Foxy Brown (1974) User Reviews

Pam Grier is dazzling

[gbill-74877 · 7/10 · 7 December 2020]

Pam Grier is absolutely dazzling in her outfits in this film, of which there are about a dozen. She's obviously the reason to watch this film, and her character, Foxy Brown, is a strong, smart, sexy black woman, which is a wonderful thing. Aside from Grier's charms, the film features revenge for a brutal rape sequence and entertaining grindhouse moments, so it's no wonder it's a Tarantino favorite. Despite the B-movie vibe with a script that seemed written by a high school boy (apologies to Jack Hill), the film has a feminist streak to it because of its lead character.

As for the exploitation elements, I have to say, it was tough to hear a black man say this when asked about getting a normal job: "Foxy look, I'm a black man, and I don't know how to sing, and I don't know how to dance, and I don't know how to preach to no congregation. I'm too small to be a football hero, and I'm too ugly to be elected mayor." It just reinforces all of the stereotypical roles usually assigned to African-Americans by Hollywood (though in the film, we do see a black man with a normal job briefly as he attempts to rescue his wife from sex slavery). On the other hand, I guess you could view it as a statement on limited opportunities in a white man's world, and the film does critiques the racism of its white characters as well as corruption in the justice system.

If you're willing to put up with low production quality (or laugh along with it) and enjoy the sight of Pam Grier dole out some beatings, this could be your film. I liked Coffy from the preceding year a little bit more, but this one is entertaining too.

A chick with drive who don't take no jive

[johnnysugar · 7/10 · 2 February 2004]

In 1973, the film "Coffy" made Pam Grier a star, a permanent icon of the blaxploitation films of the era, and a symbol of female empowerment in the face of racial tension. She also kicked a whole lot of tail. Writer and director of "Coffy", Jack Hill, had finished a script for a sequel when the studio decided at the last minute that it didn't want to film a sequel to "Coffy." Re-working his script, Hill gave birth to what could arguably the seminal female blaxploitation film: "Foxy Brown."

Foxy Brown (Pam Grier) is a strong woman striving for a better world. While she attempts to help her drug-dealing brother Link (Antonio Fargas) change his ways, she waits for her federal cop boyfriend Dalton (Terry Carter) to recover from plastic surgery designed to hide him from the drug lords he informed on. Renaming himself Michael, he plans to run away with Foxy to a new life. All of his plans crumble, however, when Link discovers Michael's true identity, and informs on him for a hefty sum to the devious Miss Katherine (Katheryn Loder) and the suave Stve Elias (Peter Brown). When Katherine's goons kill Michael in Foxy's house, Foxy swears revenge. She infiltrates a call girl ring run by Katherine in an attempt to bring the crime lord down in the name of vengeance.

Hill has created an iconic character in Foxy Brown, a character who has been copied and referenced to varying degrees of success since her inception (most shamefully in Beyonce Knowles' character of Foxy Cleopatra in "Austin Powers in Goldmember"). It's not difficult to see why. As embodied by Grier, Foxy is the ultimate female: beautiful, sexy, intelligent, and undeniably fierce. Grier is such a pleasure to watch on screen that you sometimes forget about the lack of support she has around her or the simplistic morals of the story.

Loder's Miss Katherine Wall is a villainess of operatic proportions, filled with delightful malice and sadistic impulse. Brown's Steve is just as good, every inch the handsome mid-70s man. Fargas is also memorable as the weasely and cowardly Link, but outside of these three, the supporting players are only adequate. While Junita Brown's doomed call girl has her moments, the rest of the supporting cast is fairly flat, with line readings not having the right amount of emotion (either too much or too little) and often hitting just off-key of the psychological and emotional core that they need to strike.

While Hill's script taps deep into the racial biases of the 70s, and is filled with the appropriate amount of slang and tension, his characters are often moral absolutes with little in shades of grey or complex motivations. Often, this exists on a similar plane to race: with the exception of Dalton/Michael's fellow agents, every white person in the film is shown as uncaring at best, evil of the highest order at worst. By the same token, with the exception of Link and a fellow dope dealer, the black characters are heroic and upright. In the context of the film, the conceit is appropriate, but it can lead to some viewers being upset or failing to take into account the politics of the time that would lead to such a depiction and dismissing the film out of hand.

Despite these flaws, "Foxy Brown" is definitely a film to watch not just for historical value, but for the remarkable performance of Pam Grier, an actress just as strong and beautiful today as she was in 1974. Whenever she's on the screen, you immediately forget about any imperfections in the movie. As the theme song says, she is "superbad." And that's good. 7 out of 10.

The Voluptuous Vulpes...

