Detroit 9000 (1973)

After a fundraiser for a black politician is robbed, Detroit police put two detectives, one white and one black, on the case, who try to work together under boiling political pressure.

Director:

Arthur Marks

Writer:

Orville H. Hampton (screenplay)

Stars:

Alex Rocco, Hari Rhodes, Vonetta McGee

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Alex Rocco	...	Lieutenant Danny Bassett
Hari Rhodes	...	Sergeant Jesse Williams
Vonetta McGee	...	Roby Harris
Herbert Jefferson Jr.	...	Ferdy
Robert Phillips	...	Captain Chalmers
Ellaraino	...	Helen Durbin (as Ella Edwards)
Scatman Crothers	...	Reverend Markham
Sally Baker	...	Ethel
Rudy Challenger	...	Aubrey Hale Clayton
Doris Ingraham
George Skaff	...	Oscar
Council Cargle
Regis Cordic
Stacy Keach Sr.
Davis Roberts

Storyline

Police procedural movie set in Detroit during the early 1970s. At a fundraiser for a black Congressman held at a downtown Detroit hotel, a group of heavily armed masked men bursts on the scene demanding the fund-raised fund. The fund consisting of gold, jewels and cash is estimated to be around 400,000 dollars. The donors mostly are rich black supporters of Congressman Aubrey Hale Clayton who intends to run for state governorship. After the armed robbery, the criminals disappear in a white getaway van. The police arrives at the scene but no one has any description of the suspects. Some speculate that white men committed the crime in order to sabotage the election efforts of a black candidate but others suggest it was black-on-black crime. The Detroit Police Department is careful not to place blame on any racial or ethnic group in order to avoid controversy and criticism. The Department assigns two cops to the case. One cop is Lieutenant Danny Bassett who's white and the other cop is ...

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Plot Keywords:

street shootout | suitcase full of money | cruise ship | shot multiple times | cemetery | 

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Taglines:

Visit the murder capital of the world--where the honkies are the minority!

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Action

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Miramax [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 June 1975 (Denmark)

Also Known As:

Detroit Heat

Filming Locations:

Detroit, Michigan, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,054, 11 October 1998

Gross USA:

$3,179

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$3,179

Company Credits

Production Co:

Holly Hill Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Ryder Sound Services)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

John Nichols was the actual chief of the Detroit Police at the time of his appearance in the movie. No doubt he hoped his appearance in the film would help his 1973 campaign for mayor. He lost to Coleman Young, however, and later went on to become sheriff of suburban Oakland County.

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Goofs

In the shootout at the cemetery, one character's squib is visible on his neck prior to being "shot" in the neck.

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Connections

Featured in Dusk to Dawn Drive-In Trash-o-Rama Show Vol. 4 (1997)

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Soundtracks

Detroit 9000 (Main Title)
Written and Performed by Luchi De Jesus

User Reviews

NOT a good movie

In 1971, the "French Connection" was released. It had a great cast with great acting, script, photography, soundtrack (even though the music in and of itself was HORRID, it fit the film perfectly!) and in summery, was a GREAT cop movie.

In 1973 "Detroit 9000" was released. It had a decent cast with some good acting (Alex Rocco and Hari Rhodes-True Professionals!), OK script, decent photography and one seriously FUNKY soundtrack. Most of the acting was wooden, though I'm taking a guess here, many of the actors weren't really actors, as can be seen when you look up their bios here on IMDb. "Known for 'Detroit 9000'" and not much more. I'm also going out on a limb by guessing that many of the cops, especially the ones in uniform really were cops recruited to add realism and help with the budget. (Just think, they can wear their own uniforms-we don't have to BUY any!!!) A lot of the dialogue is a bit TOO over the top. I was around in 1973 and I listened to how people spoke and this was a bit much, but hey, they made you listen so I guess it was effective.

The funny thing about this movie, and many others made over the years, it's NOT a good movie, but it hits all the marks to make it a GREAT bad movie. I personally cannot put into words exactly how this happens and please keep in mind, this IS just my opinion, but this does fit that oddball category. Like "Plan 9 From Outer Space", it's bad, but it's a classic. Also sort of like "The Room" which is more current. "The Room" SUCKS, and yet is SOOOOOOO horrible, it's a classic. It lacks acting, script, photography, soundtrack...it's a train wreck, but a CLASSIC train wreck.

I seem to be rambling, but in the grand scheme of things, I enjoyed "Detroit 9000". It was never boring, more lead flew throughout this movie than at the Battle of Gettysburg and the car chases were pretty good. The twist at the end was excellent. It's Blaxploitation at it's best with a slight bit of Grindhouse thrown in for fun.

Not a good movie, but they don't have to be to entertain, and this does.