ARE YOU "BLAX" ENOUGH?
A scientific measurement of how "blax" a blaxploitation film is.

You probably know the Bargain Bin Review for its awesomely entertaining movie reviews, but we're
more than that.  Okay, not much more, but more.

Between the movies reviewed here and at The Lair of the Unwanted, we noticed a number of
recurring trends in the blaxploitation genre.  That was enough to get the interest of our crack team
of experts piqued.  So now, with input from another industry titan, Invasion of the B-Movies, we have
assembled a comprehensive scoring system to which you can compare any movie and answer
the question...
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ARE YOU "BLAX" ENOUGH?
+25
 Film title is protagonist’s name,
which happens to be very cool
+50
 Film title has “Black” in it
+75
 Film title changes an existing
word to include “Blac” (e.g.,
Blacula)
+25
 Film stars Richard Rountree or
Jim Brown
+50
 Film stars Fred Williamson or
Pam Grier
+75
 Film stars Jim Kelly or Rudy
Ray Moore
+100
 Film stars recognizable actor
as the villain
+25
 Film‘s soundtrack consists of
‘70s-era soul and/or funk
+50
 Film includes an extended
musical performance/dance
scene
+75
 Film’s soundtrack includes
song about how awesome the
protagonist is
+50
 Film is primarily set in a large
city
+100
 …that is New York City or Los
Angeles
-100
 Film is primarily set anywhere
else
MOVIE FUNDAMENTALS
THE PROTAGONIST
THE ANTAGONIST
+5
 Is black
+10
 Is always ready with a snappy
come-back
+25
 Shows concern for the
community
+25
 Is in a relationship at some
point in the film
+25
 Has an awesome car
+50
 Knows just who to go to for key
pieces of information
+50
 Is in law enforcement
+50
 Has some hand-to-hand
combat training
+100
 Can effortlessly takes out
multiple opponents at a time
+5
 Is white
+10
 Is rich
+25
 Is a crime boss
+25
 Is a drug lord
+25
 Has a lover who is treated like
crap
+50
 Has the smooth, soothing
voice of a classically trained
stage actor
+50
 Has a cop on the payroll
+50
 Has a black bodyguard on the
payroll
+100
 Lives like a Bond villain
PLOT POINTS
+25
 Protagonist loses someone
close to him/her
+25
 …who was brutally beaten
and/or killed by Antagonist
+25
 …who was hooked on heroin
+50
 …and Protagonist is
attempting to solve/avenge that
death
+50
 Protagonist is trying to defend
local retailer/community
organization
+50
 Protagonist is offered drugs,
politely turns down
+50
 Despite being in a committed
relationship, the Protagonist
has a lover on the side
+100
 …that the Protagonist just met
+10
 Protagonist is discriminated
against or referred to in racially
derogatory terms
+25
 …by rednecks
+25
 …by the Antagonist
+50
 …by police officers
+100
 Protagonist goes “under cover”
+100
 …and gets caught
+100
 Protagonist has a big fight
scene in a public place
+100
 …such as a nightclub
+150
 …or a car wash
+250
 Protagonist is forcibly injected
with heroin
THEMES
+100
 Characters talk about their struggle to “make it”
+150
 Characters talk about their lack of power in society
+150
 Characters talk about need to support/protect the community
+200
 Characters lament corruption in the justice system
+250
 Characters lament amount of heroin in the community

Pretty extensive, eh?  Yeah, we're impressed, too.

Obviously the higher the scoring system, the more "blax" the film.  With our exclusive system, an
iconic blaxploitation film like Foxy Brown racks up a score of 1790 while the less-than
blaxploitation-y Muppets Take Manhattan only scores 460.

With that in mind, here are the scores for a number of notable blaxploitation films. (Want to add
your blaxploitation movie review to the list?  Drop us a line!)

BLACK BELT JONES (reviewed by Invasion of the B-Movies) -- 1215

BLACK FIST -- 1315

THE BLACK GODFATHER-- 1830

BLACK SAMSON (reviewed by Invasion of the B-Movies) -- 1340

FOXY BROWN (reviewed by Invasion of the B-Movies) -- 1790

THE HUMAN TORNADO (reviewed by Invasion of the B-Movies) -- 830

[TEST CASE] MUPPETS TAKE MANHATTAN-- 460

SHAFT (reviewed by Invasion of the B-Movies) -- 1335

SLAUGHTER'S BIG RIP-OFF (reviewed by Invasion of the B-Movies) -- 1280

UNDERCOVER BROTHER -- 1680