As Gordon Parks’ blaxploitation classic “Shaft,” released nationwide on July 2, 1971, celebrates its 50th anniversary, a proper revision of its ethos is overdue. An anachronistic “Shaft” that promotes an outmoded 007 brand of masculine toxicity — an obsession with shiny possessions including cars, clothing, guns, and of course, women, while relishing violence as the most innate means to an end — may not quite cut it anymore.
That doesn’t mean the character should be neutered; but a post-Trump, post-George Floyd “Shaft” should intrigue executives in an industry that loves to exploit known IP, especially as it contends with an uncertain, rapidly evolving environment. The world does not need a Black James Bond right now; it needs a “Shaft,” updated to clash head-on with a backdrop that isn’t all that different from the era that led to a proliferation of movies like it.
For years, Idris Elba has had to react to...
That doesn’t mean the character should be neutered; but a post-Trump, post-George Floyd “Shaft” should intrigue executives in an industry that loves to exploit known IP, especially as it contends with an uncertain, rapidly evolving environment. The world does not need a Black James Bond right now; it needs a “Shaft,” updated to clash head-on with a backdrop that isn’t all that different from the era that led to a proliferation of movies like it.
For years, Idris Elba has had to react to...
- 7/4/2021
- by Tambay Obenson
- Indiewire
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