Three the Hard Way

Summary

“Coming up behind me… that’s a hell of a way to find out!’” 

I have been watching a tremendous amount of urban cinema from the Seventies recently. The blaxploitation genre has been intriguing to me since I was a young man, and that fascination has not changed as I have gotten older. Those films had a certain energy and attitude that I have always appreciated, even though a number of the plot lines in the films could border on the absurd. Nowhere is that more evident than in the sublime and ridiculous Three the Hard Way. Directed by Gordon Parks Jr, who also directed the classic Superfly, the film united three of the greatest action stars of the blaxploitation genre – Jim Kelly, Jim Brown, and Fred Williamson. It is a stylish action picture in which they fight to save the world from the nefarious plot of diabolical white supremacists.  Warner Archive has made me very happy over the years with their numerous releases of blaxploitation cinema, and they have once again come through with a lovingly restored blast from the past. I was more than happy to watch the picture the otehr night.

As the film begins, while making rounds dishing out food to other inmates in a complex, a black prisoner named House craftily steals a crowbar. He manages to beat a patrolman, steal a rifle, shoot another couple patrolmen, and escape the complex that served as his prison, but he sustains a gunshot wound during his escape. He comes across a couple making it in a field and has them drive him away. They drive all night and take House to Jimmy Lait (Jim Brown) in Los Angeles. Jimmy gets House to a hospital. House explains that there is a place where a bunch of brothers are locked up and going to be murdered. He explains that they snatch them off the street, and that they have come up with something that only affects black people, before he passes out from his wounds. Jimmy leaves the hospital and goes to work at the record studio where he is producing a record by the Impressions (the backing band of Curtis Mayfield who performed the soundtrack of this film.) At the hospital, evil white men, dressed as utility workers, come in through the window and kill House. When Jimmy’s girlfriend Wendy Kane (Sheila Kane) comes into the hospital room, they kidnap her on their way out. Jimmy talks with Lieutenant Di Nico (Alex Rocco,) who asks him some questions. He tells Jimmy Di Nico to do his job and find Wendy. In a parking lot, Jimmy is attacked by two men driving separate cars. Jimmy dispatches both, and by the end of their encounter both cars explode. At the white supremacist complex, Wendy meets their leader Monroe Feather (Jay Robinson.) He has a plan to cleanse the world of all black people. They have developed a chemical that affects black people while leaving white people unaffected. In Chicago, ladies man Jagger (Fred Williamson) leaves the presence of one woman for another, whom he escorts onto a speed boat while smoking a stogie. They speed around the city on the water. At his apartment, Jimmy surprises Jagger. They tussle for a moment before Jack sees that it’s Jimmy. Jimmy explains that he needs his help. When they leave the apartment they are trailed by two white supremacists. An entire hit squad arrives.  Jagger and Jimmy dispatch the hit squad. In New York, cops try to set up martial artist Mister Keyes (Jim Kelly) but he whips their ass. Jimmy and Jack walk up, and they all ride off together. They finally gain the last member of their team. Together the three are going to work to save Wendy and take down the white supremacists before they poison the water supply.

Three the Hard Way was not going to win any awards for its screenplay, but it is a great example of a picture that knows exactly what it is. For example, there is plot point of the film that involves a trio of badass women that drive different colored Kawasaki motorcycles while wearing matching jumpsuits and colored helmets. They also serve as an elite dominatrix torture team that inexplicably do their work topless. It’s both cool and ridiculous, which are both adjectives that could be used to describe this film for the most part. Three the Hard Way is a picture that wants to have the audience members cheering on their heroes as they dispatch as many evil white bigots as they can. In fact, there are more than a hundred white supremacists killed in the film, and the picture is less than ninety minutes long. That is not a bad average pound for pound in terms of bigot killing. I personally enjoyed the first two thirds of the picture more than the final third which started to feel a bit repetitive to me as the bad guys are gunned down without leaving a scratch on the heroes (who also never reload,) but for the most part I still had a great time watching Three the Hard Way. I like the way the film was shot. Gordon Parks Jr. did an excellent job of highlighting the different cities in the film. Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington, D.C. and New York all get some attention in the picture. Chicago is particularly well highlighted in the film with some excellent shots of the city by both land and by water. Slow motion is also used to great effect during some martial arts moments for Jim Kelly. Some of the stunt work is really great as well. A truck explosion about an hour into the film was particularly well executed. The soundtrack to the film, which utilizes the backing band of Curtis Mayfield – The Impressions – is unintentionally hilarious because a number of the songs point out exact details of the plot. In my estimation, that just adds to the enjoyment of the picture. The main draw for the film is seeing three icons of urban cinema come together and do what they do best. All three are given different opportunities to show off their unique talents and charms. Three the Hard Way is not perfect, but it is extremely entertaining.

Video

Warner have done a great job on the restoration of Three the Hard Way working from a brand new 4K scan from the original camera negatives. Presented in 1.85:1 aspect ratio in 1080p with an MPEG-4 AVC encode, the film looks very good on Blu-ray. There is a fine level of grain. Fine detail is handled well. The direction by Gordon Parks Jr. highlights plenty of stylish moments that pop on the format. Warner’s team did a fantastic job of bringing the best out of the elements of the film, and unless we are treated to a 4K UHD someday, this will be the definitive way to view the film.

Audio

Three the Hard Way is given a DTS-HD MA 2.0 track that presents the original Mono track in split channels. Dialogue is very clear. I did not take notice of any hiss or distortion. The score sounds crisp and clean. Overall, it is another winning track from Warner.

Supplements:

Theatrical Trailer

Overall Scores:

Video – 4.5/5

Audio – 4.5/5

Supplements – .5/5

Overall – 4/5

Three the Hard Way unites three of the greatest action stars of urban cinema of the Seventies for a fun and ridiculous blaxploitation action film. Who doesn’t want to see Fred Williamson, Jim Kelly, and Jim Brown in their prime kicking white supremacist ass? Directed by Gordon Parks Jr., the film looks great, even though the last third of the picture becomes repetitive and less interesting as the bodies stack up. The absurd nature of the film does not stop it from being a lot of fun to watch. In fact, the opposite can be argued. I am grateful to Warner for continuing to give genre fans a chance to own these films with such well done restorations. For those who like this genre, I am sure you will want to add Three the Hard Way to your collection.

The film can be purchased at www.moviezyng.com.