Definitive Blaxploitation List (in Chronological Order)
Here is the list of films that I personally would place under the blaxploitation genre. There are a few that aren't really blaxploitation, ones that were marketed or edited later as such, but I feel like they should still be included for the history of it (notes have been added to those). Clearly the genre is basically four strong years with over thrity films made each year. This being from '72 to '76, and in the middle of that, '74 having the most. There is definitely a certain style though that starting in '70 and lasted till '82 for me. The beginning of the genre has some crossover with some women in prison type films, and the end of the list is aided by kung fu crossover titles. No TV movies have been added, as I feel they don't fit with the genre. Two films could not be added to the list for some reason, maybe because they are pornos. These titles however have a lot going for them, with music even being made specifically for the features. This is why I felt these needed to be on the list. There are 8 features that are deemed lost (though there are 2 of those that have been found, but not seen by the public). Of course the list is always up for debate.
Total Count: 235 films
Breakdown of Years:
1970: 08 films
1971: 09 films
1972: 35 films
1973: 34 films
1974: 41 films *could not be added to the list below: Lialeh (1974, January 9th)
1975: 34 films
1976: 31 films *could not be added to the list below: Tongue (1976, February)
1977: 17 films
1978: 09 films
1979: 08 films
1980: 01 film
1981: 04 films
1982: 03 films
Total Count: 235 films
Breakdown of Years:
1970: 08 films
1971: 09 films
1972: 35 films
1973: 34 films
1974: 41 films *could not be added to the list below: Lialeh (1974, January 9th)
1975: 34 films
1976: 31 films *could not be added to the list below: Tongue (1976, February)
1977: 17 films
1978: 09 films
1979: 08 films
1980: 01 film
1981: 04 films
1982: 03 films
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- DirectorRalph NelsonStarsJim BrownGeorge KennedyFredric MarchRacial tensions threaten to explode when a black man is elected Sheriff of a small, racially divided town in the deep south....tick...tick...tick... (1970, January 9th)
- DirectorPaul BogartStarsCalvin LockhartJanet MacLachlanJeff BridgesAn all-black inner city school has to become an integrated school. Few dozen white kids are transferred there, but the black students are aggressively opposed to this. The school then approaches a tough black teacher for help.Halls of Anger (1970, April 29th)
- DirectorHal AshbyStarsBeau BridgesLee GrantDiana SandsNaïve 29-year-old Elgar Enders buys a building in a black Brooklyn ghetto to evict the tenants and upgrade it. But instead, he grows fond of the tenants and falls in love with a mixed-race girl while his wealthy parents disapprove.The Landlord (1970, May 20th)
- DirectorOssie DavisStarsGodfrey CambridgeRaymond St. JacquesCalvin LockhartTwo Harlem cops investigate a robbery, believing that a reverend has staged it in order to steal the money he's collected for a local fundraiser.Cotton Comes to Harlem (1970, May 27th)
- DirectorMelvin Van PeeblesStarsGodfrey CambridgeEstelle ParsonsHoward CaineJeff Gerber, a racist white man, wakes up one morning to discover that he has become black.The Watermelon Man (1970, May 27th)
- DirectorGordon DouglasStarsSidney PoitierMartin LandauBarbara McNairIn San Francisco, a high-priced call girl is murdered and the case is assigned to Police Lieutenant Virgil Tibbs.They Call Me Mister Tibbs! (1970, July 8th)
- DirectorLaurence MerrickStarsDes RobertsJohn King IIILinda JacksonWhen an African-American biker gang is tricked into believing that a white biker gang is planning a war, all hell breaks loose.Black Angels (1970, October 14th)
- DirectorJohn 'Bud' CardosStarsRobert DoQuiIsaac FieldsBarbara HaleA recruit joins an all-black cavalry regiment led by a white man in the post-Civil War West.The Red, White, and Black (1970, December 16th)
