Sheba, Baby

Lesser Pam Grier blaxploitation movie has Pam as Sheba, a tough private investigator who returns to her hometown of Louisville, KY to fight mobsters who are pushing her father around. While there she finds time to romance Austin 'Assault on Precinct 13' Stoker. Less gritty and sexy than Grier's blaxploitation classics Foxy Brown and Coffy. The acting is wooden, the direction amateurish, the action slow, and the dialogue lacks punch. None of this is uncommon with blaxploitation films, but this one is lacking the sex, violence, and colorful language that usually spackles over the cracks in these things. The film being shot on location in Louisville does add some authenticity and local flavor, which helps. The movie is propped up mostly just by Grier's screen presence. So completists will want to see it for sure. Those expecting something with a little more spice to it are likely to be disappointed.