Runtime: 90 minutes
Directed by: D'Urville Martin
Starring: Rudy Ray Moore, D'Urville Martin, Jerry Jones, Lady Reed, All of Dolemite's Girls
From: Dimension Pictures
Yep, I saw this cult classic late Saturday night. I have seen it a few times before, and while I always laugh at how inept it is and how often you see the boom mic, it's still quite charming, at least to me... as long as you ignore the obvious misogyny, that is. I give my thoughts below:
It was about time I reviewed this cult classic for Letterboxd. I had seen it a few times in my life but the last viewing was a long while ago. Thus, when TCM Underground showed it last night, I had to check it out.
Now, I understand why there are those that hate this. If you can't stand Rudy Ray Moore and his persona (or his not so great acting ability) then this will be a slog for you. This definitely is real low budget and in terms of filmmaking, it's terrible. The boom mic is visible an incredible number of times. The acting and performances... sometimes quite bad, although not as bad as the “martial arts” that Dolemite displays. Blows miss by a country mile yet they don't try to mask it with camera placement; oh no, it's as clear as day. No wonder that one of the biggest inspirations for Black Dynamite was this, including the intentional mistakes that Dynamite made.
All that said, this is so hilarious at the same time. The vibe, the funky soundtrack, the amazing 70's clothing, and most of all the incredible raps from Dolemite... tremendous. While the story certainly meanders (some time is spent seeing Moore doing his stand-up act), it's all entertaining to me. After all, how can you hate a movie with a character named HAMBURGER PIMP?
It's a simple tale where Dolemite tries to get revenge on the man who set him up and sent him to jail (Willie Green) and yet I do dig this movie for what it is. Moore did this with his own money after he couldn't get a movie with a traditional studio, thus this grungy low-budget effort which is charmingly inept. This is one of those films that is tough to rate as several ratings could apply. I guess I'll give it 3 stars and move on with my day.
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