[Xstal · 7/10 · 18 March 2023]

Foxy Brown has seen her boyfriend taken out, a tip off from her brother there's no doubt, now revenge is on her mind, drug dealing villains she will find, along with others, they'll receive almighty clout - amongst other things.

Another absolutely wonderful Pam Grier performance, what's not to like about a black women dolling out justice with style, elegance and class against a load of craven drug pushers and peddlers. A little bit racy in places, certainly of its time, and wholly unrepresentative of reality, but it moves along at pace, there are some great fight scenes, and the leading lady keeps you glued to the screen throughout.

One viewing will make you a Pam Addict!

[iago-6 · 18 June 2004]

I bought this movie for $2.99, thinking it would be amusing trash. I had no idea how awesome, wrenching, complex, invigorating, and just downright GOOD it was. A lot of comments here have focused on how fun and awesome it is (and it totally is), but I don't see anyone talking about it as a legitimately good movie, so that's what I'm going to address here.

First of all, they just don't make movies like this anymore. Movies today are so sanitized and wiped free of emotion that one doesn't have much of a reaction to them. This movie features RAW emotion, mainly rage and anger. It also doesn't play nice on the brutality. I could not believe Foxy was actually going to be raped... that would NEVER happen in a movie today, and if it did, it would never be treated as casually as it was here. The way she is brutalized in this movie is genuinely shocking, and the ways in which she gets her revenge are equally shocking... and exhilarating. What I'm saying is that you have a real visceral reaction to this movie, and that's a lot more than can be said for most movies nowadays.

Secondly, I don't see anyone talking about the moral complexity of this movie. The whole thing of it being Foxy's own brother who sets the plot in motion brings a lot of ambiguity and depth to both his and Foxy's characters. And then there's Juanita Brown's performance as Claudia. The scene where she goes from drugged-up laughter to hysterical shrieking is just breathtaking... I've seen lots of Best Supporting Actress statues given out for a LOT less. I also liked how the movie didn't make a big deal of how Foxy arranged for Claudia to get out of the business and get back to her husband--and I like that the movie had Foxy do this: i.e. she's helping others around her, not just out for her own revenge.

Finally, there's Pam Grier herself! This movie made me a convert. There's just something so compelling about her; tough, vulnerable, tender, and MEAN when she has to be. There was a moment in this movie where the thought flitted through my head: "How am I going to survive in life if I don't have Foxy to protect me?" I am offically obsessed. I have the DVD of this film on order, and have plans to watch "Coffy" with a friend in a few days. Pam, you are a national treasure!

And let us not forget the awesome title sequence and catchy song by Willie Hutch!

As I was watching, I was thinking "I'm amazed no one has tried to remake this. Who would they choose? probably Halle Berry, though there's no way she could hold a candle to Pam." Well, it was no surprise to see that next year a remake is due out with Halle Berry. (But is Halle's Foxy going to get raped? I highly doubt it). You can just imagine how that's going to be. It will be all sanitized with some decorative "suffering," and then some bloodless revenge. That's why I keep harping on the rape in this movie: it was balls-out NASTY and BRUTAL and pulls no punches. Let's just see how Halle does.

One thing more: I'm not a Tarantino fan, but this film provided a lot of insight into a) Why he would want to make Jackie Brown, and b) a lot of the form and conventions (including the rape) that he followed in Kill Bill. Too bad, in my opinion, this movie is four times as complex and emotionally involving and cathartic as Kill Bill. A lot of that, I think, has to do with how technically proficient and writerly composed Kill Bill is, and a lot of the power of this comes from it being low-budget and without a feeling of being "guided" by a ironic and proficient director.

What the world needs now is Pam, sweet Pam.

--- Check out my website devoted to bad and cheesy movies: www.cinemademerde.com

Damn Maltin, this is the s**t!

[DrSatan · 7/10 · 23 August 1999]

Foxy Brown is one of Pam Grier's best blaxploitation movies (topped only by Coffy). From the James Bondish opening sequence of Pam dancing to the "Foxy Brown" theme song, to Antonio Fargas ("That's my sister...and she's a whole lotta woman!") to the spectacular ending which I will not spoil, this is a must see for any a) Pam Grier fan b)blaxploitation fan c)anybody who wants to see a strong female character beat the crap out of her opponents. That being said, it does feature the standard "Grier sleeps her way to the top of crime syndicate", a plot ripped off of Coffy. With scenes like the famous "Afro as holster" sequence and the inclusion of a Black Panther-esque anti-drug group this movie is fun from start to finish. Don't believe that Maltin; Mr. Charlie gave LaserBlast a better rating; he gave Sheba Baby, which is awful, a better rating. See Foxy Brown tonite!

