Tuchergson Truly the worst movie I've ever seen in a theater

Solemplex To me, this movie is perfection.

Inadvands Boring, over-political, tech fuzed mess

Matrixiole Simple and well acted, it has tension enough to knot the stomach.

daniel-mannouch I first heard about JD's Revenge on a TV special called 50 Worst Movies Ever Made (2004) and it made #8. Whatever Ebert camper wrote in to have this quite unique experience 28 places down the pecking order from Ishtar!, hoped that by just showing the trailer and having the obnoxious narrator do a a oh so no care at all description of the plot would be enough to convince people of it's apparent 'awfulness'. The possible hope that viewers would clutch their pearls at the sounds of a black man saying the n word aggressively and mistake an authentic representation of a 40's zoot suit clad black gangster as a then contemporary racial stereotype. Either the makers of that actually quite high quality list compared to today's IMDb bottom 150 fare failed to recognise the Jekyll and Hyde parallels or got too much caught up in the game and thought being repulsed by intentionally repulsive scenes was a sure sign of bad film making. Sure it has pacing problems, but what Blaxploitation film doesn't? Apart from Jack Hill's films, but their you go. On the whole though, it was just the style, regardless of the director's colour. From Fanaka to Parks Jr. to Marks here, audience gratification peaked at 40% regarding filmmaking intentions, there were always messages to be had, like the sideshow carnival like exploitation of black church goers for one instance. J.D's Revenge ain't a popcorn film, but it's sure as hell still a white knuckle ride through sly and subtle racial political commentary and genuine and authentic feeling characters. On top of this, it is also one of the most vividly imaginative screen adaptions of Robert Louis Stevenson's Victorian novella that i can recall seeing since Borowczyk's Dr Jekyll and His Women, and that, is, a feat. Though i haven't seen it, i doubt even Dr Black and Mr Hyde would be a better blaxploitation retelling of the Gothic classic than this truly overlooked gem. It's a rough one though. Their's some awkward sex scenes to say the least and JD Walker is as a pure and jive incarnation of evil as I've ever remembered seeing on screen. Rape, incest, razors, it's all him and he takes it in his stride. These elements can be attributed to it's under-appreciated status in Blaxploitation cinema as there is little of the expected 'butt dancing' mentality in this one to quote the titular mean mother. Though admittedly, there is also a Ted V. Miekels atmosphere at times, especially with the ending.The most striking element of this film and why it hooks you in so is the contrast between law student Issac and the fire breathing JD. Glynn Turman (what a voice) gives an astounding performance as two polar opposite walks of the black experience. Intelligent and compassionate one side, darkly charismatic and demonically energetic the other. It's a tour de force, simply put. Everyone else is given a lot of improv leeway and it surely gives the film a distinctive taste, for better and worse, mostly better though as some of the line deliveries of otherwise overblown dialogue feel loose and organic, which is uncommon in Blaxploitation and exploitation cinema in general. In conclusion, JD's Revenge is defo a case of one of these is not like the others as it's a tough, mean and surprisingly moral affair that has so many striking elements, it's almost as tough as the film itself not to give it at least one watch. Highly recommended.

Woodyanders New Orleans, 1942: Vicious, abusive hoodlum J.D. Walker (a sneering, splendidly nasty turn by David McNight) slices a woman's throat with a switchblade, then gets promptly shot dead for committing the brutal, heinous misdeed. Cut to New Orleans in 1976: Sweet, likable, struggling law student Ike (frequent second banana co-star actor Glynn Turman, giving a fine, engaging performance in a rare substantial lead part) is possessed by J.D.'s malevolent, vindictive spirit, which transforms Ike from a harmless, mild-mannered college kid into a vile, lethal, womanizing, straight razor-toting cad who exacts a terrible revenge upon all those individuals responsible for J.D.'s untimely demise.One of the best, most frightening and effective entries in the short-lived 70's blaxploitation horror craze (prime examples of this nifty sub-genre include both "Blacula" movies, "Abby," and "Sugar Hill"), "J.D.'s Revenge" emphasizes mood over violence, with seasoned B-picture veteran Arthur ("Bonnie's Kids," "Bucktown") Marks' typically sturdy, stylish, self-assured direction and Jaison Starkes' craftily plotted script deftly milking the creepy, mysterious, unsettling Southern Gothic-style ambiance for all its worth. Said scary gloom-doom tone, further reinforced by a vivid evocation of that uniquely lazy, luscious and exotic Big Easy atmosphere and Marks' ever dark sense of humor, insinuates itself upon the viewer in a low-key, yet forceful manner. The always great Louis Gossett, Jr. offers a dazzling, dynamic portrayal of Elijah Bliss, a flashy, grand-standing, two-faced preacherman with something to hide. The lovely Joan Pringle is strong and sympathetic as Ike's concerned girlfriend Christella. Harry May's gorgeous, polished cinematography gives the film a sumptuous professional sheen which totally bellies the low budget. The eerie, groovy, understated score by Robert Prince (who also co-wrote the forgettable ending credits theme song "I'll Never Let You Go") is likewise on the money fine. Reportedly one of Samuel Jackson's longtime favorite movies, this baby rates as a real nice one all around. And Turman does wonders in a touch, demanding part; ironically, Turman was ultimately dissatisfied with how the film turned out.

rudge49 In their excellent book "The Golden Turkey Awards" the Medved brothers note that the good news was that Hollywood discovered the market for movies made for black audiences, the bad news was that most were crude, artless-and vulgar, like this one. It starts OK with an interesting premise and some interesting shots, such as the young law student seeing the late J.D.'s face in the mirror of his cab, but it soon degenerates into another cheap sex and sadism Garde Z exploitation movie. 3 of the 4 sex scenes are rapes, in the last half of the movie the dialogue (?) consists of the 2 best known obscenities. I was embarrassed to watch this one, and I watched all by myself late at night-with the curtains drawn! Got the tape from a co-worker with whom I had been discussing the Golden Turkies and bad movies. Lent him a tape of "Plan 9 from Outer Space", he said he howled over that, he got the best of that deal.

LNaeem I have seen many movies and played many video games. It is the most bad movie my life has seen. I live in Brasil and we get many bad movies. This is the most bad. I go to the grand theater to pay to see this movie. I stay up into the night to see this movie. The man has a spirit transcend his body and he then is a bad man. He walks around to play murder on women. I prayed. This movie is not a new movie and new movies are not all good. I typed in the words so I could tell everyone they should not see this movie. I have bad feelings about this movie. I have two children now and if they are very bad I will take them to see this movie and stay up into the night and see how bad it can be. If you think this movie is bad like I think you can email me. Sincerely, Lewis Naeem