This Week: blaxploitation.com

When they came out in the '70s, very few blaxploitation films were viewed as "art." Instead, these low-budget action pics were considered to be rather cheezy attempts to exploit a newly-discovered audience: African Americans. But like them or not, blaxploitation pics became a mainstream phenomenon, which was a first for black-themed films. Previous efforts in African American cinema were targeted specifically at black audiences (such as films by Oscar Micheaux in the '20s). Meanwhile, Hollywood's sporadic attempts were aimed mostly at whites, and ranged from insulting stereotypes in the '30s and '40s (even in quality productions like Cabin in the Sky) to the message films of Sidney Poitier in the late '50s and '60s. But blaxploitation, for all its gruesome killings and decked-out pimps, gathered fans both black and white all over the world. Today, blaxploitation films are seen as art–not only in capturing the mood of the times when they were made, but in their music soundtracks and poster designs. Ed Griffiths, a 29-year-old Londoner, runs one of the best websites devoted to the genre, blaxploitation.com.

What was the first blaxploitation film you saw? What was your reaction?

Shaft. I thought it had a real energy that was lacking in most 70s white movies, and of course the music was superb.

What's your favorite blaxploitation movie and why?

Black Belt Jones. Jim Kelly at his best, great music, some good kung-fu, a strong female lead, all-round entertainment.

What do you think of more current attempts at blaxploitation, like Shaft or Jackie Brown?

Jackie Brown seemed good, and valid in its own right as a movie. Shaft 2000, well, it was just a remake. I enjoyed many of John Singleton's early movies and think that they're better films with less compromise.

Why do these films fascinate you?

Because of their place in a social context–like all movies, they're a product of their time and reflect the concerns and aspirations of those who make them.

Why do you think such an American genre would have international appeal?

I don't think it's an exclusively American genre–the essential themes of these movies are applicable to most people anywhere in the world.

How did you proceed to learn about them?

Initially it was pretty hard work. Information was very hard to find (see below!) and after a couple of years, I found the Black Action Films book by Parish and Hill, the genre classic.

Why did you decide to create a website devoted to blaxploitation movies?

The site was started by Eric Tscherne, the designer, and myself in 1997 after a year's worth of offline prototypes. Eric does all the layout work and much of the movie and poster stills work, while I write and edit much of the copy, handle the webmaster elements, run the soundtracks section and make sure we get regular updates to the movies and posters areas too.

How did you gather the material on the site?

We've both been collecting memorabilia for over 10 years now. Most of what's on the site comes from our own collections, while we always welcome contributions and people have been very generous with their time. We've always viewed the site as a non-commercial community venture that anyone can get involved in if they wish—our articles, for example, have been written by contributors from all walks of life and all continents.

Any interesting stories about collecting particular pieces?

I'd been looking for the rare Brother On The Run soundtrack, only issued in the USA, for approaching 10 years. I'd spent days digging for it in warehouses in the USA, hours on the phone to specialist dealers, weeks going through online inventories on the web with no joy. I'd pretty much given up on finding it. Then one day a couple of years back I took a lunchtime walk and found a still-sealed copy in the local second hand store just around the corner in London!

What kinds of reactions have you gotten to the site?

Generally the reaction has been extremely positive. We do get the occasional abusive mail. There's definitely a community to the black cinema genre, from whole new generations of fans (we receive mail from high school students who are working on school projects, for example) to people who saw these movies 30 years ago and enjoy finding out more or tracking down a copy on video. We also hear from actors and crew who have been helpful in correcting errors and providing useful background information–many thanks to everyone who writes to us, we always read every letter.

What else would you like to do with your site?

We'd like to expand the multimedia aspects and introduce more community features. Look out for Version 2 of the site in the next six months or so!

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