Double-D-elicious Blaxploitation classic

[jamesrupert2014 · 7/10 · 6 January 2023]

Foxy Brown (Pam Grier) strikes down with great vengeance and furious anger the vicious hoods who murdered her low-life pusher brother (the unmistakable Antonio Fargas) and her blandly righteous boyfriend (Michael Anderson). Even by Blaxploitation standards, this vengeance yarn is a bit over the top, with lots of nudity, crude language, and an entertaining variety of brutalities, mutilations, and deaths. Grier is fine as the buxom angel of death but the rest of the cast are primarily charactures of racist cops and hoodlums, Black-power militants, pricy call-girls, and sleazy politicians. The lead villainess, Miss Katherine, is played by Kathryn Loder, whose stilted, stagy delivery makes the vile upscale madam sound like she's somewhere on the spectrum. The action sequences are pretty graphic and the film is gruesome enough at times to get itself banned in some markets (there was something pink in that nasty pickle jar...). The film was originally a sequel to 'Coffy' (1973) so Foxy's back story is a bit sparse. The soundtrack is a homage to/rip-off of Isaac Hayes' iconic 'Shaft' themes. Be warned: the script is full of vintage racial pejoratives that could cause near-fatal indignation in these more sensitive times.

it's all Pam Grier

[ksf-2 · 7/10 · 14 September 2020]

This seems to be an AIP follow up to Warner brothers Cleopatra Jones, in the blacksploitation category. Pam Grier is Foxy, regular woman, with a brother (antonion fargas) and a boyfriend cop (terry carter). a weird sex scene in the hospital while the boyfriend is still all wrapped in bandages; Foxy and the nurse both have a go at it. Foxy gets mad when her boyfriend is knocked off, and goes after the bad guys on her own terms. not for the kids! so many boobs. and cussing galore. keep an eye out for kathryn loder... she's the bad girl; appeared in two of jack hill's films, but died young at 38...diabetes, acc to imdb. the locations and the music are CLASSIC 1970s black hood. Foxy tracks down the gang, and gets taken out to "the ranch"! if she can break free, she'll give em what fer. written and directed by jack hill. he wrote and directed about twenty films in the 1960s, 70s, and early 1980s. Grier made seven films with him. and Grier is still working in 2020 !

whole lotta woman

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 25 July 2020]

Foxy Brown (Pam Grier) welcomes home her Federal Narcotics agent boyfriend Dalton Ford after two years undercover which ultimately ended empty-handed due to corruption in the system. He is released and given new identity Michael Anderson. Foxy's brother Link is in trouble with crime lord Steve Elias after losing a $20k drug stash. Elias is protected by Katherine Wall and her stable of high class call girls.

The welcome is a blow job. Right On. It has one of the icons of blaxploitation, Pam Grier. There is no other woman like Foxy Brown. I do wish for better writing and sharper action. The story is a simple revenge plot written by a high school level author and the moviemaking is B-movie level from start to finish. I didn't expect much. All of it is saved by the powerhouse that is Pam Grier. I also like Antonio Fargas until he does his death scene. That is some trash overacting. One thing I desperately want is a better theme song for Foxy. She deserves a Shaft level calling card.

Action-packed, Afro-Sheened excitement

[ColemanDerrick · 8/10 · 15 July 2001]

Foxy Brown is one of the most graphically violent urban action films around. Jack Hill delivers a solid story to compliment pulp-style action sequences. Peter Brown and Kathryn Loder are remarkable as the villainous couple, whose passion for oneanother contrasts the hateful crimes they commit. Pam Grier is marvelous as Foxy Brown, both visually and emotionally. Foxy Brown, like Grier's previous character Coffy, is a strong-willed and able woman, who wants justice in her community, and personal life. The film's content, while slightly dated, is still timely enough to resonate with some viewers. Finally, I would like to address some rather ignorant critics of this film: yes, the villains are white. THIS IS A BLAXPLOITATION FILM!!!! WHAT DO YOU EXPECT????!!!!! While it is not easily stated, Foxy Brown and so many of the blaxploitation movies were originally produced so that Hollywood could capitalize on the vibe of the black community. These films were created, marketed, and displayed to an audience that was often belittled and ignored during the decades leading up to the 1970s. They are action flicks that pull on the heart strings of some, while others get a cool chuckle watching them. Trust me, whenever a bigot ruins my day, it is always nice to watch Foxy Brown bring whitey down!!! Power to the People!!!! And as the immortal Bob Ross always said, "God bless."

What a treat this movie was!

[jonny_ · 7/10 · 11 December 2022]

I decided to watch this based on the fact Pam Grier was in it, so I had a vague idea of what this movie could have been. On the flip side, the film I got was absolutely wild.

