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It’s the summer of “Blaxploitation, Baby!,” the latest festival hosted by Film Forum.

The indie theater announced the upcoming festival which will take place August 16 through August 22. The program celebrates the early ‘70s genre of Black cinema, and features films wth iconic movie stars Pam Grier, Richard Roundtree, Ron O’Neal, Tamara Dobson, Jim Brown, Vonetta McGee, Fred Williamson, Isaac Hayes, and more.

“Blaxploitation, Baby!” is dedicated to author and pioneering film historian Donald Bogle, who collaborated on Film Forum’s first Blaxploitation festival in 1995. Bogle credited Melvin Van Peebles’ filmography for helping to establish the genre. “Blaxploitation, Baby!” additionally ranges from works from directors such as Ossie Davis, Gordon Parks, and Gordon Parks Jr.

As well as the screenings, the festival will include the sales of critic and historian Odie Henderson’s “Black Caesars and Foxy Cleopatras: A History of Blaxploitation” and Donald Bogle’s acclaimed TCM book “Hollywood Black” at concessions.

Clockwise from top left: Batman Returns (Warner Bros.), A Good Person (MGM/United Artists), Evil Dead Rise (Warner Bros.)Image: The A.V. Club

It’s almost Thanksgiving, which means streaming services are starting to add holiday-themed movies—or just movies set on or around Christmas—to their libraries. Prime Video...

A new episode of The Arrow in the Head Show has just been released, and in this one hosts John “The Arrow” Fallon and Lance Vlcek are looking back at the 1990 sci-fi action sequel RoboCop 2 (watch it Here), which sees our hero RoboCop trying to get a new drug called Nuke off the streets of Detroit… and then battling a drug dealer who has been turned into a RoboCop himself. To find out what The Arrow and Lance think of RoboCop 2, check out the video embedded above.

Directed by Irvin Kershner from a screenplay by Frank Miller and Walon Green, RoboCop 2 has the following synopsis: Cyborg Detroit policeman Alex Murphy is the sole officer on duty after the police force goes on strike against evil conglomerate Omni Consumer Products and its push to foreclose on the city of Detroit. Aside from dealing with the normal level of crime,...

The selection of media available on Prime Video might be a bit overwhelming at first, and it is probably no surprise that it has one of the largest streaming libraries online. This size means that a lot of movies and television shows heading to the platform end up slipping under the radar. In this current age of streaming dominance and potential overabundance, finding something truly great can feel nearly impossible.

Thankfully, that's why you have us here at /Film to help you navigate this digital landscape, especially Prime Video's sometimes confusing user interface. It may not even be Halloween yet, but if you're looking to be in the Christmas spirit, Prime's got you covered with movies like "Scrooged" and "Arthur Christmas." If you're looking for some fashion inspiration, Rihanna will hold her fourth "Savage X Fenty" fashion show on the streamer. No matter what type of mood you're in, Prime...

Arrow Video bumps yet another of its top special edition titles up to 4K Ultra HD, just for home theater enthusiasts after the best and brightest of big screen experiences. The movie looks better than ever, and although the unrated version still packs too much gore overkill for average viewers, we respect the Horror-Comic vibe it was meant to conjure. As sci-fi satire Robo still carries a big stick: Edward Neumeier’s anti-corporate, anti-privatization message comes through loud, clear, and profane.

RoboCop 4K

4K Ultra HD Steelbook

Arrow Video

1987 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 103 min. / Street Date April 12, 2022 / Available from / 49.95

Starring: Peter Weller, Nancy Allen, Dan O’Herlihy, Ronny Cox, Kurtwood Smith, Miguel Ferrer, Robert DoQui, Ray Wise, Felton Perry, Paul McCrane.

Cinematography: Sol Negrin, Jost Vacano

Production Design: William Sandell

Special Effecs and Makeup: Rob Bottin, Peter Kuran, Rocco Gioffre, Phil Tippett, Harry Walton, Tom St. Amand, Robert Blalack

Film Editor: Frank J. Urioste...

By Lee Pfeiffer

Kino Lorber continues its alliance with niche market video label Scorpion Releasing with a Blu-ray edition of the largely forgotten 1969 action/adventure flick "The Devil's 8". The film typifies the kind of movie that simply doesn't exist any more: a low-budget production designed for fast playoff and modest profits. Back in the day, studios depended on movies such as these to be important to their bottom line. It's in stark contrast to today's film industry where seemingly every release is intended to be a blockbuster with production costs so high that some flicks have to gross close to a billion dollars to be considered financially successful. "The Devil's 8" is pretty much what you might expect simply by examining the sleeve. Typical of these types of movies, it presents a cast of reputable character actors who get meatier roles than they usually did in more prestigious productions. The script...

