"Said that I would've stop before I even started/ When I get to one brick, then the game I would depart with/ Got to one brick then I looked to the sky/ Like, sorry God I lied but give me one more try."
"The irony of selling drugs is sort of like you using it/ Guess there's two sides to what substance abuse is." - Jay-Z (Fallin')
Is the life of crime a means to an end or is it the life that you chose for yourself? Can you escape who you really are? Can people change? Priest seems to think that you can. One last score he says, then he's out. Ever hear that one before? His partner Eddie is far more pragmatic, or pessimistic, however you want to put it. Hustling is the way of life, it's the American dream.
"When I get out what am I gonna do? I don't know nothing else but dope, baby. Takin' it, sellin' it, bankrollin' some other small time pusher. Ya know, you've got this fantasy in your head about gettin' out of the life and setting that other world on its ear. What the F*CK are you gonna do except hustle?"
It's easy to gloss over a movie like Super Fly and just see a world of drugs and violence and to be fair, the world of Super Fly, the ghettos of 1970's NYC, is filled with drugs and violence, but the film doesn't attempt to glamorize these aspects. It is simply a part of life in the streets. Certainly Priest is a cool dude, ghetto fabulous if you will, a true to life hustler with a Cadillac, girlfriends, money, penthouses, and all the coke you could ever snort. But he is a product of his environment, thrust into a lifestyle that was more a process of evolution than personal choice. There is a telling point in the film where members of a black power movement try to recruit him and he responds, "You go get a gun and all these black folks you keep doin' so much talking about get guns, and come back ready to go down, then I'll be right down front killin' whitey. But until you can do that, you go sing your marching songs some place else. Now we're through talkin.'"
The Civil Rights movement didn't do shit for guys like Priest and Eddie. Its issues have no relevance in the urban decay of their lives; the prostitutes, the pimps, the hustlers, the drugs, the guns, the corrupt police. It is a completely separate world with its own set of rules. But this film doesn't try to glamorize the life style. Through Priest, it attempts to understand it. It's not about selling drugs, it's about surviving it. The truth is that selling drugs can be just as damaging as taking them, as soon as you start, you're stuck in that life forever. But not Priest. He has grand plans to escape the life even though everyone around him tells him he can't.
Aside from being an entertaining film, Super Fly is interesting in that there are moments of great insight, something you wouldn't expect out of a blaxploitation flick. It would be easy for characters to be caricatures but everyone is well thought out and have unexpected dimensions, particularly the character of Eddie, Priest's long time partner. While many of the actors give uneven performances, Eddie (Carl Lee) is always on point throughout especially during his monologues and words of wisdom. He knows that life is short on the streets, but he intends to make the most out of it.
Priest, played by Ron O'Neal, may come across as naive in his dreams, but he is no fool. He knows exactly the difficulties of achieving his dreams and will do everything he can to do so. O'Neal wasn't a great actor, but he was perfectly cast as the charismatic and utterly believable Priest. Unfortunately, like many actors who gained notoriety for one role, O'Neal would be typecast into similar roles for the rest of his career.
Perhaps the most remarkable thing about Super Fly is its music. The soundtrack, put together by none other than Curtis Mayfield, is perfect in its funk and soul. I just love this kind of music. Every song seems to be waiting for Kanye West to sample for a beat. (The soundtrack for Super Fly would actually outsell the movie itself.) Also the film does a great job in capturing the atmosphere of the inner cities. It is grimy, dingy and full of life. I enjoyed watching the different little locations in the beginning when Priest chases the mugger through the ghettoes.
Grade: B+
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