User reviews

Thirty years is a long time to wait to make a sequel, especially when no one is clamoring for one. Director/Writer/Producer John Singleton decided it was about time. The result is a solid, but undistinguished crime drama. The elements of this story have been told so many times that they are becoming hackneyed. A tough, no-nonsense cop fights evil and corruption to bring justice to the streets while often disregarding the law. A spoiled rich kid is trying to get away with murder by hiring a drug dealer to snuff an eyewitness with the help of a couple of dirty cops. This is not vanguard material.

Singleton's direction is good in the action sequences (of which there are plenty) and adequate in the dramatic scenes. In this film, he doesn't bring much innovation to the screen, with very straightforward shots and mundane locations. In an overly reverent gesture to the original film, he brings back Richard Roundtree (the original Shaft) as the current Shaft's (Samuel L. Jackson) uncle and mentor. There is also a cameo appearance by Gordon Parks, the director of the original, and of course, Isaac Hayes theme song is back.

The film is elevated from mediocrity by the acting. Samuel L. Jackson is an outstanding actor and slips on the character of this tough, streetwise cop like a tailored glove. When he's bad, he's very very bad and when he is good, he's almost saintly. Christian Bale also gives a fine performance as the despicable rich kid who thinks his wealth puts him above the law. Jeffrey Wright is explosive as the egomaniac drug lord. The supporting actors are also excellent.

This is an entertaining film despite its lack of originality. I rated it a 7/10. Action junkies add a point or two. This film is extremely violent with a high body count.

I love this 1980s-style action flick, and watch it every time it is pops up on TV. Sam Jackson plays Shaft's nephew, a big-city cop trying to track down a reluctant witness to a racially motivated murder. The killer, played by a sinister, pre-BATMAN Christian Bale, is modeled on the New York preppie rapist (remember him?). He hires a low-level drug dealer (Jeffrey Wright) to track down the witness, a waitress (Toni Collette), and kill her. Shaft must find her before they do. Jackson is silky smooth, the action is right out of a DIE HARD or LETHAL WEAPON flick, and the landscape is populated by some great supporting players including Dan Hedaya as a corrupt cop and Vanessa Williams as a cop who has Shaft's back. The original Shaft, Richard Roundtree, even pops up a couple of times. This is one wild and funny ride that plays the way we prefer our action films to play. At times, it is a little thin on plot, but it keeps moving. No blood to speak of, just action, action and more action. And keep a close eye on Wright, a noted stage and screen actor. His soft-spoken drug lord tenderly holds a newborn baby at one moment and in the next pokes a knife into the neck of a terrified woman. He steals every scene he is in.

Shaft (2000)

This comes so far after the original "Shaft" in 1971 you might hesitate to call it a sequel. It's more like a revival, or a nostalgic time trip. Except that it's all been updated nicely, with a feeling of the original sassiness intact. And the Isaac Hayes music is central, and terrific, making this a legit Shaft movie.

Samuel Jackson plays the role perfectly, not pulling back and not overdoing it. The idea of a black cop in a city that still has racial biases, in this case emphasizing the rise of Latino drug lords as part of the fracturing, is mainstreamed here. It's not as daring or shocking to see this pushed forward, but it's still effective. Shaft, the main character (who never seems to have a first name), is powerful, smart, and unwilling to be pushed around by authority. Even if it means losing his job (or quitting--Shaft is always the one making his own choices).

The director, John Singleton, is not especially well positioned for a mainstream sequel with high production values (his one famous effort to date is "Boyz n the Hood"), but he pulls it off. This is a snappy, smart, well made movie. It's oddly mainstream, playing with clichés too easily, working with bad guy good guy tenets adding only the minor twist of racial or ethnic alliances, though even these we've seen before. You can't help but see "Jackie Brown" from three years earlier as a far more interesting, well made, and timely movie. That one was by Quentin Tarantino, which changes the score a bit, but it starred Jackson, again, and makes the most of him.

You might say Singleton makes the most of Jackson here, too, but a better way to look at it is that Jackson makes the most of Singleton. He takes over the movie, and it's a good thing. He has talent and presence in a classic Hollywood acting way. The cast around him is really strong, which is nice. (There is a cameo by the original director of the 1971 "Shaft," Gordon Parks, in a bar scene, if you are lucky--a white haired older black man at the table.)