It is filled with action, and while it's clearly what i'd label "dated" action. The punches sometimes clearly aren't making contact at times or the sounds are a bit off. But does it take away from any of it? Not at all, it's still intensely entertaining and you get thrown real curve balls. You have absolutely no way of guessing whats about to happen next.

It is a very gritty movie at parts so if that isn't your thing it might not be for you, but it has a great mix of some great acting, and some of it very cheesy plus considering how and when it was made a lot of the action is actually pretty impressive. And while it is down to personal choice, it has a pretty rocking soundtrack. But if you're just looking for something fun to watch Foxy Brown entirely fits the bill.

A film with plenty of foxy and brown, but not much else

[happyendingrocks · 5/10 · 8 August 2009]

While arguably Pam Grier's best known work from the period when she owned the Blaxploitation genre, Foxy Brown is unfortunately the least satisfying offering from that chapter of her filmography. While Grier is always delightful to watch, this rather silly outing doesn't offer enough action or originality to distract the viewer from how ultimately stupid the premise is.

None of the plot turns that propel the story forward are the least bit feasible, and while I'm certainly aware that films like this aren't meant to be taken seriously, seeing how well Coffy balanced the camp elements with a gritty urban realism makes this follow-up seem disappointing and disjointed.

The general plot concerns the murder of Grier's government informant boyfriend, who has been given facial reconstructive surgery to protect his identity from the underworld figures he infiltrated. Apparently, the surgery wasn't all that radical, because despite the sincerity with which Grier and boyfriend's fellow Feds marvel at his unveiling, Grier's sleazy drug addict brother is able to recognize him upon seeing him in his new guise for approximately 10 seconds.

Her brother, of course, drops the dime to our resident drug carteles, who are looking for revenge against the man who irked them, although it's not entirely clear why they want him dead. Obviously, the members of this underworld family are not in prison, and are still free to orchestrate their dope trade unhindered, so one has to wonder exactly how this former agent wronged them so significantly that they're willing to risk a broad daylight hit against him. Anyway, he apparently did, so they shoot him down in front of Grier's house. It's worth noting that the two assassins ALSO are able to ascertain his identity after seeing his new face for 10 seconds... This is apparently the most piddling facial reconstruction in the history of film, and one can't help but think that he might have been safer if they skipped the plastic procedure and threw a pair of Groucho glasses on him instead.

Grier is, of course, devastated, and immediately sets a revenge plan in action. Once she finds the parties responsible, she does what any rational person would do: poses as a hooker to get inside their organization. Surely, there must be an easier way to get close enough to them to hatch an egg of vengeance (especially since her "audition" for the call girl position allows her to walk right into the midst of their home-base and stand face to face and alone in the room with the woman who ordered her lover's death).

But we wouldn't have much of a movie if Foxy's plan was that simple, so we follow her on a call-job, where she befriends a fellow working gal who is content to continue hooking even though she has a husband and child, who storm their way onto the cartel's compound to confront her as she and Foxy leave for their assignment. (Security at the estate that serves as base of operations for both a call-girl ring and a lucrative drug pushing syndicate must not be a high priority, since this random guy can just walk onto the grounds carrying a small child). This subplot is rather meaningless, and the hooker she befriends eventually disappears from the film without any explanation, but the whole point of this detour seems to be for the cartel to find out Foxy is playing spy so that they can send her to a pair of their henchmen to be raped, tortured, and force-fed heroin.

Now armed with even more incentive for revenge, Foxy escapes, enlists the help of a local vigilante crew, seduces Sid Haig, and eventually has her bloody vengeance, producing a few memorable bits along the way, luckily for us. One of these involves a thug meeting an airplane propeller head-on to delicious effect, and another finds Foxy castrating the lover of the cartel's chairwoman and delivering his cash and prizes to her in a pickle jar.

There are plenty of cheap thrills here to make Foxy Brown a worthy view, but nothing that will encourage repeat viewing the way that Coffy's much more violent, sexy, and solid template does. Having an original title doesn't disguise the fact that this film is, for all intents and purposes, a sequel, thus subject to the familiar rule of diminishing returns. Foxy Brown may not be an Empire Strikes Back, but it definitely isn't a Phantom Menace, so Grier completists won't feel much pain while crossing this one off their list.

If that sounds like a meager recommendation, it is, but if you're a fan of Blaxploitation films or Pam Grier, you already know you're going to see this. So why do you care what I think anyway?

Action-packed, afro-sheened cinema!!!!!!

