Themes: Political Corruption, Fish Out of Water, Americans Abroad
Main Cast: James E. Myers, Richard Roundtree, Frank Finlay, Vonetta McGee, Neda Arneric, Debebe Eshetu
Release Year: 1973
Country: US
Run Time: 112 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
In the third and last in the original Shaft (1971) series of action-packed "blaxploitation" pictures, private eye John Shaft (Richard Roundtree) travels to the "motherland," where he breaks up a modern slavery ring. Shaft is hired by a diplomat, Emir Ramila (Cy Grant), to infiltrate the criminal empire of the evil Vincent Amafi (Frank Finlay), who is kidnapping poor Africans and shipping them to Europe as slave laborers. Amafi murdered Ramila's son when he attempted to expose the illegal operation, and Ramila, now aware that his investigation of Amafi has been compromised, needs an unfamiliar to face to help bring the ring leader down. After undergoing some training at the hands of a comely tutor so that he'll be able to pass muster as an African, Shaft travels to Ethiopia and allows himself to be shanghaied by Amafi's men. However, the high-ranking Wassa (Debebe Eshetu) is the traitor in Ramila's ranks, and he has betrayed Shaft. As the tough private eye attempts to free the slaves being held captive in a former Nazi prison below a French chateau and bed any beautiful women who crosses his path, he must also dodge a series of assassination attempts by Ramila's men. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
Spiros Focas - Sassari; Thomas Baptiste - Kopo; Jon Chevron - Shimba; Glynn Edwards - Vanden; Cy Grant - Emir; Jacques Herlin - Perreau; Jho Jhenkins - Ziba; White Jonah - Oyo; Adolfo Lastretti - Pino; Marne Maitland - Col. Gondor; Jacques Marin - Inspector Cusset; Frank McRae - Oziot; Aldo Sambrell - Angelo; Nadim Sawalha - Zubair; James E. Myers - Detective Williams
Credit
Jose Marie Tapiador - Art Director, Miguel Angel Gil, Jr. - First Assistant Director, John Guillermin - Director, Max Benedict - Editor, Johnny Pate - Composer (Music Score), Dennis Lambert - Songwriter, Brian Potter - Songwriter, John Stoll - Production Designer, Marcel Grignon - Cinematographer, Rene Dupont - Producer, Roger Lewis - Producer, Peter Sutton - Sound/Sound Designer, Hal Watkins - Sound/Sound Designer, Stirling Silliphant - Screenwriter
Shaft in Africa, released in 1973, is the third film in the trilogy of films that starred actor Richard Roundtree as John Shaft. John Guillermin directed and Stirling Silliphant did the screenplay. The cost went up to $2,142, 000, but the gross fell to $1,458,000. MGM quickly sold the property to television, but the television series was cancelled after just seven episodes.
Plot
While in Africa, John Shaft is persuaded by threats of physical force, the promise of money, and the lure of a pretty tutor to assume the identity of a native-speaking itinerant worker in the country. His job is to help break a criminal ring that is smuggling immigrants into Europe then exploiting them. But the villains have heard that he is on his way.
Shaft must pass a test before being hired for the job; the test involves him surviving in a small, overheated room without water, and a floor covered in deep sand, mimicking the supposed conditions of Africa. Shaft ingeniously covers himself with the sand, thereby avoiding heatstroke and winning the contract from his employer.
