Michael Jai White is notable because he's the first African American to portray a comic book superhero in a major Hollywood release. He did so for the film Spawn (1997). He is probably one of the greatest martial artists to appear on the silver screen and one of the few African American martial artists to reach his level of fame or higher. Most people probably know him from Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married? (2007), but, over the past 25 years, he has had an amazing career showcasing his incredible talent to do fight choreography unlike anyone else. Much like Sylvester Stallone before him, White wanted to show that he was more than just a beautiful beefcake by writing his own feature. White wrote Black Dynamite (2009), a spoof of blaxploitation films, as much as it was one itself. White was invoking Richard Roundtree in Shaft (1971) and Jim Kelly in Enter the Dragon (1973), honoring them as much as he was mocking that era of film-making. He not only wrote that 2009 spoof but he also starred in it, proving that he could absolutely fill the shoes of Roundtree or Kelly, as much as he could fill the shoes of someone like Mike Tyson, whom he also portrayed in a 1995 HBO flick.
Jai White continued writing. This feature represents his fourth screenplay. However, in 2011, White started directing. His first, couple of features were the two sequels to Never Back Down (2008), a film series that picks up on the so-called genre created by films like Fight Club (1999). This film is his first time directing something that wasn't based on an existing property. This is first time directing an original or non-sequel film. In many ways though, this film is a spiritual sequel to Black Dynamite. It's clear that White had fun making that blaxploitation spoof because this film is him basically doing it again. Instead of Roundtree and Kelly, this time, Jai White seems to be focusing his attention on the works of someone like Fred Williamson, although if anything, this film probably takes most of its inspiration from Buck and the Preacher (1972), which starred Sidney Poiter and Harry Belafonte.
Michael Jai White stars as the titular, Johnny Black, the son of a preacher and trick shooter. Johnny looked up to his father and admired him when he was little. All that was shattered when a murderous and racist, bank robber named Brett Clayton happened upon Johnny's father and killed him in cold blood. Johnny essentially became a vigilante on the run from the law, vowing to find Brett Clayton and kill him. Johnny is driven by vengeance. This doesn't mean that he goes around killing random people. In fact, he goes out of his way not to kill anyone who isn't Brett Clayton, even when he's drawing his guns. He's such a sharp-shooter that he knows how to fire his weapon without killing or mortally wounding.
He certainly has the swagger of Williamson and a similar sex appeal with an even greater physique. However, White leans more into the comedy. White's protagonist here has a similar backstory as that of The Harder They Fall (2021), which had some slight comedic elements. Yet, here, White doesn't just have comedic elements. His tone here is such that it feels more in the league of Blazing Saddles (1974) than Buck and the Preacher, even though the plot to White's film lifts a lot from that 1972 Poitier film. White indulges in a few sex jokes, aided by the likes of Erica Ash (Survivor's Remorse) and Anika Noni Rose (Dreamgirls) who play sisters. Both of whom might be love interests for Johnny Black. There's also the occasional slapstick.
It's a really funny and charming follow-up to Black Dynamite. The one true criticism is that it doesn't accent what are Jai White's strongest abilities. White is a martial artist. Yet, that aspect is barely highlighted here. It's now been almost 15 years since Black Dynamite, and White is reportedly in his mid to late 50's, so doing all that action choreography might not be physically what he wants to do much any more, but this film is less weighted on his physicality, as opposed to Black Dynamite. I didn't find myself missing it as the comedy and the gags here were enough to supplant any martial arts expectations.
Rated PG-13 for violence, strong language and some sexual material.
Running Time: 2 hrs. and 16 mins.
Available on VOD and DVD.