[ColemanDerrick · 8/10 · 13 July 2001]

This was one of the most violent, nonhorror films that I can recall from the 1970s. Beyond the blaxploitation label, Foxy Brown is a solid adventure film, that remains timely to this day. Kudos to Jack Hill, who worked up another treasure with the lovely Ms. Grier. Peter Brown and Kathryn Loder truly deliver unforgettable performances as depraved, sadistic villains, who love each other, but care little for anyone else. The love their characters share is a contrast to the evil that Mr. Elias and Ms. Wall do. As a note, I try to keep things in perspective, and stick to reviewing each film that I write about. But to whoever chooses to read this particular comment, please keep something in mind about the blaxploitation films:

1. They are action films, for the most part, beyond race. 2. These movies were made to play up the social issues of the time, and even today; so yes, most of the villains were white--deal with it!! 3. Because the blaxploitation films were produced in Hollywood, you should take note that the strong, physical prowess exhibited by the heroes and heroines of the films eventually find their way into the mainstream, as the Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, Commando, and Cobra movies of the 1980s and 1990s utilize the same, over-the-top action in urban settings. These films, with white leads, are more inline with the blaxploitation formula, than Dirty Harry and Death Wish pics; the Eastwood and Bronson characters mainly used their guns, and rarely duked it out with any villains.

So maybe I am rambling, but my point is this: enjoy each film for what it's worth. And keep in mind, the target audience for blaxploitation movies was ignored by studios during the decades before the 1970s. If you are white, and like blaxploitation, or of any race and think of these movies as cliched slices of the 1970s, please open your minds and keep a proper perspective of the times.

Good, yes, but not all that I was led to expect it would be.

[I_Ailurophile · 6/10 · 2 November 2023]

Look, I'll be frank: I'm just not very impressed. It took me me more than five hours, collectively, to get through a movie that's only ninety minutes long, and that should just never happen. I recognize very well why it's regarded so well, and the important place it has with regards to blaxploitation flicks specifically and cinema generally. The story in and of itself is dark, violent, and compelling, with appreciable and relevant themes. This is well made, from stunts and effects to costume design, hair, makeup, art direction, and Willie Hutch's catchy music. The details that flesh out that story, however, are weak and questionable. It took me two or three times of backing up the video to make sure I didn't miss something in the first half, where the connective threads between ideas and beats are the thinnest of all, and the pacing in that first half is also meek and troubled. Things do pick up in the second half as the title character takes action, but still the pacing is variable. The broad strokes and basic ideas of the plot, and the scene writing, are mostly outstanding; the dialogue is much less sturdy (mind a content warning for wholly unnecessary, tawdry homophobic language, in addition to the racism that's inherent to the narrative), and beyond its root thoughts the writing often feels halfhearted, or incomplete, like filmmaker Jack Hill just didn't finish those thoughts. And Hill's direction - well, the action sequences look fantastic. Any quieter moments that require nuance and acting to carry the day come off much the same as Hill's writing does.

I don't dislike 'Foxy Brown,' and I think it ends up better than not. I think issues that come across with the acting are concerns of Hill's direction, and not the cast's skills. Nevertheless, I finally get around to watching a picture that I've been aware of for many many years, with a reputation that I've been aware of for many many years, and I'm nonplussed. It wasn't necessarily ever going to blow my socks off, but I assumed I'd enjoy it, and instead I'm just left with a noncommittal "I watched it, and it was fine." It's possible that something was off about the conditions of when I watched, and with another go I'd get more out of it. For as unexceptional as it feels just once, however, I'm in no real rush to try again. Maybe like some other features I'll revisit this one in twenty to thirty years and have a blast. In the meantime, while I do think it's worth watching - both on its own merits, and for the place it holds in cinema at large - I'd be lying if I said 'Foxy Brown' wasn't a bit of a letdown. Good, yes, but not all that I was led to expect it would be.

Very entertaining--a definite "guilty pleasure"!

[planktonrules · 5/10 · 1 May 2008]

My score of 5 is indicative of the quality of the production--not the entertainment value. Sure, the film is silly, occasionally poorly directed and produced and it sure would never win any accolades for its artistic merits. But on the other hand, it is very entertaining and is a definite "guilty pleasure"--you know, a film that you love but isn't a particularly good film. While it was not as exciting as Pam Grier's prior film, COFFY, it was a little better aesthetically--with less of the cheesy violence (no exploding heads in this one) , but it still packs a mean punch and it's nice to see Grier's acting has improved.

Like COFFY, FOXY BROWN is about a one-woman demolition team out to destroy a drug syndicate. In this sense, the film isn't so original and at times it's more like a sequel than a stand-alone film. This isn't all bad, as the action is still there as well as all the excitement. But this time it's all a bit more tame and not quite as shocking. Also, sadly, FOXY BROWN ended rather poorly in my opinion. By the end of COFFY, every drug dealer was stone cold dead--but in FOXY BROWN, she oddly left a couple of them beaten (and in one case BADLY damaged) but alive. To me, this just wasn't as satisfying--I wanted to see them all bite the dust!

