In 1971, the gritty action movie "Shaft" offered audiences the sight of a black hero shooting people, flouting social norms and mocking authority. John Shaft, played by actor Richard Roundtree, finally got to do all the things white action heroes had been doing for years.
Now, four decades later, a new "Shaft" aims to put a slightly gentler spin on a boundary-breaking character. It features Samuel L. Jackson in the title role _ his second turn, after John Singleton's "Shaft" film in 2000 _ while Jesse T. Usher plays his estranged son, J.J., a deskbound data analyst at the FBI. This version of "Shaft" may be rated R, but it goes for buddy comedy as much as action.
Can you dig it? Audiences will decide when the film arrives in theaters Friday. Directed by Tim Story, whose past hits include "Ride Along" and "Think Like a Man," and executive produced by Kenya Barris, the creator of ABC's "Black-ish," the new "Shaft" stands on the shoulders of a movie that broke barriers for black representation and helped launched the popular "blaxploitation" subgenre of the 1970s. The question is, can today's "Shaft" bring that legacy into the future?
