Coonskin - Movie Review (Not for Everyone, Due to Language and Adult Themes)

Bryanston Distributing Company - 1975

"See, the production credits are what hook them in!"

Yup. This is it. This is what's going to get my blog shut down. I had to stoop this low. I had to review what Bakshi considers his best movie: Coonskin. 

I don't know what to make of the blaxploitation genre. I really do not. I don't know what it's like to be black, and I never will. I'll never, ever get it. Is race something to be exploited, even in media? What about satire? Does it matter if it was made by whites or blacks? I don't know. I tried writing a paper about the Birth of a Nation remake in college, and totally dropped the ball when trying to discuss the themes of race and film. 

What I do know is that the blaxploitation genre mainly targeted black audiences, glorifying certain things about black life, but it quickly spread and influenced others. Crime dramas, comedic films, and even horror moves fall into subgenres of blaxploitation, which is itself a subgenre of the exploitation genre. Usually, the exploitation genre does not aim for quality, and instead uses shock value to get asses in seats. 

However, blaxploitation movies come from a place of struggle and triumph. In fact, certain blaxploitation movies have gone down as some of the all-time greats, such as Do the Right Thing and Boyz in the Hood. You could even argue that Quentin Tarantino was heavily inspired by the genre. Seriously, watch him drop the n-bomb in Pulp Fiction. 

Yeah, the genre can get crass, and even the NAACP frowns on it, but you can't deny the impact. Am I a fan of the genre? Absolutely not. However, I'm going to at least give Coonskin a shot. It can't be that offensive, can it? 

Oh God

OH SHIT

FUCK ME WITH A STRAIGHT RAZOR, THIS IS OUR MAIN CHARACTER

This is going to be awful, and this isn't even my last review of the month. Procrastination is a foul temptress. And so is racism, I guess.

So after the opening credits, with musical accompaniment by Scatman Crothers, the movie starts out with a live-action segment. A preacher and his buddy played by Barry White are planning on breaking out their friend from prison. The friend, Randy, is talking to an older man, Pappy (Played by Scatman Crothers). Now, I should point out that already, we have Scatman Crothers and Barry White in this film. That's awesome.

So, while the preacher and Barry White get into a shootout with the police, Scatman Crothers... I mean Pappy, tells Randy a story about a rabbit, a bear, and a fox. Now, I have a half-working brain, so I can deduce that this is easily a take on Disney's Song of the South, which is easily one of Disney's biggest blemishes.

Now, quick side-note: Disney cartoons have dipped their toes into racism. Here's another thing: They've tried to cover it up. If you had Fantasia on VHS like I did as a kid, you remember that blackfaced faun from the Sunflower segment.

It's one thing to have black/racist caricatures, but it's another thing entirely to censor them, like what Disney did.

I think I'll let Whoopi Goldberg explain my feelings on censoring old cartoons.

What were we talking about again? Oh yeah, Coonskin.

So, we have Rabbit, Bear, and Fox. They've sold their house to a pimp due to some financial difficulties. And of course, the police are corrupt. Oh, and there are boobs in this movie. Not medical boobs, not NatGeo boobs. Sexy boobs. Those kind. It's not long before the cops end up killing eachother. The gang heads towards Harlem in search of fortune.

Another thing I should mention about Coonskin is that even the animated parts are inter-cut with live-action film, like during driving scenes and such. I guess I've been spoiled by Bakshi's trademark rotoscope animation style, I didn't expect more traditional animation. If it sounds like I'm doing a bad job explaining the film, it's because I am.

After a few run-ins with locals, namely Miss America, who we'll talk about in a bit, the trio walks into a club, where they are preached to about race by a naked fat black man, claiming to be Black Jesus's cousin. Trust me, it's smarter than it sounds. Of course, the whole thing is a scam. The trio start a riot in the club, steal the money, and kill the naked fat black man, and takes over his little racket, vowing to get rid of any opposition. This includes the mafia and the police.

So, here's Miss America. She shows up every once in a while, just sort of lingering. She's a metaphor for America, and while it is a bit heavy-handed at times, her actions basically reflect how mainstream America treated blacks at the time, with violence and misdirection.

After we're introduced to a villainous cop (Who doesn't last very long, thanks to drugs and blackface) the rest of the movie is a bit of a jumbled mess. After what I think is an intermission, the mafia tries to kill rabbit, but ends up seriously injuring bear. He becomes a boxer, and after a gag involving a tar rabbit (No doubt another reference to B'rer Rabbit) the mafia is defeated, concluding the animated segment.

The movie ends with Scatman Pappy and Randy escaping jail. Moral of the story: This movie is insane.

I don't rate movies based on quality. I rate them on how much they're worth your time. This movie is offensive, crass, and not very smart, but it is worth your time. Unlike Fire and Ice, this movie isn't boring in the least. Two-thirds of this movie are incoherent, but it's a satirical cartoon. What did you expect?

My final rating for Coonskin: 8/10. This movie is certainly controversial, but you'll need to see it for yourself. It's a blaxploitation acid trip, that'll certainly change you. I've seen people praise this film and bash it, but when a movie is both praised and heavily criticized, that just means there's nothing quite like it.

Come Wednesday, I'll close out the month with Bakshi's most famous movie, Fritz the Cat.