- DirectorMelvin Van PeeblesStarsMelvin Van PeeblesHubert ScalesJohn DullaghanAfter saving a Black Panther from some racist cops, a black male prostitute goes on the run from "the man" with the help of the ghetto community and some disillusioned Hells Angels.Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song (1971, April 23rd)
- DirectorJack HillStarsRoberta CollinsPam GrierJudith BrownBeautiful female prisoners are abused in a Philippine prison until five of them plot an escape by taking the evil female warden hostage with reluctant help from two male fruit vendors.The Big Doll House (1971, April 30th)
- DirectorGordon ParksStarsRichard RoundtreeMoses GunnCharles CioffiA crime lord hires black private eye, John Shaft, to find and retrieve his kidnapped daughter.Shaft (1971, June 25th)
- DirectorRobert GoodwinStarsBernie CaseyBarbara ORichard ElkinsYoung black man joins a black nationalist group, which is betrayed by a turncoat.Black Chariot (1971, June) *lost
- DirectorJohn EvansStarsWinston ThrashPamela DoneganEllen BrownA poet seeks revenge on the criminal responsible for the death of his mother.Speed Up Time (1971, July 16th)
- DirectorWendell FranklinStarsMike B. SimsLonnie BradfordStephanie FaulknerA young black soldier returns home to Los Angeles from combat in Vietnam to find out that his brother had been killed by a gang of racist cops. Angered, he joins a black nationalist group to take his revenge.The Bus Is Coming (1971, July)
- DirectorGerardo de LeonStarsJudith BrownRoberta CollinsJennifer GanAmerican women prisoners in a foreign country. Sex and action.Women In Cages (1971, October 20th)
- DirectorDon MedfordStarsSidney PoitierBarbara McNairGerald S. O'LoughlinIn San Francisco, Police Lieutenant Virgil Tibbs helps a group of idealistic vigilantes expose a drug ring controlled by powerful businessmen.The Organization (1971, October 20th)
- DirectorWilliam A. GrahamStarsBrenda SykesJohn NealsonMaia DanzigerSheila, an affluent black teenager, begins dating working class white teen Wayne, and asks him for help to sell a kilo of marijuana.Honky (1971, November 26th)
- DirectorRalph BakshiStarsSkip HinnantRosetta LeNoireJohn McCurryIn the late 1960s, a pretentious, womanizing young cat drops out of college, starts a riot in Harlem, hits the road with an ex-girlfriend and gets mixed up with domestic terrorists.Fritz The Cat (1972, January 25th)
- DirectorGordon HesslerStarsRichard RoundtreeChuck ConnorsMarie-José NatA Russian spy penetrates into the U.S. Embassy in Beirut, Lebanon to try to kill a Soviet defector under asylum there.Embassy (1972, February)
- DirectorStig BjörkmanStarsDiana SandsDirk BenedictMinnie GentryWhen an African-American singer travels to Stockholm, Sweden to perform, she meets an American deserter and they fall in love, but her friend and assistant Alberta warns her to stick to her own kind.Georgia, Georgia (1972, March 10th)
- DirectorMartin GoldmanStarsFred WilliamsonD'Urville MartinDon Pedro ColleyA slave kills a white man in self-defense and heads West towards freedom, pursued by a professional slave hunter.The Legend of *beep* Charley (1972, March 17th)
- DirectorsSidney PoitierJoseph SargentStarsSidney PoitierHarry BelafonteRuby DeeA wagon master and a con-man preacher help freed slaves dogged by cheap-labor agents out West.Buck and the Preacher (1972, March 17th)
- DirectorBarry PollackStarsThalmus RasulalaJudy PaceJulian ChristopherThalmus is the leader for a group of criminals who gather in L.A. to rob a bank. Their goal is to find a new bank.Cool Breeze (1972, March 22nd)
- DirectorIvan DixonStarsRobert HooksPaul WinfieldRalph WaiteLos Angeles mobsters and police crowd a private eye.Trouble Man (1972, April 14th)
- DirectorOscar WilliamsStarsBilly Dee WilliamsD'Urville MartinCelia KayeBlack revolutionaries take action in the white suburbs.The Final Comedown (1972, April)
