Film
What's on at the cinema plus reviews of the latest movie and DVD releases
Bookmark this pageBlack Caesar (1973)
Director: Larry Cohen
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
Retitled for release in Britain, although Black Caesar gives a more accurate indication of the film's theme of the hero as over-reacher. James Brown belts out 'Ain't It Cool to Be a Boss' as Williamson decides to take over Harlem's crime from the whites, ostensibly to give the blacks a better deal. In doing so, he ends up a white man's nigger, aping all that he has intended to destroy, and losing his girl into the bargain. Unfortunately it all remains too crude to convince one of its better intentions. What survives is a chase with the wounded Williamson riding taxi through snarled-up streets, his pursuers on foot; an extraordinary wish-fulfilment fantasy where a white middle class party (albeit of gangsters) is mown down; and an ending that caters for the inevitable sequel 'Hell Up in Harlem'.Author: CPe
Cast & crew
Director: Larry Cohen
Producer: Larry Cohen
Cast: Fred Williamson, D'Urville Martin, Gloria Hendry, Art Lund, Val Avery, Minnie Gentry, Julius W Harris full cast
Duration: 96 mins
Most popular on this site
Top Stories
Time Out's 101 Films of the Decade
Ten years, thousands of movies and millions of dollars in international box office, and it all boils down to this
Martin Provost discusses 'Séraphine'
Trevor Johnston talks to the director of 'Séraphine' about bringing a little known French painter back to life
Our verdict on Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones
Peter Jackson ends a triumphant decade with a sentimental misfire with this lush Alice Sebold adaptation
On the set of Ken Loach's 'Route Irish'
Dave Calhoun meets Ken Loach on the set of his forthcoming Iraq war movie
Stephen Poliakoff discusses 'Glorious 39'
Stephen Poliakoff’s ‘Glorious 39’ is his first film for cinema since ‘Food of Love’ in 1997. Dave Calhoun met him
Is 'Paranormal Activity' the new 'Blair Witch'?
How does a film go from DIY experiment to box-office smash? 'Paranormal Activity' director Oren Peli explains
Steven Soderbergh on 'The Informant!' and 'The Girlfriend Experience'
We talk to Steven Soderbergh about his two forthcoming films: one featuring a porn star, the other a chubby Matt Damon
A gateway to all things 'New Moon'
In anticipation of 'The Twilight Saga: New Moon', Time Out is offering the chance to pick up a limited edition pack with three exclusive magazines and a free poster.
The films that deserve a TV spin-off
With Roland Emmerich suggesting he'd like to make a '2012' TV spin-off, we propose some more movie-to-TV serialisations
Time Out's 50 greatest animated films with commentary by Terry Gilliam
In celebration of the release of Pixar's 'Up' and Wes Anderson's 'Fantastic Mr Fox', read our rundown of fifty classic feature length animations
What do you think?
Post your review now