Do audiences ever ask for a History Lesson? Robert Altman gives them a smart, if diffuse, image of America as a showbiz invention, commercialized and packaged. Paul Newman is the prepackaged white hero surrounded by a jolly circus; Buffalo Bill’s trick seems to be to get his colleagues, the dispossessed minorities and especially the vanquished Native Americans to cooperate with his self-aggrandizing fantasy. One of Altman’s better scattershot ensembles sketches an amusingly hollow Buffalo Bill in Paul Newman, but the director’s style keeps emotional involvement at arm’s length… make that telephoto lens’ length.

Buffalo Bill and the Indians

Region B Blu-ray

Powerhouse Indicator

1976 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 124, 105 min. / Buffalo Bill and the Indians or Sitting Bull’s History Lesson / Street Date December 14, 2020 / available from Powerhouse Films UK / £15.99

Starring: Paul Newman, Joel Grey, Burt Lancaster, Kevin McCarthy, Harvey Keitel, Will Sampson, Allan F. Nicholls, Geraldine Chaplin, John Considine,...

Extra-special extras adorn this stunning reissue of a modern sci-fi action classic. Paul Verhoeven’s sledgehammer of graphic-novel brutality and wicked political satire (courtesy of a Michael Miner-Ed Neumeier screenplay that should have won awards) hasn’t diminished one iota. We still feel like we’re being subjected to a shockingly ultra-violent entertainment from the future. Both versions are present, along with enough interview extras to make one feel personally involved in the production. Although later entries in the Robo franchise were marketed to children (we have the toys to prove it) this hard-action show expresses an adult-oriented rage against Reagan’s America. The filmmakers could have earned a lot more money making Robo un-political and kid-safe but instead chose to stay true to their radical concept.

Robocop

Blu-ray

Arrow Video Limited Edition Collector’s Set

1987 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 103 min. / Street Date November 26, 2019 / Available from Arrow Academy

Starring: Peter Weller,...

Here’s something I never expected to see: I ran to the blaxploitation attraction Willie Dynamite because I like actress Diana Sands, and it’s her last picture in a too-short career. But the main character on view, a gaudy fur-wearing pimp, is played by none other than Roscoe Orman, well known to a couple of generations of kids as none other than ‘Gordon’ in the long-running TV show Sesame Street. It’s like watching MisterRogers play Hannibal Lecter!

Willie Dynamite

Blu-ray

Arrow Video

1974 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 102 min. / Street Date January 8, 2019 / Available from Arrow Video / 39.95

Starring: Roscoe Orman, Diana Sands, Thalmus Rasulala, Joyce Walker, Roger Robinson, George Murdock, Albert Hall, Norma Donaldson, Juanita Brown, Royce Wallace, Tol Avery, Robert DoQui, Slim Gaillard.

Cinematography: Frank Stanley

Film Editor: Aaron Stell

Original Music: J.J. Johnson

Written by Ron Cutler & Joe Keyes Jr.

Produced by Richard D. Zanuck, David Brown

Directed by Gilbert Moses...

It’s ugly, it’s violent, it’s graphic novelist Frank Miller’s nasty vision through and through. Scream Factory’s Collector’s Edition brings out the amazing backstory of the production of this stop-motion- intensive first sequel to RoboCop. Druglord Caine is a menace, but we’re just as appalled by the film’s vivid depiction of a greater terror: Predatory Privatization.

RoboCop 2

Blu-ray

Shout! Factory / Scream Factory

1990 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 117 min. / Collector’s Edition / Street Date March 21, 2011 / 34.93

Starring: Peter Weller, Nancy Allen, Dan O’Herlihy, Robert DoQui, Tom Noonan, Gabriel Damon, Belinda Bauer, Felton Perry.

Cinematography: Mark Irwin

Production Design: Peter Jamison

Original Music: Leonard Rosenman

Special Effects: Phil Tippett, Rob Bottin, Peter Kuran, Rocco Gioffre.

Written by Frank Miller, Walon Green from characters created by Edward Neumeier, Michael Miner

Produced by Jon Davison

Directed by Irvin Kershner

I wish I could say that 1990’s RoboCop 2 has been...

Success in the ’90s gave Robert Altman the opportunity to experiment once again. Several short stories by Raymond Carver interlock in a mosaic of Los Angeles populated by scores of actors in ensemble mode. Clocking in at three hours, Altman’s epic has all the time and space it needs.

