alex Ross (writer)

Release Date:

19 July 1974 (West Germany)

Genre:

Action

Tagline:

He clobbers the mob

Plot:

The Mafia wants to buy Pop's downtown karate studio in an area planned for redevelopment. They get Pinky and his thugs to pressure Pop into selling...

Plot Keywords:

Black Belt | Mafia | Karate | Funeral | Martial Arts

Cast

Jim Kelly	...	Black Belt Jones
Gloria Hendry	...	Sydney
Scatman Crothers	...	Pop Byrd
Eric Laneuville	...	Quincy
Alan Weeks	...	Toppy
Andre Philippe	...	Don Steffano
Vincent Barbi	...	Big Tuna
Mel Novak	...	Blue Eyes
Malik Carter	...	Pinky
Eddie Smith	...	Oscar
Alex Brown	...	Plummer (as Alex A. Brown)
Clarence Barnes	...	Tango
Earl Jolly Brown	...	Jelly (as Earl Brown)
Jac Emil	...	Marv the Butcher
Wayne Musgrove	...	Brother Blake

Runtime:

87 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

West Germany:18 (cut) | Australia:R | USA:R | UK:18 (cut) | Norway:(Banned) (1974-2003) (cinema release)

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Sequoin Films

Goofs:

Continuity: The trash van scoop is up, then down.

Quotes:

Quincy: Come on back if you want some more! If you want some more, then come on back!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in E yu tou hei sha xing (1978)

It's Bruce Lee, only darker!

Black Belt Jones is a kung fu Brother out to protect the world from street scum. When Poppa Byrd (Scatman Crothers) gets killed by an increasingly hapless cast of villains spearheaded by a Mafioso named Pinky, Jones enlists the help of his karate school students to clean up the streets and show the bad guys their 'propers'. You can tell from the start that this cult classic is going to offer more grooves than moves, more day-glow than Tokyo, and hilariously sincere dialogue that will truly make you fall out of your seat laughing.

This film does feature good-looking martial arts action. Jim Kelly was previously best known for his performance in 'Enter the Dragon' as a martial arts champion who, along with Bruce Lee, discovers that there is more to the Invitational Competition than meets the eye. Black Belt Jones presents the same character-type elevated to Neighborhood Hero with the requisite heart of gold. His girlfriend, Sidney, takes no guff, the bad guys are easy to fool, the fight scenes mimic (exactly!) every Bruce Lee move ever recorded, and the brawls take place (somehow) in the local car wash.

One scene to watch for - the amazingly talented lights off / lights on 'Damage At The Dojo' sequence. Using nothing more than a light switch, a plaid hat, and fists of death, Black Belt Jones defeats the gun-toting Mafia by striking …. fear of the dark into them! Note how much effort it took to keep that beanie hat on top of his Afro. You really can't miss this one, so get your bell-bottoms on, call your friends and get funky!