Disco Godfather (1979)
Directed by: J. Robert Wagoner
Starring: Rudy Ray Moore, Carol Speed, Jimmy Lynch
After the doctor finishes his speech, I want you and the girls to go to the door. Take the names of all the people who would like to go on a crusade against angel dust, because we are gonna attack the wack! - Tucker Williams
Freeze... anybody who moves gets his Afro blown off. - Some Cop
Before I get to the review of the movie, I feel compelled to mention the opening credits. Most of the actors are only mentioned by their name, not the name of their character. However, the filmmakers went out of their way to let you know that Pucci Jhones (no, that's not a typo) co-stars The Angel of Death. I wouldn't have guessed a movie called Disco Godfather would have an Angel of Death character.
The movie also apparently features Howard 'Special Karate Fighter' Jackson, Yetta 'Miss Wonderful of Philadelphia' Collier, and Pat 'Miss Wonderful of Chicago' Washington... you know, I really wish a could have attended some Miss Wonderful contests back in the 70's... just seems like they would be kickass. Oh, Rudy Ray Moore's wardrobe was designed by Dolemite Designs, Esq... I really wish they were still open for business.
This movie starts off exactly where you'd expect it to... at the Blueberry Hill Disco. Everyone's having a good time until one of the customers, a guy named Bucky, decides to take some angel dust. He starts freaking out, and not even his uncle Rudy Ray Moore (who plays a gay named Tucker Williams) can calm him down. Of course, Moore is dressed like this, which might freak me out too:
The next day, Tucker goes to visit Bucky at the local PCP rehab center where he finds a room full of kids driven hopelessly insane by the drugs. One guy thinks he's an unborn caterpillar because he claims its safer than being a human. Another lady cooked her four month old baby in the oven because she thought it was a screaming ham. None of the doctors know how do deal with this new drug, although they are toying with the idea of ECT. All these screwed up kids gets Tucker real riled up, and he vows to get PCP off the streets.
Tucker organizes a rally to get the community behind him. Unfortunately, he's choosen what may be the worst slogan ever: Attack the Wack. The rally sequence is pretty funny, because it looks like for whatever reason they only had one chance to shoot it. As a result, you've got obviously flubbed lines making it into the movie. Stuff like: "We want to wack the attack... [confused pause]... against angel dust." Or when a former addict confesses: "If it weren't for the doctor here, I wouldn't be here to tell you what Hell can go though."
Tucker eventually uncovers a mole in the police department, and is forced to lead on the charge on the PCP factory himself. The bad guys get the better of him, and put him in an Angel Dust gas mask. By the time he manages to get free, he's gone bat-shit insane. He wonders across the head drug dealer and, thinking the dealer is a demon, strangles him to death. The cops show up, pull him off, and call for an ambulance as Tucker screams: "There's nothing wrong with me... get your hands off of me!!!" And then, the movie's over. I guess Tucker is just another Angel Dust victim now. It's like I always say, if an ending can't be good, at least make it abrupt.
Ultimately, this movie is nowhere near as fun as earlier Rudy Ray Moore movies. It's just way too preachy. I just didn't expect a movie movie called Disco Godfather to be a militant anti-drug movie. You really can't go more than about 2 minutes without a line like: "When I saw the position Bucky was in... I just had to do something about the wack." If it had been done tongue in cheek it would be one thing, but the whole movie is deadly serious. At one point a family even tries an exorcism on their daughter to get rid of her 'PCP Demon'. The movie finally lightens up at the very end when Rudy Ray Moore starts to use his... unique style of fighting. Unfortunately, we never get a Dolemite style gibberish rap by Moore.
The DVD features a Trivia Game, Trailers & Radio Spots for Dolemite, The Human Tornado, and Disco Godfather, and a 4 minute Location Tour with Rudy Ray Moore. The tour is literally just Moore walking around South Central showing various locations from Dolemite, The Human Tornado, and Disco Godfather. Unfortunately, the whole thing was filmed without a mic on Moore. So, when he's on the street, and wind or cars driving by basically drown out anything Moore happens to be saying. Oh well, you can't have everything... at least they tried. If you finish the trivia contest, you get an additional 4 minute Location Tour in which Moore had this to say about Disco Godfather: This was a different type of picture for me. It wasn't quite as hard. I didn't do all the mother fuckins and the shittins. But it was what you call... a film to end all films. Not much I can add to that assessment.
- Micah