Like most so-called "Blaxploitation" films, this one is super-violent and full of nudity. It's a film you best not show your kids or to a nun!

She'll put you on ice!

[davidbyrne77 · 22 February 2004]

Damn, this movie is so supa-bad it's supa-good! Pam Grier is great as the jive talkin' lady who's out for revenge after some snow-pushing honkies didn't treat her so nice. There's no messin' around with Foxy Brown! The clothes, the characters, and especially the talk (dig this, jive that) is so '70's it seems to be a parody.

What's bad about this film is the excessive violence (Foxy's drugging and raping and her gruesome revenge), but maybe it's necessary in order to have a film like this. Throw censorship to the wind and have a no-holds-barred action/revenge flick, complete with mutha-f***er this and that, pickle jar prothetics, and propeller dismemberments.

The trailer for this flick is the coolest. If it doesn't make you dig Foxy straight up, you're in the wrong scene!

Reliving the '70s with that Foxy Brown a.k.a. Pam Grier!

[tbills2 · 6/10 · 10 January 2021]

Born to be foxy Foxy Brown, Pam Grier's more than just a fox; she's a little dose of elegance, a whole lotta intelligence and oh OH so very relevant! Pam is one super perfect woman as beautiful as any other titan in the industry, regardless of race. Pam's a super sweet, gorgeous woman with crazy cool looking hair as her natural afro in Foxy Brown looks as nice as can be. The trademark Foxy Brown look should inspire kids today to wear their hair out. Miss Grier's skin is beaming, blessed with the most beautiful tone - milk chocolate. Pam is heavily armed with a formidable body having platinum plus breasts which she shows in Foxy Brown. She's genuinely divine. FOXY Brown! - Blaxploitation at its realest. I love me some Pam Grier.

Grier is foxy but the film is mediocre.

[gridoon · 6/10 · 22 January 2002]

Pam Grier's beauty and the not-so-subtle attempt at social commentary make this somewhat overhyped blaxploitation film worth seeing. But it's a lurid, sometimes overly brutal picture, and despite what many others have said, I found the pacing to be not half as fast as it should've been. The catfight in the lesbian bar (which is prominently featured in the old video box cover) is also majorly disappointing in its staging. (**)

"A little taste of honey ain't enough for me. I gotta have the whole beehive."

[utgard14 · 6/10 · 9 November 2014]

When her undercover cop boyfriend is murdered, bombshell Foxy Brown (Pam Grier) is out for revenge. She goes undercover as a call girl for a sleazy couple (Peter Brown, Kathryn Loder) that runs a prostitution and drug syndicate. Voluptuous and tough Pam Grier is the whole show, kicking ass and looking good doing it. Antonio Fargas plays her weaselly brother. Sid Haig has a small part as a horny pilot. The fight in the lesbian bar and the airplane murder are highlights. Foxy's final moment of revenge left me speechless. Cool theme song, nice nudity, and lots of violence like most of the great blaxploitation movies. Contains some pretty rough scenes and racist language so be prepared for that if you're squeamish. Not quite as good as Coffy but still entertaining.

Solid exploitation fare

[tomgillespie2002 · 7/10 · 7 August 2013]

After the huge success of Coffy (1973), American International Pictures wanted more blaxploitation, namely in the form of Pam Grier's sexy, female empowered ass-kicker. Coffy made Grier an overnight star, but not wanting to make a sequel after seeing a few sequels of other franchises fail at the box-office, they hastily re-wrote the script for Burn, Coffy, Burn!, and created Foxy Brown. They kept writer and director Jack Hill, and made a film about basically the same character. Yet Coffy and Foxy Brown are arguably as popular and as iconic as each other - Foxy maybe even more so - and this is mainly due to Foxy Brown being a pretty decent film, despite familiar plotting and genre tropes.

When her boyfriend is gunned down by a bunch of gangsters, Foxy Brown goes undercover to infiltrate a prostitute ring posing as a modelling agency. Her dead-beat brother Link (the amazing Antonio Fargas) tells Foxy that the group - led by strange and kinky couple Steve (Peter Brown) and Miss Katherine (Kathryn Loder) - are the people responsible. Violence, drugs and explosions soon follow as Foxy pursues her thirst for vengeance, and helps fellow black woman Claudia (Juanita Brown) to escape a life on the game,

It's a revenge premise seen a thousand times before, but Foxy Brown is often a blast. Grindhouse trailers often dazzle and confuse us with endless action scenes and violence promising a wonderful experience, only to submit us to 90 torturous minutes of amateurish crap. Yet Foxy Brown certainly delivers on its promises. It's noticeably more violent than other blaxploitation films, with Jack Hill's wit surprisingly shining through moments of forced heroin addiction and pickled cock. But it's Pam Grier that steals the movie, pulling guns out of her 'afro and simply being 'a whooooole lotta woman!' (as recognised by her own brother) throughout, displaying the charisma that would make her a 70's icon. It doesn't break any boundaries, even by action standards, and there are certain plot holes you have to try and ignore (what does Foxy Brown actually do?), but it's 95 minutes of solid exploitation fare.

