The tribute is touching, not only in Van Peebles' dedication, but also in his honest portrayal that doesn't overlook dad's periodic megalomania and paternal failures.
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05/28/04
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Baadasssss! (2004)
90
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:105
Fresh:95
Rotten:10
Average Rating:7.4/10
Consensus: An entertaining and intriguing tribute to a father from his son.
Theatrical Release:May 28, 2004 Limited
Box Office: $289,955
Synopsis: In "Baadasssss!" Mario Van Peebles pay tribute to his dad, pioneer black filmmaker Melvin Van Peebles. The Movie dramatically recounts the saga of what his father went through more than 30 years... [More]
Starring: Joy Bryant, Ossie Davis, David Alan Grier, Mario Van Peebles
Director: Mario Van Peebles
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Reviews for Baadasssss!
...Melvin’s counterculture classic will always outshine as the forefather, but Mario’s better-crafted companion piece is just as historically vital and easily as empowering.
05/27/04
It works as a biopic, as a truly American story, and as a sentimental, but never cloying, gift from son to father -- and from father to son.
06/10/04
A lively, absorbing, often uncannily authentic docudrama.
06/11/04
It is so refreshing to see a film with not one wasted second, beautiful acting, and a total understanding of its source material.
06/17/05
Mario Van Peebles, bearing an uncanny resemblance to his father, illuminates the soul of a man driven by a belief in himself and a love for his community.
06/17/04
The best-told tale Mario Van Peebles has ever filmed. Full of psychological and cultural riches, it's a real gift that he can thank his father for living and giving.
05/28/04
Through the filmmaking, and inside the film itself, the son visits the sins of the father and discovers a triumph, a legacy, a purpose.
06/25/04
A sobering and wildly entertaining account of how the elder Van Peebles crashed through the hurdles that continue to hinder independent filmmakers.
06/10/04
Top CriticA funny and interesting look at independent filmmaking - no matter what color. It's hard to do the movie justice - it's plays much better than it sounds.
05/28/04
A jolting, lively film.
06/17/04
It's hard to imagine that the chronicle of an artistic ordeal could be this much fun to watch.
06/10/04
Top Critic...successfully capture a spirit largely missing in American cinema...
06/10/09
Melvin's story, different from Sweetback's, has to do with marketing that resistance, to make his movie matter.
05/28/04
Mario Van Peebles's film is a lightly fictionalized account of the making of Sweet Sweetback's Baadassss Song, the 1971 film directed by his father, Melvin Van Peebles.
05/27/04
Top CriticIt's an exhausting, and exhaustingly pleasurable, entertainment.
08/01/04
Top CriticMario has his dad down, and if the acting is often blatant, this does fit the original.
06/04/04
...an extremely effective look at the making of a film...
06/27/04
Colorful time capsule of a movie.
05/27/04
As actor, helmer and co-scenarist (with Dennis Haggerty), Mario ultimately delivers a tale that's engrossing for its underdog quality and significant place in film history.
05/04/04
Top CriticLatest News for Baadasssss!
January 03, 2006:
Vincent Schiavelli Passes at 57
Character actor Vincent Schiavelli, the long-faced veteran of over 150 film and television appearances, died of lung cancer December 26 at home in Sicily. He was 57 years old. More...
September 14, 2005:
Van Peebles "Wood" Direct a New Mystery Thriller
Mario Van Peebles has signed a deal with Spyglass Entertainment to direct and star in the mystery-thriller "Yellow Wood," says The Hollywood Reporter. More...
March 16, 2005:
Ebert's Overlooked Film Festival 2005
A 70-mm French comedy by Jacques Tati will open my 7th annual Overlooked Film Festival this April, and a Bollywood musical starring "the most beautiful woman in the... More...
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