Review: The Hitter

Ex-boxer and now drifter Otis (Ron O’Neal) defeats Louisiana Slim (Bill Cobbs) at a game of pool, in the latter’s own pool hall no less. ‘ol Louisiana Slim isn’t happy about that at all, so Otis makes a swift exit. Then he meets aging con artist Nathan (Adolph Caesar), who upon finding out what Otis used to do for a living, sees dollar signs for them both in the street fight caper. Sheila Frazier plays a hooker whom Otis romances, unawares that she’s also the squeeze of the already pissed off Louisiana Slim.

 

A small, overlooked 1978 drama from director Christopher Leitch (director of “Teen Wolf Too”, co-writer of “Universal Soldier”), if you’re a Ron O’Neal fan you’ll want to check this one out. It’s got an archaic plot, and a bit of a mixed tone, but it’s a pretty entertaining watch. Ron O’Neal had enormous power and charisma as an actor, but was largely wasted throughout his career. “Super Fly” made him a star, and whilst he seems to think it also ironically ended his career as a big star, I’d argue his egotistical directorial effort/sequel “Superfly TNT” was what killed his momentum just one year later, and even so he was still headlining movies for years after that. They just weren’t financial successes. Here he is as the leading man and doing good work, but to zero notice it seems. Several years after the disaster of “Superfly TNT” and the end of the blaxploitation boom, I guess people just weren’t that interested in Ron O’Neal’s little indie comedy-drama.

 

More a gambling film than a boxing film for the first half this one is kinda up my alley in that regard. I’m a sucker for gambling films, especially “The Sting”, “Diggstown”, and “The Cincinnati Kid”. It also gets pretty bawdy in the segment at the cathouse, I gotta say. Scripted by Ben Harris (curiously his sole IMDb credit) and Leitch, it’s a small film boosted by its excellent cast. All four of the main actors here impress, and while O’Neal is no comedic genius, he tries to lighten up a bit more than usual. His character is interesting and the furthest thing from jaded drug dealer Youngblood Priest. He also retains his “Super Fly” chemistry with co-star Sheila Frazier. There admittedly isn’t much to the film, and I wish Bill Cobbs (who was middle-aged even when young) had considerably more screen time, but what it does it does enjoyably, especially in the more amusing first half. Trailer voiceover veteran Adolph Caesar (‘Have no fear, Pam Grier is here!’ etc.) is genuinely funny as aging hustler Nathan, stealing scenes. In the final third it kinda turns into a surprisingly violent revenge-thriller, but don’t expect blaxploitation here. This was 1978, not 1972 and there’s a difference, though we’re not talking “A Hero Ain’t Nothing But a Sandwich” levels of difference perhaps.

 

“Hard Times” with an African-American cast, this is no world beater but it’s fun, and it shows Ron O’Neal was more than just Youngblood Priest. Worth a look if you can track this obscurity down and enjoy gambling films. It deserves more eyes on it, the funky and soulful soundtrack is cool too. Fun fact: In addition to Caesar, another famous trailer voice-over guy was involved in the film: Don LaFontaine was the music supervisor and post-production supervisor on the film. No idea why (because we were living ‘in a world gone mad’, perhaps?), but he’s in the credits nonetheless.

 

Rating: B-