Winstanley

Starring:Miles Halliwell, Jerome Willis, Terry Higgins, Phil Oliver, David Bramley, Alison Halliwell, Dawson France, Bill Petch, Barry Shaw, Sid Rawle, George Hawkins, Stanley Reed, Philip Stearns, Flora Skrine, Pat Kearney, Anthony Sloman, Phil Dunn
Director: Kevin Brownlow
Studio: Image Entertainment
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com

This snappy, cynical cop thriller was marketed as a "blaxploitation" film when released in 1973, but it's really a mixed-cast godson of The French Connection and The Seven Ups set in the racially volatile cauldron of 1970s Detroit. Alex Rocco (Moe Green from The Godfather) stars as a veteran detective on the Detroit police force, a sinus-infected loner who's bitter from constantly being passed over for promotion. Assigned to a political powder keg--the high-profile heist of a black gubernatorial candidate's big money fundraiser--he's paired up with an educated, smart-dressing black hotshot (Hari Rhodes), a fast-rising star in the department. These guys are no Lethal Weapon act; they may earn a grudging mutual respect but never really like or trust one another. The climactic 25-minute chase is edgy and lean and very violent, spiced with big bloody gunshot wounds and victims writhing in tortured death spasms, and the film concludes on an unusually satisfying note of ambiguity and cynicism. Marks went on to direct Friday Foster and J.D.'s Revenge. The title, by the way, refers to the police code for "officer in trouble." Virtually unseen since its premiere, it was rescued by Quentin Tarantino's Rolling Thunder label for a brief theatrical revival and subsequent video release. --Sean Axmaker

Description

Get ready to get down with DETROIT 9000 -- a fast-paced action movie that's been called the hippest crime story ever! A gang of gun-toting goons have staged a daring, big-money rip-off at a high-society fund-raiser for the state's first black candidate for governor! For the two Detroit cops assigned to solve the caper, politically charged corruption and violence then explode in what turns out to be the deadliest case of their careers! Jam-packed with nonstop action, sexy distractions, and funky music -- fans of fun and entertaining gangster pictures won't want to miss this critically acclaimed classic!

Customer Reviews:

Motown '70's gangsta scene.......2005-09-15

Probably never gonna be a famous "must see" type movie, but a whale of an entertaining piece this is! We rarely get to see the Motor City in the distinction as the prime locale for a major film, but this proves to be a notable and entertaining exception. No real Hollywood high profile stars here: Alex Rocco, Vonetta McGee and Hari Rhodes are the headliners closest to that category. Nonetheless, it is a fast paced tour-de-force of Police corruption and Black Power machinations in an era of nascent political upheaval. Add to that a cleverly conceived and executed heist scene and you have the makings of a very absorbing melodrama.

What I appreciate about this movie in particular is its cut-to-the-chase and tell-it-like-it-is dialog, eschewing all the fancy Hollywood glamour patter in favor of real life good and bad guys (can you tell the difference?) just trying to take care of business. The story line is fast paced, well thought out and executed. The aforementioned principals each do his/her part to carry out the demands of that story line. The not-so-famous supporting actors come across very well also, adding a distinct Detroit flavor to the production. Also, check out the ending: what do you think?
If you get a chance, add it to your video collection.

Racism, Muder, Politics, Detroit Style........2005-08-27

This crime drama/mystery is set in a post-riot Detroit, and touches on many issues that Motown has yet to resolve.

First we have an elegant, well scripted political fundraiser for the potential first black governor of Michigan. This event is held at the still open Book-Caddilac Hotel, and you will see a number of Detroit landmarks in this film that were still in use at this time (1973), and today they are either gone (Union Depot, JL Hudson), or remaining as a ruin (Caddilac Hotel).
The event is robbed and the first charge made is that if this was a "white" event there would have been a better police pressance to protect it. That about sets the tone for this movie.............

A veteran white detective, gets paired with a younger, black rising star to solve the crime. In the interim we are shown the world of lingering racism, black on black exploitation, and the ever corupt world of politcs no matter what race the politicians are, and the politics of religon (no that is far from a new concept).

This movie is VERY graphic in the chase scene (most of it filmed on the approach trackage to the then already closed Union Depot), and the business side sex is featured as well.

A very well done film (rescued by Quentin Taratino) that is far above the "Blacksploitation" film genre of the 1970's. A strong soundtrack adds the perfect background for many of the scenes, and the group of singers at the hotel, after the bobbery add a touch of the macrabe to the aftermath.

.and Detroit continues to grapple with these issues today.
on Fort Street).

BORING!!!!.......2004-05-05

This movie starts out alright, with some good chase scenes and a few shoot-outs, but then it just becomes incredibly boring. Detroit 9000 becomes so slow paced, that it will put you to sleep.

SNOR-FEST.....ZZZZZzzzzzzzzz

Better than your expectations.......2004-01-12

This movie is truly more than a standard exploitation flick (not that there's anything wrong with that). Sure, there's some stilted acting and neon orange blood, but beyond that there's a pretty darn good story, and some of the best location shots of Detroit next to "8 Mile". The plot twists will actually surprise you, and the amount of locations will make you wonder how they got enough money to pull this off. "Detroit 9000" is the "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" of Blaxploitation, in that it goes beyond the genre but still keeps the mainstays intact. Highly recommended, although I wish the dvd had more (any) special features. Epic.

