Soul Cinema Double Feature: Cotton Comes to Harlem and Hell up in Harlem

Delivery Time: 7 to 15 Working Days Format: DVD

An expert blending of crime drama and comedy, "Cotton Comes to Harlem" stars Raymond St. Jacques and Godfrey Cambridge as Harlem detectives "Coffin Ed" Johnson and "Gravedigger" Jones, investigating a shady religious leader's "back to Africa" movement. Calvin Lockhart, Redd Foxx, Judy Pace co-star; Ossie Davis directs. Then, in the slam-bang sequel to "Black Caesar," "Hell up in Harlem" has street king Fred Williamson preparing to regain control of his criminal empire. But first he must overcome enemies from without and within. Co-stars D'Urville Martin, Tony King. 194 min. total. Standard/Widescreen; Soundtrack: English Dolby Digital mono.
Based on Chester Himes's novel, this film marked actor-writer Ossie Davis's directing debut. Godfrey Cambridge and Raymond St. Jacques play Himes's volatile police detectives, Gravedigger Jones and Coffin Ed Johnson, who are on the trail of white men who pulled an armed stickup at a Back to Africa rally in Harlem. The money belongs to the poor people who paid for a chance to return to the motherland--but was it really a stickup? Or is the flashy preacher at the center of the Back to Africa movement (Calvin Lockhart) involved in a scam to rip off his own people? The plot drags; the best part of the film are the performances (as well as spotting cameos by such actors as the then-unknown Cleavon Little) and the on-location shooting in parts of New York where a camera had rarely ventured previously. Redd Foxx shows up in a small part as a ragpicker that led to his role in TV's Sanford and Son. --Marshall Fine