Fred Williamson was a bit of a renaissance man for his time.
The ex-pro football player who went on to achieve fame and fortune in the
movies was the first mega male star in the Blaxploitation genre. But he was
more than just an actor, producing and writing many of the films he later
starred in as well as providing jobs for people of color behind the scenes. His
success was made from his turning around and investing himself and his money in
the business as opposed to be handed the keys to the kingdom. In return he had
a long and successful career that was well earned.
In this film Williamson stars as B.J. Hammer, a dock worker
who tires of seeing a friend beat up by a union boss who actually works for the
mob. When a fist fight breaks out and he takes down the man, the word gets out
and the same mob boss thinks he may have a new fighter to place in the ring.
Hammer is given the chance to become a prize fighter and he takes it.
What he doesn’t realize is that the fight game is not as
clear cut as one would think. His trainer and manager is on the level but the
promoters are not. When the promoter (Charles Lumpkin) tells him to take a
dive, Hammer refuses and the result is the near death beating of his trainer.
As with most films in this genre that sets Hammer out on a path of revenge
against the men behind the scenes, Mr. Big and his henchmen.
Williamson turns in a decent performance here but nothing
stupendous. Keep in mind this was early in his career and he kept getting
better with each and every role. William Smith as the hired muscle for the main
bad guy does a nice job as he always did in roles like this. His was one of
those faces where most see him and say “Oh yeah, that guy” without realizing
his name. The threatening nature of his character here is well done but funny
in some ways as well.
While this is not the best example of the genre it is one
that deserves mention and notice. As I said, Williamson went on to more major
roles in studio made pictures as well as making his own films at the same time.
It was a successful business plan that not only brought more people of color
into the fold but placed them in better positions than most had in the past.
Films from the genre of Blaxploitation need to be recognized and watched so
that others will learn the history of films from the 70s and 80s that helped
advance the way things were to the way they are now. While not the best
Williamson film, this is a great way to begin to discover where it all began.
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