The other terrific actor is Jeffrey Wright, playing a drug king with enough realism and panache to make it real and glitzy both. The third main character is the future Batman, Christian Bale, who is a great bad guy and who you actually miss in the last parts of the movie.

What really brings this down to earth, and too much so, is the story, which is boilerplate stuff. There is machismo, and guns, and a play of one bad guy against another, and one cop against another. You might say, hey, isn't there room for more cop and crime movies that work in familiar circles? Yes. But I again refer to "Jackie Brown" as a way to see out of this box.

This new "Shaft" is good stuff--it's well acted, tightly edited, directed with professional canny (noticeable in lots of different ways), and brings up racial clichés in a fun and even important way. It descends by the last third into overused chase and shoot scenes between cops and robbers. But...it's better than its reputation, for sure. I say see it. Enjoy the attitudes. The acting. And the homage to the original.

I liked this one alot-fast moving, funny, crude, violent at times, has the same old 'sphagetti Western' shooting style where the baddie can't hit the broadside of a barn with 400 rounds while Shaft takes'em out one shot at a time, never misses. Enjoyed Jackson in this mucho, this is some fine work by a kinetic actor in his prime. Vanessa Williams is easy on the eyes and a smooth actress in her own right, plus you have to give this Jeffrey Wright guy credit for doing a bang up job as a Puerto Rican(!!) villain(with a heart, sorta...). Bale as the Menendez Brother from hell is effective too. I liked Richard Roundtree, Pat Hingle and Gordon Parks' cameos(look fast for him, as Mr. P in the bar!)

This one isn't meant to be taken too seriously, the car chases and shootouts are right outta anything Dirty Harry has done-but you know, John Singleton sez he intended for this to be a popcorn movie, and I agree, he has hit the bullseye with this.

And that Isaac Hayes score, gotta love it!

*** outta ****, go see it and have fun.

"Shaft 2000" is a reasonable successor to the original Shaft of 29 years ago. The film shows restraint by keeping Shaft big, but not bigger than life, as it tries to be a human story first and an action flick second. Unfortunately, in spite of good performances (especially by Wright) and good production talent, the story fails on the human level and hedges on the obvious alternative of exaggerated good and bad guys and a profusion of gratuitous violence, sex, and action. Worth a watch but keep expectations low.

We are not talking classics here, but guilty pleasures. I've watched it three or four times. I am surprised I haven't written it up.

The Richard Roundtree role of John Shaft is taken by none other than Samuel L. Jackson. Christian Bale is his nemesis as Walter Wade, Jr., who is a racist, spoiled rich kid.

Wade hooks up with Peoples (Jeffrey Wright) and Shaft has his work cut out for him trying to find his witness (Toni Collette). He doesn't know he has crooked cops to deal with also.

The action ramps up hot and heavy after People's little brother gets killed. Bullets fly and lots die while cars get shot up and smashed in a run through the streets.

With Vanessa Williams backing up Shaft, this is worth a couple of watches.

True, this was just another shoot-em-up, but the hero was everyman's top super stud hard ass, Shaft. With this one you get case after case of high capacity lead slinging, jive talk, tough talk, serious ass whipping, squealing tires, and Shaft's own brand of street justice. Plus, these punks deserved every hole Shaft poked in their scummy hides. This was one more fun film and positively nobody could play this part like Samuel L. Extremely violent and vulgar: better than I expected.

An enjoyable but nevertheless quite silly and average remake of the classic television show has the new John Shaft (Samuel L. Jackson) beating up a white racist (Christian Bale) and getting booted off of the police force. Everyone in this film is a racist - primarily the whites - and this whole idea is way too forced. The language and violence is rough, yet the film itself is quite goofy, with not many good scenes and only a few mediocre action sequences. The moral is somewhat depressing: if someone wrongs you, or someone of your race, then beat them up and kill them once they reappear. Richard Roundtree's cameo helps a bit, but regardless, this SHAFT is still only "good" at best.

2.5/5 stars.

