1972
blaxploitation film starring
Ron O'Neal and directed by
Gordon Parks, Jr.. O'Neal plays Youngblood Priest, a
drug dealer who wants to get out of the business by
scoring a huge
cocaine deal and running off to start a new life. Unfortunately, "
The Man" doesn't want Priest to leave, and gives him the choice of either continuing to sell for the
mob, or dying. The movie is the story of his plan to
stick it to the man and get out of
the dope game.
This movie is pretty bad, and is true blaxploitation, unlike Shaft. Shaft had a sympathetic lead character who is attempting to right wrongs. SuperFly just has bad guys battling against bad buys for supremacy. Priest is snorting coke and abusing others during the whole movie. The upside to the experience is, like Shaft, the soundtrack, written and performed by Curtis Mayfield, rocks. It is generally regarded as Mayfield's best work. Pity it was done in such an offensive film. I don't think there is a scene in the whole movie with more than 4 black people gathered in which there is not a senseless fight. I mean the hero was a cocaine dealer. What a role model.