Good Movie.......2001-06-10

This was a great movie and I enjoyed it very much! If you like Blaxploitation movies, this is one to see!

Average customer rating:

Fascinating for indie-film buffs; others beware

Winstanley
Starring: Miles Halliwell , Jerome Willis , Terry Higgins , Phil Oliver , and David Bramley
Director: Kevin Brownlow
Manufacturer: Image Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Drama | Genres | DVD | Video

( W ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video

It Happened Here
Backstage
Dr. Mabuse, The Gambler
Harlan County, U.S.A. - Criterion Collection
Safe

ASIN: 6305760497
Release Date: 2000-02-15

Amazon.com

Ten years after the completion of the pioneering British independent production It Happened Here, film historian Kevin Brownlow and military historian Andrew Mollo teamed up again for another impossible dream, a drama based on the life of 17th-century social activist Gerrard Winstanley. Frustrated with the lack of promised reforms under Oliver Cromwell, Winstanley led a much smaller revolution when he proposed using common lands as communal farms, an early form of socialism that terrified landowners and lords. Winstanley comes off a little saintly, but as performed by Miles Halliwell, he's an earthy, passionate man and his followers, the Diggers, are like a pioneering religious sect: determined, proud, and a little frightened. Brownlow and Mollo work with a command and assurance only hinted at in their first film. Mollo brilliantly re-creates 17th-century England on a tiny budget, while Brownlow puts it to film with grace and unsettling beauty: his images are like paintings in black and white, and his deft use of sound is inventive and evocative. The accompanying documentary It Happened Here Again celebrates the filmmaker's achievements with background on production details and the real-life history of Winstanley and the Digger movement. Brownlow went on to make some of the most acclaimed documentaries about cinema history ever produced, including "Unknown Chaplin" and Buster Keaton: A Hard Act to Follow. --Sean Axmaker

Description

April 1, 1649. St. George's Hill. Surrey, England. A reformation-era religious sect called the Diggers sets out to form a commune and till the soil on "common land," which by law permits grazing--but not settlement and cultivation. Led by Gerard Winstanley, theirs is a nonviolent action to reclaim land for the poor who have been dispossessed by Oliver Cromwell's recent Civil War. But the local villagers see the Diggers as a threat to their livelihood and, led by the Presbyterian parson, John Platt, they take violent action to harass and burn them out. Kevin Brownlow and Andrew Mollo set out to make an absolutely historical film, accurate in every detail--including the use of rare breeds of animals. The result is an authentic, exciting and dramatic rendering of the first "communist" revolution in history.

Customer Reviews:

Fascinating for indie-film buffs; others beware.......2005-03-13

Most reviews of Winstanley call the movie more "interesting" than "entertaining," and I'd say that that's a pretty fair description of co-directors Kevin Brownlow and Andrew Mollo's work here. Unlike their more (in)famous It Happened Here, which chronicled an alternate-universe Nazi occupation of Britain and is now regarded as perhaps the best amateur movie ever made, Winstanley is far less flamboyantly provactive. Focusing on the relatively obscure Gerrard Winstanley, a 17th-century advocate for land reform and communal living, and his failed attempt to put his theories into practice in 1649, this movie is simply less compelling than It Happened Here. Although the historic Winstanley was a major influence on British socialists like William Morris and E.P. Thompson, his story doesn't lend itself well to a cinematic interpretation.

Yet I find Winstanley to be superior to It Happened Here in many ways: the acting is more subtle, Brownlow and Mollo have a firmer grasp of their craft, and the sound recording equipment is much better. Parts of this movie are extraordinarily beautiful, especially the opening battle montage and some of the scenes depicting Winstanley's followers laboring in the fields. The cover on the DVD compares the film to the work of Kubrick, who apparently encouraged Brownlow and Mollo, but Winstanley is more aligned with the aesthetics of Eisenstein -- right down to the borrowing of Prokofiev's music from Alexander Nevsky. Only the abruptness of the ending, which leaves the motivations of Winstanley's opponents and his own life story a little vague, came as a disappointment to me.

I realize that all of this sounds rather academic, and it is. But it's definitely worth a look if you have any interest in independent movie-making. In fact, since Milestone has packaged this DVD along with the making-of documentary It Happened Here Again, which is actually more interesting than Winstanley itself, this DVD is a must-see for budding film-makers. The docu describes just what lengths Brownlow and Mollo went to to transfer their vision to the screen -- from raising money to renting rare breeds of pigs in order to remain historically accurate. It's fascinating stuff, and it gives hope that, in such a cynical industry, dedicated people CAN make experimental and deeply personal movies.

Milestone's DVD is a pretty good one, considering that it's a relatively early one (from 2000). It's full-frame, as intended. And although there's noticeable damage to the print, particularly at reel change-overs, the transfer is clean and rich. There don't seem to be any problems with PAL-to-NTSC "ghosting" (like Milestone's transfer of South), and the existing audio-visual weaknesses seem to be inherent to the original 35-mm film stock itself. And like I said, the inclusion of Eric Mival's documentary It Happened Here Again makes this DVD well worth looking at. In fact, even though I doubt I'll return to Winstanley as much as I do to It Happened Here, I decided to buy this DVD as a show of support to Milestone, who keep making fascinating rarities like this available, and of course to Brownlow and Mollo.

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