Samuel L. Jackson is great. He chews scenery, and often appears to have the time of his life, portraying the street smart, wise cracking John Shaft. Christian Bale perfectly portrays the brash, arrogant, racist nemesis, who will become a focal point of the film. Bale severely beats a fellow bar patron who embarrasses him in front of his friends. The setup is great. Somewhere in the second act the genial charm of the film begins to wear thin, as a sea of characters we don't know well or necessarily care about, show up to move the plot along. Best is Peoples, a drug lord who enters into Shaft's world. Not great, but fun. It looks like the cast enjoyed themselves, and that energy carries it to the finish. Thumbs in the middle, as they say.

They had the funds, they had the means, they had some good acting crew, they even had a fine reputation of the previous Shaft, but somehow they managed to make only half a movie - the second half is barely watchable.

The first half goes quite smoothly, introducing us with the main characters and the main plot. Samuel L. Jackson is a great choice for the role of Shaft, but even his flawless appearance couldn't make this movie special, or even above average.

This new Shaft lacks cunning and authority, making him nothing more than a regular cop who is trying to right the wrongs. And that would be just fine if the whole bunch on nonsensical and absurd things didn't occur in the second part of the movie. As if all the following events were just randomly piled upon each other, still connected with the story, but lacking common sense. All of that just made me indifferent about how the movie will end.

Still, it's watchable, but don't expect anything special and overly exciting.

I went to see this movie expecting to see a big-budget remake of the original Shaft, and I got it.

This version is a lot more violent than the original, it didn't seem to be in Shaft's style. The pacing and editing in the first half of the movie were fast and smooth. John Singleton did a great job in establishing Shaft's character and the plot. During the second half of the movie (when the action really begins), however, the movie starts to lose it's original slickness.

Samuel L. Jackson is truly a great Shaft, he's probably the only actor out there (besides the great Richard Roundtree) who could pull this off, and he does an excellent job. This time around, though, we don't really see Shaft's "Ladies' Man" side, except for a couple of innuendoes with minor characters. Like I said, Jackson's Shaft is a little too violent (even for a desensitized, Tarantino fan like me). Christian Bale, after playing a cold,rich, psychopathic killer in "American Psycho", plays a...cold, rich, psychopathic killer. He's perfect in his ability to make us feel absolutely no compassion for him. It's impossible not to mention Bustah Rhymes in a small but great role as Shaft's driver/assistant. He provides some of the comic relief, taking some strain off of Jackson.

I thoroughly enjoyed Isaac Hayes' Oscar-Winning theme, which plays throughout the movie.

This Shaft is a great movie for anyone who's a fan of the original, Sam Jackson, or great action movies in general.

Slam-bang remake of the 1971 blaxploitation success involving New York City cop quitting the force out of frustration and anger and becoming a private detective. After the legal system fails to keep a wealthy, white racist/killer off the streets, it's Shaft to the rescue! Director John Singleton remembers that tough genre exercises can also be a lot of fun; this one certainly is, with exceptional performances by Samuel L. Jackson (perfect in the lead) and Jeffrey Wright as a notorious drug czar. Some of the plotting is hazy, but the movie never compromises itself--and never becomes a live-action cartoon. It stays tough to the end, especially with Isaac Hayes' updated theme over the credits. Can ya dig it? *** from ****

Mainly the movie is a stylish mess, reflecting a casual disregard for plot logic. It might have been fun, however, had it not been so blatantly racist -- indeed, race-baiting. Most disturbing of all is the trumped-up ending which defines the underlying anti-social message of the film. A similar story by a white director with the racial roles reversed would never have received distribution, and rightly so. Shaft is sloppy work,which is bad enough; but it also sends an irresponsible message.

Samuel L. Jackson seems to be having the time of his movie acting life portraying the title character in `Shaft,' John Singleton's take on the groundbreaking classic that, on its release in 1971, served as the blueprint for all the `blaxploitation' films that filled theatres throughout the early and mid 1970's. Unfortunately, the concept of a rogue black cop, defying the rules and doing things his own way, is not as fresh as it was back in the time of the original film, so this new version of `Shaft' has less to recommend it. Still, it is an efficient police procedural, filled with crowd-pleasing moments of adrenalin-pumping melodrama, hissable villains and a wisecracking, kickass hero who seems virtually indestructible – just the way we like our heroes to be in a movie like this.

