"A Place Called Today" is a rather bad and obscure but curiously fascinating 70s flick, and the more I contemplate about it, the happier I am to have stumbled upon a decent copy (because it is very rare...). It's not exactly a full-blooded Blaxploitation film, but more like a black political thriller/action movie, modeled after "In the Heat of the Night" and the underrated "...tick...tick...tick...".
First things first, though, the direction is truly terrible! Don Schain takes the worst possible decisions when it comes to camera angles, actors' management, and camera positions. But then again, the persona of writer/director Schain is also one of the main reasons why "A Place Called Today" turns out such a mysterious movie. I never heard of him before, but before and after this film Schain apparently only made sleazy sexploitation movies. Kind of like Russ Meyer or Andy Sidaris, always starring his muse Cheri Caffaro and with titles like "Girls are for Loving" and "Too Hot to Handle". Maybe it's just me, but I find it intriguing how someone like Schain suddenly gets the idea to write and direct a politically engaging and talkative (but admittedly still very sleazy) social drama about racial tensions in a big city.
The plot is worth narrating, for sure. In a nameless city (don't believe it's actually called "Today") the mayor elections are approaching, and the brave black attorney Randy Johnson puts himself forward as candidate. Worried that the rich, old and white mayor will triumph again, he hires a couple of goons to bomb buildings and raise mayhem on the streets at night, so that he can revolve his entire campaign around how's the only man who can end the fear and violence. Media news anchor Ron Carton, who sleeps with beautiful girls supporting both political camps, suspects that Johnson is behind the explosions, but he still suspects he's right man for the job.
The film has quite a lot in common with an actual election battle, in fact. There's a lot of blah blah, empty promises, and endless speeches. Yet, certain sequences are unforgettable and must be seen to be believed. Blond bimbo Caffaro's speech in front of a crowd of construction workers, for example, is probably the most sexist and anti-#MeToo footage in history. Caffaro has several memorable moments and lines, by the way, like: "all the money in the world couldn't give me happiness, but this man's (insert male reproduction organ here) does". For the climax, Schain reveals his true colors, as it's nasty and perverted, with an explicit rape and a couple of bloody executions. Happy election day!
