You wouldn't wanna piss off J.D. Walker and skip watching the VID, now would you?
“I’m takin’ yer car. G’night, sugar!”
Revenge is so very, very sweet, especially if you’re the restless soul of a swaggering, razor blade wieldin’, tough as nails 1940s hustler with a golden tongue and a diamond dick (allegedly). J.D.’s Revenge, which a film critic friend tried in vain to play at our local arthouse for years, is one of the strongest, yet most underrated of the blaxploitation movement’s brief but fruitful foray into horror during the 70s. It deftly blends the outrageous action and ribald humor we’ve come to expect with a righteously ferocious tale of vengeance delivered with no holds barred abandon by a terrific cast.
How is it that mild-mannered law student Isaac Hendrix suddenly becomes possessed by a slain gangster with an axe to grind? Meh...hypnosis? It’s rare for me to bestow a film so much leeway despite a paper-thin story catalyst and more than a few plot holes, but like a hot hand in a dice game, baby, the atmosphere is intense and electric. The divergent plotlines writer Jaison Starkes dreamed up may not converge in any significant manner, yet unpredictability is half the fun of watching this poor guy become increasingly unhinged. Punchy editing by longtime John Landis collaborator George Folsey Jr. keeps things spicy and director Arthur Marks displays a confidence indicative of his belief that just because he was a white man directing a quickie blaxploitation flick didn’t mean he shouldn’t give this narrative just as much care and attention as he would some big-time studio production. Even the simple act of panning from a parked car to a store front has a hauntingly strange aura as he allows Hendrix to exit the screen and we’re briefly shown the quietly haunting streets of N’Awlins during its early, pre-party hours. Of course, directing a movie is a lot easier when you’ve got an actor as skilled as Glynn Turman to inhabit such a dynamic, lunatic dual role.
“You really sumthin’ else.”
“Yeah! Me an’ Jesus!”
Most folks know Turman for his turn as the unfortunate small-town science teacher from Gremlins, but I think Stripe and the whole gang would think twice before messin’ around when J.D. Walker’s behind the wheel. It’s a flamboyant, shameless performance that Turman expertly calibrates for maximum effect as he waffles between Hendrix’s tenderness and Walker’s crude grandstanding. Yes, it’s ridiculous, but he imbues this wacky character with an edge that only appears clownish until he gets mean and boy, do things get dark. There are plenty of laughs, but this is one of those situations where the filmmakers chose not to soften the rougher edges of an extremely nasty individual, dead or alive. Long suffering but not without her own autonomous strength, Joan Pringle does a fine job, but her role gets shunted to the background as J.D. focuses on Lou Gossett’s boxer-turned-preacher and Fred Pinkard’s stony businessman. Gossett, displaying the kind of charisma that would later win him an Oscar, is totally believable as a man whose bravado could bring a congregation to their feet.
Sex and violence sells, so there’s plenty to be found here, especially the grisly gore factor; apropos for the flashbacks to the dingy killing floor of a slaughterhouse. More sex scenes would’ve been welcome, although it’s not entirely clear whether Hendrix is possessed when he lays with a young lady who’s actually Walker’s niece. Yikes. Plus, if the timeline is to be believed, she’d be in her mid-30s by then and Alice Jubert, who also plays Walker’s slain sister, does NOT look that old. Turman’s best friend is full of terrible advice, especially for a doctor, of all things, and the plot threads involving his friends and an ex-husband cop only play out as exposition. The ending is also far-fetched as both Gossett AND the police accept the evil spirit angle while entirely ignoring Walker/Hendrix’s brutal attack on a couple the night before. It’s only thanks to the bravura acting that these aspects only do minor damage to what’s otherwise a terrifically entertaining possession movie with a twist.
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