'Superfly'

I like Superfly for a blaxploitation film because it's pretty believable.

A cocaine dealer wanting to make one last huge haul and then retire. It's edgy and raw in that it paints a stark picture of the drug trade and intimate involvement from a number of levels, from street pushers to white government officials.

The film's taken criticism for making the unstated comment that the Civil Rights movement opened up schools and water fountains, but it still kept African Americans in a position of subservience. Instead of the white man, it was the white powder. And most will tell you that they are the same thing anyway.

If you really wanted to use Superfly as a gauge for the plight of the black American and the drug epidemic that put many into graves and many others behind bars. And in the end it was a white police commissioner pulling on the strings. This, of course, cites the aforementioned theory that drugs are just another set of chains for African Americans.

On the other hand, as debilitating drugs are, sticking a needle into your arm or snorting that line are choices. Just as Youngblood Priest was making a choice, there are still factors and overriding forces keeping you in.

Funny that it's the only film to be outgrossed by the soundtrack. Damn Curtis Mayfield.