Short Cuts

Blu-ray

The Criterion Collection 265

1993 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 187 min. / available through The Criterion Collection / Street Date October 18, 2016 / 39.95

Starring Andie MacDowell, Bruce Davison, Jack Lemmon, Julianne Moore,

Matthew Modine, Anne Archer, Fred Ward, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Chris Penn, Lili Taylor, Robert Downey Jr., Madeleine Stowe, Tim Robbins, Lily Tomlin, Tom Waits, Frances McDormand, Peter Gallagher, Annie Ross, Lori Singer, Lyle Lovett, Buck Henry, Huey Lewis, Margery Bond, Robert DoQui.

Cinematography Walt Lloyd

Production Designer Stephen Altman

Art Direction Jerry Fleming

Film Editors Suzy Elmiger, Geraldine Peroni

Original Music Gavin Friday, Mark Isham

Written by Robert Altman, Frank Barhydt from writings...

From the first time I saw it until this moment, two days before what might just be the most important, potentially resonant (for good and ill) American presidential election since the days of the Civil War, no other movie has expanded in my view more meaningfully, more ambiguously, with more fascination than has Robert Altman’s Nashville. We often hear of movies which “transcend” their genres, or their initial ambitions or intentions, and often built into that alleged transcendence is a condescension to said genre, or those ambitions or intentions, as if the roots were somehow corrupt or unworthy, in need of reconstruction. If the form of Nashville transcends anything, it’s the shape and scope of the multi-character drama as we’d come to know it in 1975, which was dominated at the time by disaster movies and their jam-packed casts filled with old Hollywood veterans and Oscar winners. But...

“Y’all take it easy now. This isn’t Dallas, it’s Nashville! They can’t do this to us here in Nashville! Let’s show them what we’re made of. Come on everybody, sing! Somebody, sing!”

Nashville screens one time only Thursday, September 24th at The Tivoli Theater (6350 Delmar Blvd, St. Louis) at 7pm

In a decade of great films, Nashville is one of the greatest. I saw Nashville during its initial theatrical release and have seen it several times since but it has not played on the big screen (at least in St. Louis) in a long time. In 1974 director Robert Altman was directing films for United Artists and wanted them to produce his film Thieves Like Us. They agreed if he would agree to direct a story about country music that they had a script for. He rejected the script and said he would offer them...

Ann-Margret movies: From sex kitten to two-time Oscar nominee. Ann-Margret: 'Carnal Knowledge' and 'Tommy' proved that 'sex symbol' was a remarkable actress Ann-Margret, the '60s star who went from sex kitten to respected actress and two-time Oscar nominee, is Turner Classic Movies' star today, Aug. 13, '15. As part of its “Summer Under the Stars” series, TCM is showing this evening the movies that earned Ann-Margret her Academy Award nods: Mike Nichols' Carnal Knowledge (1971) and Ken Russell's Tommy (1975). Written by Jules Feiffer, and starring Jack Nicholson and Art Garfunkel, the downbeat – some have found it misogynistic; others have praised it for presenting American men as chauvinistic pigs – Carnal Knowledge is one of the precursors of “adult Hollywood moviemaking,” a rare species that, propelled by the success of disparate arthouse fare such as Vilgot Sjöman's I Am Curious (Yellow) and Costa-Gavras' Z, briefly flourished from...

Coffy/Foxy Brown/Friday Foster

Coffy and Foxy Brown written and directed by Jack Hill

Friday Foster written by Orville H. Hampton, directed by Arthur Marks

USA, 1973/1974/1975

Olive Films recently released several Blaxploitation titles on Blu-ray for the first time, all on the same day. This included the Fred Williamson-starring Hammer, from 1972, as well as three Pam Grier films: Coffy (1973), Foxy Brown (1974), and Friday Foster (1975). Hammer isn’t a particular favorite, but these latter three were most welcome, especially Coffy, which is quite possibly the greatest of all Blaxploitation features, even better than the more popular Shaft (1971) and Super Fly (1972). As much as anything, these three releases are notable for showcasing Grier at her finest during a period of immensely enjoyable work and exceptional productivity—15 films from her minor debut in Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970) to Friday Foster. Around these films, she also starred in several other...

'San Andreas' movie with Dwayne Johnson. 'San Andreas' movie box office: $100 million domestic milestone today As the old saying (sort of) goes: If you build it, they will come. Warner Bros. built a gigantic video game, called it San Andreas, and They have come to check out Dwayne Johnson perform miraculous deeds not seen since ... George Miller's Mad Max: Fury Road, released two weeks earlier. Embraced by moviegoers, hungry for quality, original storylines and well-delineated characters – and with the assistance of 3D surcharges – the San Andreas movie debuted with $54.58 million from 3,777 theaters on its first weekend out (May 29-31) in North America. Down a perfectly acceptable 52 percent on its second weekend (June 5-7), the special effects-laden actioner collected an extra $25.83 million, trailing only the Melissa McCarthy-Jason Statham comedy Spy, (with $29.08 million) as found at Box Office Mojo.* And that's how this original movie – it's not officially a remake,...

