cult film freak: DIRECTOR JONATHAN KAPLAN LOCKS JIM BROWN IN 'THE SLAMS'

Written by James M. Tate / 5/20/2023 / No comments / blaxploitation , charles cyphers , exploitation , frenchia guizon , heist , herbert jefferson jr. , jack cassidy , jerry jones , jim brown , jonathan kaplan , judy pace , paul harris , prison , roland bob harris , seventies

DIRECTOR JONATHAN KAPLAN LOCKS JIM BROWN IN 'THE SLAMS'

5/20/2023 | No comment

Jim Brown in THE SLAMS Year: 1973 Director: Jonathan Kaplan Rates: ***1/2

A year before directing Isaac Hayes in the violent yet breezy blaxploitation TRUCK TURNER, director Jonathan Kaplan put Jim Brown in prison for a more sparse and serious THE SLAMS, mostly taking place behind bars but without relying on melodramatic prison tropes, since everything that goes down... from bullies to shiv-fights to mean guards... is tightly connected to the plot...

Where Jim Brown, an idealistic criminal from a groovy heist prologue, stole and hid loot from the mob, and, once locked-up, a gangster hires gigantic convict Ted Cassady to attempt getting the formidable Brown to confess...

Roland Bob Harris and Jim Brown in THE SLAMS

Making the more cerebral than physical, fast-talking prison captain Roland Bob Harris a far more effective villain (better than a stereotypical tyrannical warden), connecting to Brown's newscaster girlfriend Judy Pace while working with pimp Paul Harris (also a pimp in TURNER), to either locate the money or plan a mutual escape...

And while the predictably safe and self-contained Jim Brown's tough enough from any interior adversary, Jonathan Kaplan's creative 70's-style direction keeps the suspense on par with the non-stop action.

Jim Brown in THE SLAMS

Herbert Jefferson Jr. in THE SLAMS with Frenchia Guizon and Jim Brown

Roland Bob Harris in THE SLAMS

Jim Brown in THE SLAMS with Jack Cassidy

Ted Cassidy in THE SLAMS

Judy Pace in THE SLAMS

Jim Brown in THE SLAMS

Ted Cassidy in THE SLAMS

Roland Bob Harris and Jim Brown in THE SLAMS

Jim Brown in THE SLAMS

Paul Harris in THE SLAMS

Jim Brown in THE SLAMS

Herbert Jefferson Jr. in THE SLAMS with Frenchia Guizon

Jack Cassidy in THE SLAMS

Jim Brown in THE SLAMS

Roland Bob Harris and Judy Pace in THE SLAMS

Roland Bob Harris and Jerry Jones in THE SLAMS

Judy Pace in THE SLAMS

Jim Brown in THE SLAMS

Herbert Jefferson Jr. in THE SLAMS with Frenchia Guizon

Paul Harris and Charles Cyphers in THE SLAMS

Jim Brown in THE SLAMS

Intro for THE SLAMS

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Tags : blaxploitation , charles cyphers , exploitation , frenchia guizon , heist , herbert jefferson jr. , jack cassidy , jerry jones , jim brown , jonathan kaplan , judy pace , paul harris , prison , roland bob harris , seventies

James M. Tate

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