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She's Creamin' Us Again!

[Witchfinder-General-666 · 8/10 · 20 May 2008]

I am a huge fan of blaxploitation goddess Pam Grier, and Jack Hill's "Coffy" of 1973 is both my favorite Grier-film and one of the absolute greatest Blaxploitation films ever made. While this "Foxy Brown" of 1974, which is very similar in its premise, is not quite as cool as "Coffy" it is yet another immensely entertaining and bad-ass blaxploitation classic. It is funny how director Jack Hill often repeated a successful idea - he made two WIP (Women In Prison) flicks, "The Big Doll House" (1971) and "The Big Bird Cage" (1972), both starring Grier, and then went on to make two 'Female Avenger' themed Blaxploitation flicks, also both starring Grier, "Coffy" (1973) and "Foxy Brown" (1974). And it is no wonder that the ravishing Miss Grier was always chosen to star as the foxy female ass-kicker. Grier unites incredible sexiness and incredible coolness, and is therefore predestined to play exploitation heroines of the kind.

Storywise, "Foxy Brown" is quite near to what "Coffy" was, a film about a black beauty with style, Foxy Brown (Pam Grier), who is taking on ruthless mobsters in order to take bloody revenge for a loved one... At first I had the impression that the film would be a little tamer than "Coffy" in sleaze and violence, but "Foxy Brown" really catches up on these qualities a bit later in the film. It is not quite as cool as "Coffy", but still stylish enough. I personally preferred the character of Coffy to that of Foxy Brown, as well as the reasons of the revenge, and I especially preferred the villains in "Coffy" to those in this one. Out of all the blaxploitation films I've seen so far, however, "Coffy" is my favorite, and while "Foxy Brown" is certainly inferior, it is nonetheless great fun and a must-see for blaxploitation lovers. As mentioned above, sexy Pam Grier is great in the role, and the film has an overall wonderfully funky atmosphere. The groovy theme song in the very beginning ("Supabaaaad") already promises 90 minutes of great fun. The supporting cast includes the great Sid Haig, who was in plenty of films with Grier around the time, in a small role. Overall the film is no "Coffy", but it is definitely an immensely entertaining blaxploitation classic that cult-cinema fans should not miss!

Fun Bonanza

[daniewhite-1 · 6/10 · 23 March 2020]

'Foxy Brown' is truly terrible and very very enjoyable, at least once it cranks into its second half, when half a dozen scenes of fun filled violence and weaponry and sex and trash talk really rip it up.

Pam Grier grows into her role and her performance as the vengence seeking retributer is a long class above her own playing in earlier scenes and most of the acting from almost everyone else. Physically she is perfect for the role and as the film progresses it's her physicality that needs to come to the fore, and it sure does.

Enduring resilience, motivation and mind altering sexiness are all exaggerated, exactly like the film needs.

The ways in which the film is also, actually terrible, are all so obvious and conventional as to be not worth listing. It's awful. But it's very very grand awful. I like 'Foxy Brown' and that's pretty much due to Grier in the title role, half a dozen scenes of class bravado and the strong sense of 70's blaxploitation and African American participation in characters telling the story from an African American perspective.

I rate 6/10 because all the failings and limitations of 'Foxy Brown' are mundane and clear: pretty much every way you could take a film to task; but the good in 'Foxy Brown' means that I recommend it to anyone happy to let that go.

Pam Grier - looking fabulous and taking names

[susansweb · 5/10 · 5 January 2006]

Pam Grier is dressed fabulously as she gets revenge on a prostitution ring that killed her man. Among the highlights/lowlights: Ms. Grier gets in a brawl at a lesbian bar, pilots a small plane through one thug and into a couple others (this must be a rule with low budget action movies as I've seen it in other movies of this ilk), demonstrates another use for a coat hanger and performs a rather bizarre striptease with Juanita Brown. Antonio Fargas plays the usual knucklehead that doesn't make it to the second reel. As for Grier's revenge? Considering the villainous duo's, Peter Brown and Kathryn Loder, bad acting skills - what happens to them is only fitting.