Stars: Pam Grier, Booker Bradshaw, Robert DoQui, William Elliott, Allan Arbus, Sid Haig, Barry Cahill, Lee de Broux, Ruben Moreno, Lisa Farringer, Carol Locatell, Linda Haynes, John Perak | Written and Directed by Jack Hill

If there is one thing about Quentin Tarantino we can be sure of, it’s that he loves movies. For film fans who don’t know too much about the “Blaxploitation” genre they may not have picked up the importance of Jackie Brown, or the fact that the movie was built around one actress, Pam Grier… To look at the reason for this, all you have to do is look no further than Arrow Video’s latest release Coffy.

Seen as one of the best films of the genre, Coffy (Pam Grier) is a nurse pushed to finding vengeance against the pimps, junkies and drug dealers who led to the hospitalisation of her sister. Playing out...

Director: Robert Altman Writers: Arthur Kopit (play Indians), Alan Rudolph (screenplay), Robert Altman (screenplay) Starring: Paul Newman, Joel Grey, Kevin McCarthy, Harvey Keitel, Allan F. Nicholls, Geraldine Chaplin, John Considine, Robert DoQui, Denver Pyle, Frank Kaquitts, Will Sampson, Pat McCormick, Shelley Duvall, Burt Lancaster Thanks to Kino Lorber Studio Classics, there’s now an excuse to revisit a film you […]...

‘RoboCop’ 2014 movie: Full-fledged flop at domestic box office (photo: Joel Kinnaman in ‘RoboCop’ 2014) Directed by José Padilha, and starring Joel Kinnaman and Abbie Cornish, Sony Pictures’ $100 million-budgeted RoboCop 2014 remake opened with disappointing numbers on Wednesday, February 12, 2014. Things improved a bit over the weekend, but there’s no denying that RoboCop 2014 will become a major domestic box office bomb. (See also: José Padilha hates ‘RoboCop’ 2014 filmmaking process.) According to studio estimates found at Box Office Mojo, Padilha’s remake of Paul Verhoeven’s 1987 "classic" (as mentioned elsewhere on this site, just about anything made before 2003 is considered a classic these days) landed in third place this extended Presidents Day Weekend, February 14-17, trailing both Warner Bros.’ overwhelmingly well-received The Lego Movie and Sony Pictures / ScreenGems’ low-budget romantic comedy About Last Night. Directed by Phil Lord and Chris Miller (Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, 21 Jump Street), and featuring the voices of Chris Pratt,...

RoboCop to have a special screening in Hollywood: Cast members Allen, Weller, and director Verhoeven to attend presentation followed by reception and Q&A The 1987 original RoboCop directed by Dutch filmmaker Paul Verhoeven, and starring Peter Weller and former Brian De Palma leading lady Nancy Allen, will have a special presentation at noon on Saturday, May 18, 2013, at the Harmony Gold Theater, located on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. The screening and reception, to be hosted by Allen, Weller, and Verhoeven, will also feature a Q&A and autograph session. (Pictured above: Allen and Weller in the original movie released more than a quarter of a century ago.) Proceeds from the pricy $75 / $125 tickets will go to weSPARK, which is described as "an organization that enhances the quality of life for cancer patients, family and friends by providing multiple services designed to help heal the mind, body and spirit." Tickets for the screening can be purchased here.

After all the debates, controversies, and stereotype accusations have cleared, looking back on Blaxploitation cinema today it’s easy to see healthy portions of the crime and action genres. Using these genres and the struggles of the black community, these films were created for those that wanted to see African American characters on the big screen not taking shit from the man, “getting over”, and–above all else—being the heroes in movies. In the documentary Baad Asssss Cinema, Samuel L. Jackson gives his take on the heroes of Blaxploitation: “We were tired of seeing the righteous black man. And all of a sudden we had guys who were…us. Or guys who did the things we wanted those guys to do.”

The unsung supporting players in these films that backed Fred Williamson and Pam Grier and many other stars were people acting and making a living off of it.

MGM has found its RoboCop writer.

The studio is hiring Joshua Zetumer to script the reboot of the 1987 science fiction film about a cop brought back from death and drafted to become a remorseless and ruthless cyborg cop. That plan is subverted when suppressed memories of his past life come back to haunt him.

