Sheba, Baby (1975)

The late seventies were the heyday for the genre of film known as Blaxploitation. Action films that offered starring roles to black actors with stories urban audiences could relate to were made by low budget studies at first but once they showed they could draw an audience the larger studios jumped on the bandwagon. While male stars like Bernie Casey, James Brown and Richard Roundtree were topping the box office there was one female star that burst upon the scene as well. That she could continue to make a name for herself in more mainstream released from then until now speaks volumes about her abilities. But back then it was a combination of her sexuality and no nonsense characters that got her roles. By the time SHEBA BABY arrived Pam Grier had shone in both COFFY and FOXY BROWN. This time she toned things down enough for a PG rating but the box office still followed.Grier stars as the title character, Sheba Shayne, a top private investigator in Chicago who returns to her hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, when the mob tries to muscle in on her father's loan business. Apparently they weren't aware of who they were dealing with as Sheba deals out swift retribution for the attack on her father. Justice is dealt out street wise with little assistance from the local police and plenty from Sheba's old flame Brick (Austin Stoker). There's no need for more details than that. The genre was filled with cardboard cutout bad guys and street smart heroes that took no guff from both the police and the mob. Instead they sought to handle things on their own and did so quite well. While the films were not an attack on the established law enforcement they played up a sense of pride in community and being able to take care of oneself when it came to criminals. Characters like Sheba were defenders of all with a strong moral compass when it came to right and wrong crime wise. Grier's characters were a positive role model even if they meted out justice on their own.Many have faulted SHEBA BABY as the worst film Grier offered at the time but it holds up still and isn't near as bad as the naysayers claim. The problem is after such strong performances and stories as found in her two prior films this one isn't quite up to that standard she set. It remains a good film though.As with all Arrow Film releases, of which I am a solid fan, this one does what they do best. It offers the cleanest, sharpest and best looking rendition of the film with enough extras to keep fans entertained. Included in this release are: -Original mono audio (uncompressed PCM on the Blu-ray) -Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing -Audio commentary with producer-screenwriter David Sheldon, moderated by critic Nathaniel Thompson -Sheldon: Baby - a brand new interview with David Sheldon -Pam Grier: The AIP Years - a look over the wonder years of the Blaxploitation queen with film historian Chris Poggiali -Trailer -Gallery featuring rare publicity images and Lobby Cards -Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sean Phillips -Booklet featuring brand new writing on the film by Patty Breen, webmaster of WilliamGirdler.com, illustrated with archive stills and postersFans of Grier and the genre will want to add this one to their collection to make it complete. If you've never exposed yourself to the genre then Grier's film are a good way to start. Perhaps one day the genre will make a comeback. Until then we have Arrow providing the best offerings of the past.

If anything, William Girdler was an opportunist who wanted a piece of the action in regards to whatever was popular during the time. I mean, a blaxploitation flick in Louisville, Kentucky..who would of thunk it?!?! I can just imagine the enthusiasm he must've had getting Pam Grier, quite a hot item, to star in his picture. If you are pretty familiar with the genre, Girdler's Sheba, Baby doesn't necessarily stray too far from formula. Despite a change of venue, the film still deals with a ruthless businessman nicknamed Shark who muscles in on loan companies, using stooges to threaten them in order to get their signatures. Grier is Sheba Shayne, a former Louisville cop working in Chicago who returns home at the request of her father's partner, Brick(Austin Stoker, Assault on Precinct 13). Sheba's father, despite Shark's bullying tactics(..his man in town is Pilot, a wannabe gangster, equipped with stooges who aren't that menacing, rather buffoonish in nature, so thin-skinned they hire hit men outside of town to shoot up the Shayne Loan building), won't give up his company, and this eventually costs him his life when a warning through the use of brute force, leads to his being killed. Sheba will get her revenge on all those responsible for his father's death. In other words, Shark's ass is grass..can you dig it? Seeing Grier with a magnum is enough to sell this particular film, the novelty of the setting being in Louisville is part of the package. You even get to see a speedboat chase, Grier in shootouts with gangsters(..not necessarily the most polished kind one might be accustomed to seeing in a Chicago or New York during this period in blaxploitation), lots of blood spurting from bullet-riddled bodies torn apart by gun-fire, and colorful characters(..such as a wimpy loan shark in pimp-dress named Walker and Pilot who is one of the least scary mobsters you are likely to see)who show up during the film, most having the misfortune of coming in contact with a very angry Sheba. The plot itself is nothing special, but Grier is always worth watching, and Girdler orchestrates plenty of action sequences to keep his target audience entertained. A modest success for Girdler, and one of his more accomplished films.

Sheba Baby, is another Pam Grier Blaxploitation film. It was one of Pam's less visceral films of this genre. Pam plays Sheba Shane, who's a Chicago gumshoe. Sheba's father is the owner of a small loan company, in Missouri. When local mobsters try to run her father of of business, Sheba goes after the bad guys.Pam Grier had already made her mark in Blaxploitation films, by the time Sheba Baby came along. Fans of both Coffy and Foxy Brown, know that Pam is capable of an explosive intensity as an actress. In Sheba Baby, the fiery performance that viewers had come to expect from Pam, wasn't as evident in this film. Not that Pam doesn't kick-butt in Sheba Baby. She's just not as much of a runaway-train vigilante, as she was in her previous Blaxploitation films.The supporting cast in this film, are a distinct disappointment. So Sheba Baby is Pam's film, through and through. And though Pam's a bit more subdued than in her other films, she still gives a compelling performance in Sheba Baby. This film is definitely worth your time, if you're an ardent Pam Grier fan.

Unfortunately, William Girdler's 1975 Sheba, Baby is one of Pam Grier's weaker vehicles. Playing a Chicago-based private investigator who flies to the South in order to help her father save his loan business from corrupt sharks, Grier has fewer that usual opportunities to pull out the stops. Additionally, Grier is hampered the most by a substandard script and little chance to do what she does best. Despite the lethargic pacing, a climactic speed boat chase -- which culminates in a nasty skewering at the end of a harpoon -- should please fans of the genre. Jack Hill's 1973 Coffy is a far superior Pam Grier movie.