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Since February is Black History Month, I figured it was the perfect excuse to finally dive into some classic Blaxploitation films that have been gathering digital dust on my Media Center for way too long. First up: “Truck Turner”, starring none other than Isaac Hayes. While most people today probably know him as the voice of Chef from “South Park”, back in the ’70s, he was a musical powerhouse, winning awards for his iconic “Shaft” soundtrack—one of the films that helped kickstart the entire Blaxploitation genre.
Mack Truck Turner is a former professional football player turned bounty hunter in Los Angeles after an injury ends his sports career. Alongside his partner, Jerry Barnes, Truck is tasked with apprehending a pimp named Gator who has skipped bail. After a pursuit, Truck kills Gator in self-defense, prompting Gator’s associate, Dorinda (Nichelle Nichols), to seek revenge. She enlists the help of rival pimp Harvard Blue (Yaphet Kotto) to eliminate Truck.
The opening of “Truck Turner” immediately gives off a strong “Shaft” vibe, thanks to Isaac Hayes providing the soundtrack for the very film he’s starring in. The title song, in particular, feels like a close cousin to his “Shaft” theme, name-dropping the main character and hyping up his coolness in the lyrics. But make no mistake—Truck Turner is no John Shaft, and Hayes is no Richard Roundtree. That said, the script plays to his strengths, never demanding too much from him as an actor. He holds his own in a film that paints Truck as a certified badass—one who also happens to spend part of it running around in a shirt soaked in cat piss.
“Truck Turner” never quite settles on a consistent tone. Lighthearted, comedic moments clash with brutal, hard-hitting violence, sometimes within the same scene. One of the best examples is the final hospital shootout, which mixes over-the-top goofiness with genuinely intense stakes—including a child being taken hostage at gunpoint. The result is a film that keeps you entertained but never fully decides whether it wants to be a gritty crime thriller or a tongue-in-cheek action romp.
“Truck Turner” marks Nichelle Nichols’s one and only foray into Blaxploitation, but what an entry it is. She absolutely steals every scene she’s in, delivering her profanity-laced dialogue with pure, unfiltered glee. Who knew Lt. Uhura had such a filthy mouth? Meanwhile, Yaphet Kotto, as Harvard Blue, is his usual reliable self. It’s not a career-defining performance, but he brings plenty of menace to the role. And what an entrance—he doesn’t even show up until about 45 minutes in, rolling up in a limo at a funeral, only to spit on the coffin in a POV shot from the corpse’s perspective. Now that’s how you establish a badass villain.
For a Blaxploitation film centered around pimps and prostitutes, “Truck Turner” is surprisingly light on nudity. You’d expect a bit more, especially from a movie that features a literal presentation of all the working girls and their annual earnings. That said, it does offer at least one memorable moment—a topless woman wildly running around with a knife, her breasts flopping in every direction. So, hey, that’s something.
“Truck Turner” is an entertaining, if somewhat forgettable, entry in the Blaxploitation genre, forever standing in the shadow of classics like “Shaft” and “Coffy“. It would be Isaac Hayes’s only true leading role, and while Truck is undeniably a cool character, Hayes simply lacks the screen presence of a Richard Roundtree or a Pam Grier. It’s a fun ride, but not one that leaves a lasting mark on the genre.