MGM recently hired Brazilian director Jose Padilha, helmer of the cop franchise Elite Squad and the documentary Bus 174. Jose Padilha and Joshua Zetumer will collaborate closely in reinventing the film.

Joshua Zetumer recently wrote the script for The Infiltrator, the spy thriller script is set at Warner Bros as a potential starring vehicle for Leonardo DiCaprio. He also wrote drafts of Dune when Peter Berg was going to direct that remake at Paramount, and he scripted a fourth installment of The Bourne Identity before Universal instead developed a spinoff. Zetumer just turned in Vale, a supernatural...

MGM is in negotiations with Brazilian director Jos&#233 Padilha to helm their reboot of RoboCop. We reported just a few weeks back that RoboCop was among the several projects MGM is moving forward with, now that they have emerged from bankruptcy.

Black Swan director Darren Aronofsky had previously been attached to direct the reboot, before the studio shelved all of their projects due to their bankruptcy proceedings. However, after Darren Aronofsky took on The Wolverine directing job, he became unavailable since MGM wants to make this their first major project under the new studio leadership.

Robocop first hit theaters in 1987, starring Peter Weller as Alex J. Murphy, a Detroit cop who survives a near-death experience and becomes a new half-man, half-robot crime fighter known as Robocop. The action-adventure spawned two sequels with Robocop 2 in 1990 and RoboCop 3 in 1993.

No production schedule was revealed for the RoboCop remake.

RoboCop is in development .

Robocop was released January 1st,...

The Robocop Trilogy will be available on Blu-ray for the first time on October 5 and you know we have to celebrate this classic trilogy in high definition. We have a new contest running and we're giving away copies of this three-disc Bd set to our readers. You know these discs will surely go fast, so enter this new giveaway today.

Winners Receive:

Robocop Trilogy Blu-ray

Here's How To Win!

Just "Like" (fan) the MovieWeb Facebook page (below) and then leave a comment below telling us why these prizes must be yours!

If you already "Like" MovieWeb, just leave a comment below telling us why these prizes must be yours!

Packed full of memorable moments and Robocop quotes, the Robocop Trilogy is a fan must-have. Viewers can experience their favorite "human" robot in all three classic films, now on Blu-ray. Directors Paul Verhoeven (Total Recall, Basic Instinct) of Robocop, Irvin Kershner...

The Robocop Trilogy is hitting store shelves in high-def Blu-ray for the very first time on October 5. This new three-disc set will be priced at $59.98 Srp. You can take a look at the cover art below. No details on special features were given, but the set will feature all three theatrical films - Robocop, Robocop 2 and RoboCop 3. We'll keep you posted if any special feature updates are given:

Packed full of memorable moments and Robocop quotes, the Robocop Trilogy is a fan must-have. Viewers can experience their favorite "human" robot in all three classic films, now on Blu-ray. Directors Paul Verhoeven (Total Recall, Basic Instinct) of Robocop, Irvin Kershner of Robocop 2 and Fred Dekker (The Monster Squad, Night of the Creeps) of RoboCop 3 bring the half robot, half police officer to life with the help of an intensely talented cast, including Peter Weller (The Order; 24), Robert John Burke (Good Night,...

Make this blog item your home page for the rest of Oscar day. Tom O'Neil and Paul Sheehan are blogging live continuously all day. Keep hitting "refresh" for constant updates about what's happening at the Kodak Theatre.

9:06 p.m. — As with all of the past seven Oscars held at the Kodak Theater, the Governors Ball takes place in the adjoining Grand Ballroom which is 25,090 square feet. The menu for the Governors Ball was created by Wolfgang Puck for the fifteenth consecutive year. He promises the return of old favorites like tuna tartare in sesame miso cones and Maine lobster as well as, of course, caviar. And pastry chef Sherry Yard will once more be creating her gold-dusted chocolate Oscars as consolation prizes for those who didn’t get one of the real ones. Music will be spun by Kcrw radio host Jason Bentley who will alternate with The Impulse...

For me, the only part of the Oscars worth watching every year is their tribute video, highlighting those in the movie industry that passed away in the previous year. It always puts a lump in my throat and often surprises me due to the passing of people I hadn’t heard about. And with the actors who were popular decades ago, it gives me a sense of melancholy nostalgia.

TCM (Turner Classic Movies) has put together their version of a tribute video which you can watch below, and it gave me the same feelings I just mentioned (I wasn’t aware they do one every year). It’s a beautiful video and very classy. They did miss a couple of people which I mention below.

I would suggest you watch the video before moving on to the list of names below it. It includes actors, directors, composers, screenwriters, animators, etc.