The Candy Tangerine Man

John Daniels was one of the near-misses of blaxploitation cinema; the handsome amateur actor had the screen presence, yet his brief resume is clogged with C-minus material like "The Candy Tangerine Man". Hollywood pimp The Baron ushers his girls around the city streets at night in his candy-colored 1952 Bentley (complete with automatic shotguns underneath the parking lights). Business is tough, even for this ultra laid-back, casual guy: his "family" appears to continually hold out on him financially; one of his ladies is being harassed by blood-thirsty goons; and his competition (in league with Italian Mafiosos) is trying to have him rubbed out. The twist to the "plot" (given away in the lyrics to the opening song) is that The Baron is really a suburban husband and father to an unsuspecting wife and kids. Produced and directed by Matt Cimber, this disposable low-budgeter is actually better than expected, with full attention given to Daniels' performance (it's a non-performance, really, but Daniels holds the screen with such blithe nonchalance he stands out simply by underplaying). The actor, who would go on to star in "Black Shampoo" and produce the female R&B act the Love Machine, has the strong physique of a Fred Williamson and the low-key charm of a Richard Roundtree, but bigger-and-better offerings were not in the cards. This one is outrageous enough to garner some laughs, and Smoke delivers a groovy soundtrack, but all of the women (and most of the men) look used-up, giving the picture a crummy feel. *1/2 from ****