Shaft's Big Score
| Shaft's Big Score! | |
|---|---|
 Original theatrical release poster by John Solie | |
| Directed by | Gordon Parks |
| Produced by |
Roger Lewis Ernest Tidyman |
| Written by | Ernest Tidyman |
| Based on |
characters created by Ernest Tidyman |
| Starring |
Richard Roundtree Moses Gunn Drew Bundini Brown Joseph Mascolo Julius Harris Joe Santos |
| Music by | Gordon Parks |
| Cinematography | Urs Furrer |
| Edited by | Harry Howard |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 104 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1,978,000 |
| Box office | $10,000,000[1] |
Shaft's Big Score! is a 1972 American Neo Noir action film starring Richard Roundtree as the private detective John Shaft. Directed by Gordon Parks, this is the second film in the trilogy. Ernest Tidyman once more supplied the screenplay. The first film's composer Isaac Hayes was unavailable, so Parks, the returning director, did the score himself. The film was produced on a budget of $1,978,000.
Plot
While New York is never at a loss for criminal activity, things take a turn for the worse when the corrupt co-owner of a funeral parlor and insurance agency kills his partner, a personal friend of John Shaft, only to discover that the money he was planning to steal to pay his gambling debts is missing. He makes a deal with the mobster he owes (Joseph Mascolo) to split the business but also makes the same deal with crime lord Bumpy Jonas (Moses Gunn). The bullets start flying when the hoods find they've been played against each other, and Shaft is forced to clean up the mess.
Cast
- Richard Roundtree as John Shaft
- Moses Gunn as Bumpy Jonas
- Drew Bundini Brown as Willy
- Joseph Mascolo as Gus Mascola
- Kathy Imrie as Rita
- Wally Taylor as Johnny Kelly
- Julius Harris as Capt. Bollin (as Julius W. Harris)
- Rosalind Miles as Arna Asby
- Joe Santos as Pascal
Reception
The movie received a lukewarm reception from critics,[2] although Roger Ebert awarded the film 3 stars out of 4.[3]
It earned estimated North American rentals of $4 million.[4]
See also
References
- ↑ "Shaft's Big Score, Box Office Information". The Numbers. Retrieved January 21, 2012.
- ↑ Greenspun, Roger (1972-06-22). "Something Happened on Way to the Sequel:Roundtree Returns in 'Shaft's Big Score". The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-06-12.
- ↑ "Shaft's Big Score". Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved 2011-06-12.
- ↑ "Updated All-time Film Champs", Variety, 9 January 1974 p 60