Panther Movie Review 1995

The Van Peebles family teaches Oliver Stone History 101 with a fictionalized account of the Black Panthers' emergence as a voice for African Americans and as a fixture on the FBI's most wanted list in the late '60s. Judge (Hardison), a Vietnam vet forced by the FBI to become an informant, chronicles the activities of leaders Bobby Seale (Vance) and Huey P. Newton (Chong) and serves as witness to the Panthers' rise and subsequent fall into corruption and disintegration. Scatter-shot editing is meant to signify the chaos of the times, but instead adds to the action-flick feel and further detracts from the professed intent of being a message movie.

Distribution

USA Home Entertainment, 1 W. Forest, Englewood, NJ 07631-4004, Phone: (201)871-1000, URL: http://www.polygram-us.com

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 124 minutes.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Docudrama, African America, FBI, Civil Rights, Protests

Screenplay

Melvin Van Peebles

Cast

Kadeem Hardison, Marcus Chong, Courtney B. Vance, Bokeem Woodbine, Joe Don Baker, Anthony Griffith, Nefertiti, James Russo, Richard Dysart, M. Emmet Walsh, Mario Van Peebles

Cinematography

Edward Pei

Director

Mario Van Peebles

Music

Stanley Clarke

Producer

Preston Holmes, Melvin Van Peebles, Mario Van Peebles, Tim Bevan, Eric Feller, Polygram, Working Title Productions, Tribeca Productions, MVP, Gramercy Pictures