Singleton pays affectionate homage to the original film in many ways. Jackson actually plays the nephew of the original Shaft and, indeed, Richard Roundtree makes a cameo appearance early on in the film as Jackson's seasoned mentor. Singleton wisely uses the original Isaac Hayes recording of the hit song as background for the film's opening credit sequence and backs up many of the action scenes with an impressive instrumental interpretation as well.

The story offers little that is new for this particular genre whose films often rise or fall based on the quality of the foils against whom the hero must ultimately contend. Luckily, the filmmakers are blessed with not just one but two impressive villains – Jeffrey Wright as Peoples Hernandez, a tough talking thug who wants to expand out of the little neighborhood kingdom he has established into the big time of upper class drug dealing, and Christian Bale as Walter Wade, Jr., the racist, spoiled-brat son of a New York City magnate whose hate crime killing of an innocent black man sets the plot in motion and serves as fodder for Shaft's personal vendetta. Bale proves definitively that the quality of subtle, soul-cringing evil he brought to his role in `American Psycho' was no fluke and that he can be as effective in a big budget extravaganza like this one as he is in a smaller scale, far more quirky work like `Psycho.' Vanessa Williams, on the other hand, who plays Shaft's partner and who is almost unrecognizable buried under a dark beret, fails to distinguish herself either in her role or in her performance.

Then we have Mr. Jackson himself. Here is a man who slides so effortlessly into the role that, despite the absurdity and incredibility of much that is going on around him, we never question the film's veracity for a moment. Whether tossing off wisecracks, shooting at unarmed criminals, pounding defenseless suspects into insensibility or consoling distraught witnesses, Shaft remains forever a hero, acting out the impulses we in the audience feel but are never able to fully act upon in our daily lives. Thus, this new `Shaft' works best as simpleminded good vs. evil melodrama – and even the most sophisticated movie watcher can use a bit of that once in a while.

Samuel L. Jackson leads a great cast in this one.

A young black man is at a city bar with friends one night, when he gets heckled by some rich, white prick (who's Daddy is someone big, important person in the city). After one upping the prick and embarrassing him, the prick finds the young black man outside and beats him mercilessly, while a bar waitress (on her break) watches. Upon realizing he has an audience, the prick threatens the waitress not to say a word, and takes her ID so he'll know where to send someone to silence her if she does speak up.

Will this hate crime be solved and the perpetrator pay for his crimes? Shaft is on the case!

I don't understand the 6,, I'd say this was a 6.8 rating. Could've been better, yes,, but still plenty entertaining with some great performances by some up and comers like Bale, Collette, and Wright. Not to mention very fine performances by Jackson, Williams, and others.

I have this on dvd stacked away not watched it in forever but came up online so was like yup.. its still very entertaining even though its kinda caricature done... it has quite a few entangled plots but not in a way its messy its still just centred around one and honestly I was always fascinated by The character People's.. he's probably the best character in the movie for me despite all the big names. I had to have a look at the actor and shocked to see he's not even Puerto Rican.. He nailed this role. Suave, funny, and intimidating when be does lose it. Don't look deep into it these are all extreme stereo types also refreshing to see the use of how easy Jackson and his partner call eachother racial slurs in jest. I remember the days people were comfortable enough with eachother this woukd happen.. this film definitely wouldn't be made now a days it woukd probably cause a riot. Its just good mindless entertainment with a justifiable ending. But Jeffrey Wright for me is the star.

