Coffy (1973) Review

No one sleeps when they mess with Coffy! They call her Coffy and she'll cream you! The taglines are endless for this movie. It's a damn-iconic blaxploitation film, lemme tell ya. Jack Hill (writer/director) put a lot of work in behind-the-scenes to build up the Pam Grier image - and she definitely held up her end. Hill cast Grier in The Big Doll House based on a random audition, and instantly knew she had star potential. As soon as Hill had the chance to put Grier in a starring role, he wrote Coffy. And, let me say, thank you Mr. Hill. The first 10 minutes of Coffy changed my life forever. The entire sequence is one of those "shut-up-and-watch" moments in a film that make you forget the bullshit you were thinking before it started. For those that haven't seen it, you may have heard a sample from the opening scene on White Zombie's remix album Super Sexy Swinging Sounds. You know the one: "THIS IS THE END OF YOUR ROTTEN LIFE, YOU MOTHERFUCKING DOPE PUSHER!" And the line is immediately followed by a shotgun blast to the face.



Pam Grier as Coffy is the ultimate jive-talking, ninja-assassin bitch. She bides her time, moves silently, works her way to the top, then lets em have it in the worst possible way. Jack Hill was definitely channeling righteous black indignation when he wrote the script. Coffy doesn't just kill those dirt bags, she makes them feel like scum before she does. The viewer quickly finds out that Coffy is working her way up to the head of the local dope game as she seeks vengeance for her little sister, hopeless and addicted to smack. No one could have delivered those lines like Grier; Coffy is definitely one of those serendipity type movies. Only serendipity wouldn't be the right word to describe it, because it's obvious while watching it how much work went into the production.



It's easy for the casual viewer to discount movies like Coffy, because it doesn't fit into their idea of what a film should look like. People need to get over their bullshit hang-ups! Pam Grier and Jack Hill helped blow the lid off black cinema, but people today barely acknowledge either of these fine individuals. Coffy is fun, engaging, threatening, triumphant, and hard as coffin nails. And what people often don't realize when they haven't seen these movies, is that Jack Hill made some beautifully constructed scenes - especially impressive when you consider the restraints of the short production schedule he had to work with. Each of his scenes has arc, interchange of power between characters, female gaze, male machismo, action, comedy, drama, suspense.... I could go on and on. Suffice if to say, if you are not a douche bag, you will like this movie. I'm just saying!