Posse (1993)

Part of the problem seems to have been that Van Peebles had too much to say. He wanted to pass along the message of the black cowboys and their untold stories. He wanted to say something about racism and slavery. He wanted to make a movie worthy of his legendary filmmaker father Melvin Van Peebles, who appears here in a supporting role. He wanted to make a slam-bang action movie that would appeal to crowds. And he wanted to indulge his own sizeable ego, portraying his character as sexually desirable (with close-ups of his own oiled biceps) and immeasurably cool.

As a result, the movie seems too frenetic, too eager-to-please, too split at the seams. Van Peebles stars as Jesse Lee a Buffalo Soldier in the Spanish-American war. Thanks to the snaky, evil Colonel Graham (Billy Zane), Jesse loses his command and is sent on a doomed mission to steal some Spanish gold. When he does, he and his men will be branded as deserters and shot. The other members of his posse include Little J (Stephen Baldwin), Obobo ("Tiny" Lister), Weezie (Charles Lane), and Angel (Tone Loc). Along the way, Little J -- who has a taste for cards -- picks up gambler "Father Time" (Big Daddy Kane).

They head for Freemanville, an entire town built and run by African-Americans, but under the thumb of a corrupt sheriff (Richard Jordan). There, they have the final showdown, with a Gatling gun and lots of explosions. The inclusion of a white character -- Baldwin -- among the posse allows for some occasionally interesting racial discussions, but nothing terribly deep or life-changing. There's also a girl for Jesse, the gorgeous Lana (Salli Richardson). Some legendary character actors, such as Pam Grier, Isaac Hayes, and Woody Strode, turn up, though they have relatively little to do. Future director Catherine Hardwicke was the production designer.

On top of the many other items on his agenda, Van Peebles found himself in the middle of a wonderfully fertile period in Hollywood, when many African-American films were actually being financed and released. He probably felt a great deal of pressure to live up to films by Spike Lee and John Singleton, and so tries to make his Posse very stylish and kinetic. We get dreamy, black-and-white flashbacks, slow-motion, quick cutting, etc., though none of it feels inspired or organic. It just feels tossed in.

As a fan of both Westerns and African-American cinema, I was hoping for a masterpiece here. It's a shame not only that this wasn't better, but also that no other attempts seem to have been made in the 18 years since.

This summer, Fox Home Video has released a handful of movies from the MGM library, including this one, on Blu-Ray. The quality is fine, and the only extra is a trailer.