I have not watched the original, or the other sequels(not for a lack of trying), but I honestly imagine that this just about matches them in pure awesomeness that has not been watered down in the least. While I will grant that the 70's stuff in this probably fit better and looked more inconspicuous back in the actual decade, this still completely works. You probably already know the basic concept; Shaft is a P.I. who especially works to ensure that his fellow African-Americans are not treated unfairly as far as justice being served goes. I can see Roundtree having nailed that role 40 years ago, and I'm not necessarily saying that Jackson is a better choice, however, he certainly is spot-on for the role. The plot is genuinely engaging, and it holds surprises without being difficult to follow. This is nicely filmed and edited. The film is immensely entertaining throughout; I wasn't bored for a single second, and the pace is marvelous. With shoot-outs, fights and chases, this has cool and exciting action. No, it doesn't go anywhere new for the genre... so? It's a well-produced and really *fun* entry, and that deserves recognition, as well. I love the music of this. The characters are well-written, credible and thoroughly developed. Acting performances range a tad, the leads are great. The dialog is clever, delivered well and natural. There is constant strong language, a lot of bloody violence, and very brief nudity and sexuality. I recommend this to anyone into the idea behind it. 7/10

OK, so we know by now that Samuel L. Jackson will virtually always play a bad mother-f---er (his wallet in "Pulp Fiction" even said that). That said, there was little in the "Shaft" remake that we wouldn't expect. John Shaft (Jackson) is a bad mother investigating some things and doesn't take crap from anyone. When the original was released, it was the height of the Black Power movement, and they wanted to show that black Americans were no longer gonna listen to The Man - think of it as a jab against Nixon.

Still, this one is pretty cool. Toni Collette doesn't really make as much of her role as she did in "The Sixth Sense", but she's pretty good. All in all, I recommend the original more, but this one is worth seeing. Any questions?

The nephew of the original John Shaft is a detective in New York City (Samuel L. Jackson) where he tries to apprehend an arrogant racist killer (Christian Bale) by finding a key witness (Toni Collette) while dealing with a gang lord (Jeffrey Wright) and corrupt cops. Vanessa Williams is on hand as a helpful officer.

"Shaft" (2000) is a 'hip' crime thriller that resurrects the franchise 27 years after the original trilogy from 1971-1973 that featured Richard Roundtree in the title role (he returns here as the aged uncle). The cast and filmmaking are fine; the problem is the lame story with which they're shackled.

The key crime in the opening act is glaringly weak. Bale's character is a snooty punk born with a silver spoon in his mouth, but I didn't buy his rash, racist actions at the night club. It just didn't ring true, especially since he seems to get along with black people just fine the rest of the movie. Likewise, Collette's actions aren't convincing as the doe-eyed bartender. Simply put, the scriptwriters tried too hard to concoct a racist whitey villain when subtly was in order.

If you can roll with that serious flaw, there are enough thrills to amuse, including Jackson as the bad axx protagonist and Wright's entertaining drug lord. Plus it's always good to see the charming Vanessa Williams.

The film runs 1 hour, 39 minutes, and was shot in various areas of New York City, as well as nearby Newark.

GRADE: C-

I was surprised that I liked this remake of "Shaft" as much as I did. It has a wonderful ensemble cast, which included Toni Collette, Christian Bale, and the terrific, Jeffrey Wright. All of them are allowed to bring their considerable acting chops to their roles, especially Bale as a Hateful Rich White Boy from central casting, and Wright as a simultaneously hilarious and scary gangster. Samuel L. Jackson plays, well, Samuel L. Jackson, this time cast as Shaft, a tall, tough, elegant black dude who looks like Samuel L. Jackson – not that there's anything wrong with that.

Don't expect deathless art here but do expect to be entertained. It's one of those movies that is so politically incorrect it makes you gasp while you are laughing. There are lots of explosions, gore, and chases, both afoot and in cars, and it all happens in little more than 90 minutes. It's a lot of fun, highly recommended.

1st watched 4/8/2001 - 7 out of 10 (Dir-John Singleton): Well-done repeat portrayal of the tough and cool crime stopper from the early 70's. Although I haven't seen any of the previous three with this character it seems like this movie is more true to the style that seemed to prevail in these type of movies and therefore works much better than those movies that try to modernize(and make money) off of a popular previous theme.(Aka. Mission Impossible, the Saint etc...) Jackson is great as the womanizing yet tough cop with Richard Roundtree from the original playing his Uncle also adds to the movie. Some corny yet repeatable one-liners seem to be a trademark of Shaft and add some humor to this fairly serious cop movie. Look for more of Shaft in the future(which is okay by me)!!!