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Original Gangstas

Play trailer Poster for Original Gangstas R 1996 1h 38m Action Play Trailer Watchlist
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53% Tomatometer 15 Reviews 46% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Successful Los Angeles football coach John Bookman (Fred Williamson) returns home to Gary, Ind., when his father is murdered. Discovering the town overrun with violent street gangs, John is even more horrified to learn his father was shot by a member of the Rebels, a gang John himself helped form in his youth. John teams up with Jake (Jim Brown) and Laurie (Pam Grier), the parents of a boy who was also killed by a Rebel, to organize their neighborhood against gang violence.
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Original Gangstas

Critics Reviews

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Anne Billson Daily Telegraph (UK) This is solid action fare with saggy bits, but there's enough ass-kicking, Molotov cocktail-throwing and gunfire to keep their erstwhile fans amused, and the screenplay cleverly knits the old traditions of Shaft together with Boyz 'n' the Hood. Nov 27, 2017 Full Review Kevin Thomas Los Angeles Times Original Gangstas leaves you feeling that more could have been made of this 'blaxploitation' reunion, but it's not bad -- and no more and no less substantial than the films of the original cycle. Rated: 3/5 Feb 14, 2001 Full Review Susan Stark Detroit News Think Boyz N the Hood meets The Mod Squad. Rated: 3/4 Jan 1, 2000 Full Review Sheila Reid Women in the Life It's good to see the stars from those 70’s “black exploitation” blockbusters working again, even if it is naïve to believe they can come back 20 years later and wipe out today’s dope dealers. May 31, 2022 Full Review Chuck O'Leary Fantastica Daily Rated: 2/5 Oct 9, 2005 Full Review Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Rated: 2/5 Jul 21, 2005 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Ronnie M Dru Down was the best thing about this movie.....1 star rating without him Rated 3 out of 5 stars 11/02/25 Full Review M R I forgot Waldo played a gangsta. I remember this film existing but never saw it in its entirety when I was younger. The story is really impactful and kinda relevant in the modern age. The characters are very interesting. It wasn't bad at all. Rating: 7/10 Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/20/25 Full Review Audience Member "During the four or five weeks we were in Gary, no crime. The day after we left, it started again. Ten days later, it was so bad they had to send in the national guard. They were killing each other right and left. When we were there? Nothing." — Larry Cohen Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/30/23 Full Review Audience Member Pretty disappointing. Especially coming from such an interesting director as Cohen. It's very cheap and amateur looking, like most quick DTV movies from the 90s. Hollow, boring characters with terrible acting. And it totally wastes the marquee. The opportunity to make a cool Expendables type of flick with all these classic blaxsploitation actors could've been so much fun, but the ball was dropped. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/01/23 Full Review Audience Member Fred Williamson is the worst fighter ever :) Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review Audience Member A lot of fun, never really gets great, but gets damn good. I can't imagine it having much appeal if you don't love these actors like I do Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/19/23 Full Review Read all reviews
Original Gangstas

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Cast & Crew

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Larry Cohen

Director

Fred Williamson

John Bookman

Jim Brown

Jake Trevor

Pam Grier

Laurie Thompson

Paul Winfield

Reverend Dorsey

Isabel Sanford

Gracie Bookman

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Original Gangstas

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Movie Info

Synopsis Successful Los Angeles football coach John Bookman (Fred Williamson) returns home to Gary, Ind., when his father is murdered. Discovering the town overrun with violent street gangs, John is even more horrified to learn his father was shot by a member of the Rebels, a gang John himself helped form in his youth. John teams up with Jake (Jim Brown) and Laurie (Pam Grier), the parents of a boy who was also killed by a Rebel, to organize their neighborhood against gang violence.
Director
Larry Cohen
Producer
Fred Williamson
Screenwriter
Aubrey K. Rattan
Distributor
Orion Pictures
Production Co
Po' Boy Productions
Rating
R
Genre
Action
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 10, 1996, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 30, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$3.3M
Runtime
1h 38m
Sound Mix
Stereo, Surround
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