An awesome action, chick-flick with sweet soul/funk music

[ja_kitty_71 · 10/10 · 2 May 2009]

I loved this film after watching it. It is an awesome action chick-flick with sweet soul/funk music. Now I know what you are thinking: when I said "chick-flick," I meant that chick-flicks aren't just about romance, comedies, or films about girlfriends. They're about women, their loves and tragedies, and bad-a** women like Foxy Brown.

Well, anyway, this film starts with a street hustler named Link Brown, cringing in a bar full of police officers. He's trying to wait out a bunch of thugs who want to beat him for holding out on a loan from losses incurred from street gambling schemes. In desperation, he calls his tough sister Foxy to bail him out yet again. Foxy drives some of the thugs into the river in her car. Afterwards, Link pleads with her that he'll live the straight life if he can hide out at her pad for a while. Foxy reluctantly agrees.

Later, Foxy goes to visit her boyfriend in the hospital. His name is Dalton Ford, an undercover officer who has been investigating the same crime ring that Link owed money to. The hoodlums thought they'd killed him, but he really ended up in a hospital for plastic surgery to give him a new and safe identity. Emerging as handsome Michael Anderson, he and Foxy hope to start life anew. On the streets, they encounter a black gang who beats and runs drug pushers out of town. Foxy introduces Michael to the freeloading Link, and Link acts suspicious. Links leaves Michael and Foxy to themselves, but later looks at some newspaper cuttings and adds two and two together. There is an enormous debt to pay off... and this kind of information could clear that debt. No sooner does Foxy think her life will be smooth, than Michael crashes through her door, breathing his last and shot to death. With some detective work, the grieving and raging Foxy soon tracks Link down at his white girlfriend's, and as they snort coke, she storms in on them. Foxy won't kill her own brother, but she will force the identity of Michael's killers out of him, then force him to leave the city. And so Foxy is out for vengeance.

So that is all I am tellin' you folks. You will have to see the film for yourself to see how it ends. I also recommend it for fans of soul/funk music (the music and songs by Willie Hutch), seventies cinema, or blaxploitation cinema. Of course I would say "Soul Cinema" because the term "blaxploitation" sounds kind of offensive to me. I mean, come on! Barrack Obama is the new President of the US, and he is a black man. What would he and others like him think?

it's OK.

[Boba_Fett1138 · 6/10 · 30 August 2011]

Of course I enjoy watching blaxploitation flicks just as much as the next guy (or girl) but that doesn't mean I also regard those movies as particularly good ones. One thing they always have going for them is that they are incredibly entertaining to watch, no matter how bad and silly things can get at times. This for most part also goes for "Foxy Brown", though the genre has definitely produced better movies.

I feel somewhat disappointed by this movie, since it's often regarded as a classic within its genre. I have just seen far better and more entertaining blaxploitation flicks to call this movie one of the best ones out of the genre. I had some fun with it but was not throughout entertained. This is all really due to the quite badly written- and simplistic story.

It's a movie that seems to have all of the right ingredients; Sex, violence, nudity and Pam Grier is a whole lot of woman, as even her brother says in this. However the movie is really not edgy enough with any of its ingredients and the movie even seems to be a bit a tame one, especially when it comes down to its violence. And because it's not edgy enough; the movie is not constantly entertaining enough, throughout.

But again, this really is due to its story. It has a really standard story in it, that just seems to consists out of a couple ideas that got thrown together but never really feels like one great, likable, big whole. Sure, it provides the movie with plenty of good and fun moments but overall the movie would had benefited more from a far more consistent and also more original script.

Still a thing that makes this movie special and somewhat above average is the presence of Pam Grier in this. You could say that she really was a too good actress for these sort of movies but it didn't seem like she minded playing in this sort of movies, since she became quite a popular actress because of it and it paid for all of the bills of course. Her presence really uplifts the movie and her acting does the same to some of the movie its story elements and dialog as well. Fore everyone else isn't really impressing with their acting and most performances are quite weak, to be honest (Sid Haig excluded of course!).

It's an OK enough movie to watch, though nothing too impressive or entertaining.

6/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

No Bueno

[view_and_review · 3/10 · 24 September 2018]

I watched this movie largely on the strength of the similarly titled 1997 Quentin Tarantino movie: Jackie Brown. The only similarity between the two movies besides the title was Pam Grier. After that, they were night and day. Jackie Brown was good for starters. Foxy Brown was not.

The only thing going for "Foxy Brown" was Pam Grier--and not the acting of Pam Grier or her fighting ability. Nope. Just her beauty. She was stunning. Take that away and this movie had nothing but a weak plot, bad acting, and worse action sequences. The action I could forgive because it was 1974 and probably low budget. As for everything else: they get no pass.