Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song
It’s weird to say, but “The Simpsons” is the reason Melvin Van Peebles’s famous Blacksploitation film has been on my radar for a while. They riffed on this film’s title for an episode, and when I found out it referenced a movie, of course I was curious. But Van Peebles’s crime film is worthy of discovery on its own terms- it starts off wild, and becomes a wicked and angry and entertaining rage against the machine of systemic racism.
Van Peebles is a filmmaker who did it all here- writing, directing, producing editing, composing the score and starring as Sweetback himself. In a way, that’s the only way this movie could have been made. The result is loose and shaggy in terms of structure, but rich in style, sound and attitude. Admittedly, there are times when Sweetback is on the run where the film loses some steam, but the ending more than compensates for it. Sweetback’s not going down that easily.
Sweetback is a male prostitute. He started off as a towel boy at a brothel, but a woman takes him to bed, and is impressed by his sexual prowess. As an adult, he’s still impressing women, and is part of a show Beetle (Simon Chuckster) uses to get more clients. One night, two white officers are at the brothel, and they need a suspect to show their boss. Sweetback is chosen, but when they go to answer a call about breaking up a Black Panther rally, Sweetback will find himself on the run after they try to rough up the Panther, and Sweetback puts them in the hospital. He can never really go home again.
The soundtrack to this film is composed by Van Peebles, but performed (mostly) by Earth, Wind and Fire. There’s some terrific songs here to go with the orchestral score, and it’s an energetic listen that sets the tone for the film well. And Van Peebles and cinematographer Robert Maxwell do some interesting things visually as Sweetback’s story goes along that capture our attention, and add to a look for this film that draws us in even if it looks like the movie was made on a dime, which it does. It’s better for it. This isn’t studio filmmaking, but fierce independence, and that’s exactly what Sweetback represents.
Van Peebles is not subtle with his ideas on racism, nor should he be. Sweetback is an avenging force against “the man,” and honestly? They deserve to be taken down. This is a movie about rebellion against the way things have been, and moving forward. It’s also about Sweetback taking names, and getting ready for the fights to come. This was worth the wait to see for myself.
