The Pod of Five Rings Ep. 17 - Black Dynamite

Published: June 28, 2021, 9:37 p.m.

“Ever since I was a boy, all I knew was how to fight. Fight, fight, fight. And when I got tired, I would fight some more.” So goes the life of former CIA operative and Vietnam vet Black Dynamite. After uncovering a plot to fill the local orphanages full of heroin, Black Dynamite (@officialmichaeljaiwhite) declares war on all drug dealers, an action that takes him all the way from the fiendish Dr. Wu and his kung fu treachery all the way up to President Richard Nixon.

Playing expertly on the tropes of the “blaxploitation” genre from the 1970s, ‘Black Dynamite’ is the rare film that is simultaneously a love letter to and a criticism of the genre it parodies. What at first seems like typical b-movie shlock quickly becomes a hilarious mix of avant garde performances, over the top plots, and Michael Jai White’s signature martial arts style at its best.

Follow Rob Rowland @rock.n.rowland

Follow Joe Cebula @joe_cebula

Black Dynamite (2009)
Director: Scott Sanders