Review: Shaft

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

PLOT: When his best friend is killed, a young FBI data analyst (Jessie T. Usher) turns to his estranged father for help. It just so happens though that his dad happens to be the baddest muthaf**ker of all time – John Shaft (Samuel L. Jackson).

REVIEW: The fact that there’s never really been a whole series of SHAFT movies is one of the great missed opportunities in Hollywood history. Granted, the original Shaft, Richard Roundtree, gave it a go in a major way, with three solid early seventies entries (SHAFT, SHAFT’S BIG SCORE & SHAFT IN AFRICA) before a misguided attempt at a toned-down TV series (that ran only seven episodes) put paid to the franchise for years to come. Still, Samuel L. Jackson/ John Singleton’s quasi-reboot back in 2000 was successful enough that it could and should have gotten a sequel. So why then did it take nineteen years?

Whatever the case, SHAFT is finally back in Tim Story/ Kenya Barris’s (“Black-ish) inspired updating, which puts John Shaft smack-dab in the middle of “woke” culture. Given the climate, I’m not sure there was any way to do this but as a comedy, but the people behind this make it work pretty damn well, giving us a smart updating of the series that’s a ton of fun to watch.

The movie works both as a sequel to the original films and a soft reboot, introducing Jessie Usher’s J.J, who’s destined to wear his dad’s leather duster. Having grown up raised by his single mom (Regina Hall), he’s an enlightened type. He’s a hip millennial with a nice loft, a LORD OF THE RINGS poster hanging on his wall, Lacrosse sticks proudly displayed, and a taste for coconut water. While you’d think he’d simply be the butt of jokes about how “unmanly” or “white” he is, SHAFT takes a different tact. Sure, Shaft Sr. constantly mocks him, but the movie never makes the case that he’s right and that J.J needs to be more “street” to succeed. Even if he’s nerdy and hates violence, he’s shown to be surprisingly proficient at whatever’s thrown his way early on (from a Capoeira beat down to a slow-mo gunfight memorably scored to The Ronettes’ “Be My Baby”).

By the same token, Shaft Sr. isn’t made to have mellowed out over the years, with our introduction to him being mid-coitus with a random, sexy stranger. As played by Jackson, he’s actually a lot more like the classic version of the character in this one than he was in the more toned-down 2000 film. Jackson looks at least a decade younger than his seventy years and seems to be having a blast once again playing a role he was born to play.

Story keeps the film rolling along, and if it’s a little short on action early on, the last act of the movie makes up for it in a big way, with some stylish, gory shootouts that are played seriously. The movie really finds its groove after a while, especially when the legendary Richard Roundtree is re-introduced as the original Shaft, who gets in on the action in a much bigger way than in the last film. He’s treated with respect here, and Roundtree really hasn’t lost a beat. As the younger Shaft, Usher’s extremely likable and handles the action scenes well. He has a real easy-going charm that bodes well for his future as a leading man, and this is a top-notch showcase for him.

If the movie has any real problems, the most prominent is the lack of a strong villain. We do get Isaach De Bankolé as Shaft Sr’s arch-nemesis, but he’s introduced a little too late into the film to make for a really credible threat for our invincible heroes (one thing the 2000 film nailed was the villains, memorably played by Jeffrey Wright and Christian Bale). They also could have played Isaac Hayes’s original theme a few more times, but I guess they were going for a more disciplined approach to nostalgia.

Suffice to say though, SHAFT is one of the better recent franchise re-imaginings and a strong vehicle for Jackson and Usher. Hopefully, it’ll do well enough to merit another couple of entries into the series – which I hope keeps going. After all, the world still needs a couple of legit badass heroes. Can you dig it?

Shaft

GREAT

8

-

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