This was only my second foray into the world of 70s blaxploitation, but already I am getting a pretty clear grasp of what made the sub-genre quite so exciting and controversial back in the day. Between this and Foxy Brown—noted as two of the defining examples of the genre—it’s plain to see what caused all that public uproar. Both films feature a cast of Black characters who adopt largely disreputable roles—those of drug dealers, pimps, street thugs, and prostitutes—and contain wildly exaggerated notions of what life was really like in the ghettos, all of which understandably only reinforced the widely held stereotypes that the general public held towards African-American people at the time. But on the other hand, it’s very clear what the purpose of these films was—that is, to make up for the under-representation of prominent Black actors on screen, and to give a mainstream voice to the Black Power movement by presenting stories in which Black protagonists fought back against their white oppressors.

I think I found Foxy Brown more entertaining than this one overall, purely because it commits that bit more to just how ridiculous its premise is. Otherwise, the two do share a lot of similarities, which I guess is no real surprise considering that both featured the same lead and shared very similar plot points—namely a no-nonsense female protagonist, hellbent on revenge after a loved one is killed, who poses as a prostitute to get closer to her targets. This film is played a lot straiter than 'Foxy', and although it isn’t devoid of the genre’s typically outrageous and overdone elements, it perhaps just isn’t goofy enough to be nearly as enjoyable. However, it is still very clear in terms of its purpose and message, and for that alone it is worthy of its renown.

What the film may lack in acting pedigree, three-dimensional characters, or engaging narrative, it more than makes up for with some typically smooth funk jams, hilarious dialogue, catfights, gratuitous nudity, and Pam Grier kicking all-kinds of butt and shotgunning pimps square in the face.