Godfather of Harlem (Der Pate von Harlem) (1973)

Godfather of Harlem (Der Pate von Harlem): Directed by Larry Cohen. With Fred Williamson, Gloria Hendry, Art Lund, D’Urville Martin. Raised in Harlem, Tommy Gibbs becomes a successful mob boss but he clashes with the rival Mafia and his old enemy, dirty cop McKinney.

“A low budget remake of u0026quot;Little Caesaru0026quot; with a scene from u0026quot;Scarfaceu0026quot; thrown in should not be this enjoyable. Credit two people: star Fred Williamson and writer/director,Larry Cohen. In Williamsonu0026#39;s hands, Tommy Gibbs is a magnetic presence. He is very cool and smart. His success is no surprise but also his downfall is no surprise. How he turns could have been overplayed or understated for an actor with more ego. The scene was necessary and effective because in the end this movie was not about glamorizing gangsters. Cohenu0026#39;s contributions are also significant. He understood he wasnu0026#39;t making a message film, even though the message is there. The movie is full of bloody violence (it seemed to me that during the pool massacre, some of the victims were spouting blood before they were shot) because that was what fans of this genre wanted. In the end, however, viewers see that even with James Brown blaring about what a bad mutha Tommy Gibbs was, he was just as much a pawn as everyone else. Of course, the sequel would change that thought.”