Wizard-8 This sequel to the popular blaxploitation hit "Black Caesar" was cheaply and hastily shot, and it shows. It is pretty obvious at times that star Fred Williamson wasn't always available, meaning that he's either doubled or his character simply doesn't appear at all in a scene. The low budget and speedy production also shows in other aspects, one being the screenplay. There isn't too much of a story here. Indeed, it seems at times writer/director Larry Cohen was making things up during the shoot. But despite the crude nature, the movie all the same kind of works. It is fast paced, and never boring. And Fred Williamson does manage to make his character magnetic enough that you keep watching him. Apparently audiences agreed, since this sequel was successful enough at the box office that the studio planned a third movie concerning the adventures of character Tommy Gibbs, but those plans were eventually cancelled.

tavm So a couple of days after I watched Black Caesar on Hulu, I got my Soul Cinema Double Feature DVD and saw the movie's sequel there: Hell Up in Harlem (by the way, Cotton Comes to Harlem was the other feature). Like the movie serials of long ago, this follow-up ignores some of the details of the last one (like the fact that after Tommy Gibbs is shot, he dies when a group of ghetto kids beat him up). Also, the father as played by Julius Harris wasn't someone who admired his son's lifestyle in the previous one yet here he seems to relish the chance to be his son's partner. One more thing, it seems convenient that D'Urville Martin's crooked preacher of the first one is suddenly reformed as a real one here though he goes back to his previous characterization soon enough. Anyway, this time the villain is district attorney DiAngelo (Gerald Gordon) who seems to want Gibbs real bad to the point of willingly taking Tommy's ex-wife (Glora Hendry) with him when she tells him about those ledgers that was a plot point in the previous movie. I'll just stop there and say that despite the contradictions inherent between both movies, I enjoyed this one perhaps a little more due to more action (clumsly as some of it is) and less of a serious tone. Certainly the revenge scenes of the respective villains in both movies provide some sort of catharsis to anyone who suffered through many of the stereotypical characterizations of African-Americans from previous years. I have to admit though that some of the scenes of Tommy and his "son" border on the cheezily saccharine. Good thing they're very brief. In summary, Hell Up in Harlem is a bit more fun compared to its predecessor even though writer/director Larry Cohen was involved with both. And while the songs by Edwin "War" Starr aren't as good as those of James Brown in the predecessor, they're okay. So, yeah, that's a recommendation. P.S. The trailer presented with the movie has an extra scene in which female black maids and members of an Italian mob are singing "The Star-Spangled Banner" with Williamson saying, "Isn't America great?" Amusing stuff though I can see why it didn't end up in the movie.

JasparLamarCrabb A lousy action film starring Fred Williamson. He's back as the "Black Godfather." This time he's trying to outwit a crooked DA and mend the broken relationship with his father (Julius Harris). It's pretty dull and, as directed by Larry Cohen, very badly put together. The editing is atrocious and Cohen's script is alternately tough and sappy. The title is also somewhat misleading since very little action even takes place in Harlem. Williamson has presence but not much acting talent. Classy Harris saves the film from being a total debacle. D'Urville Martin is fine as one of Williamson's cronies turned priest and Margaret Avery is "Sister Jennifer," who for some reason appears to be in a walking coma.

Poseidon-3 Audiences who saw Williamson's character get beaten to death at the end of "Black Caesar" (an ending Larry Cohen later snipped out after enduring protest from some viewers) may have been confused to see this sequel turn up the same year in which he's alive, if not exactly well. Or perhaps Williamson was so popular in the part that they forgave the inconsistency or maybe even forgot that he'd died and just settled in for a blaxploitation ride. In any case, here he is, suffering from a gun wound and calling his heretofore-estranged father Harris for help. Harris, who was a cosmetics sales rep (!) in the first film suddenly has no qualms about becoming every bit the gangster that Williamson is and they adopt a father-son approach to their organization. They also, for some reason, take the kids of Williamson's old flame Hendry with her now-dead husband and claim them as their own flesh and blood! However, when underling King decides he wants to move up the ladder and frames Harris for a killing that Williamson doesn't approve of, it creates a rift that causes Williamson to depart the business with his new love Avery and move to California. When King and Harris square off and Harris comes out on the losing end, followed by Williamson enduring an in-home invasion, he departs for New York City once again, going on the rampage that is the title occasion. Williamson, who was already contracted to work on another film, did this movie on weekends while a body double played him in the long shots and, considering that, he turns in a reasonably good performance. Harris, in an elevated role from the prior film, is good as well despite the significant change in the characterization. Hendry gets treated pretty shabbily here, but does a nice enough job with her abbreviated role. Avery gives a soft-spoken, generally appealing performance, though it is rather thankless. This is a far less cohesive and polished (if that's even the right word!) film than it's predecessor, but it's an action-filled and fairly captivating one. Again, the gritty location filming and the tough attitude of the film, along with some amusing 70's costumes, enhance the experience. For whatever reason, the "N" word is tossed around far less this time around than before. Williamson, who had a darkly lit and unrevealing love scene in "Black Caesar" here has a rear nude scene while making love to Avery. This same year, he did a Playgirl layout that showed glimpses of his nude body, understandably toned from a life of athletics.