Penitentiary (1979 film)
Encyclopedia
Penitentiary is a 1979 Blaxploitation
film starring Leon Isaac Kennedy as Martel 'Too Sweet' Gordone that deals with the wrongful imprisonment of a black youth.
Gordone is sent to jail and becomes cellmates with a man that goes by the name of “Half Dead”. While in his cell Gordone has to defend himself from constant advances from his cellmate and after a couple more advances Gordone decides to defend himself from the brute. The two battle it out in the cell until the walls are covered with sweat and blood and Gordone rises triumphantly. The wailing and begging of the prisoner who Gordone beats up attracts a lot of attention, and as it just so happens there is an illegal boxing tournament that goes on within the prison led by Lieutenant Arnsworth. The winner of the tournament is allowed to leave the prison on early parole because Lieutenant Arnsworth can pull a few strings on the parole board, and Gordone feels as though he would be able to win it. The only thing that stands in his way is a man by the name of Jesse, who is in charge of everything within the prison and is the leader of the prisons’ strongest gang.
The first half of the movie doesn’t actually show any boxing, but after getting to know a few of the characters, like Eugene, a nice young fellow who attempts to prove his manhood in the ring with the encouragement of Too Sweet, Seldom Seen who has spent fifty years in prison who also happens to speak in rhymes, the boxing is initiated. Gordone goes on to win his boxing matches and successfully breaks the hold of the strongest gang within the prison, and has one final showdown with Jesse. Jesse had grown wearisome of Gordone and had actually sent a hit squad, but loyal Eugene intercepts the group and pays the ultimate price to save Too Sweet. Gordone goes out on his last fight, with revenge in his veins, and emerges victorious, and unbeknownst to him Linda is one of the prizes for having won the fight. Another aspect of the movie that Gordone does not know about is the fact that Linda had actually been the one that killed the biker, after having stabbed him with a chef’s knife. Gordone eventually finds this out, but he decides to sleep with Linda before he tells her that he knows what she had done.
Wilbur "Hi Fi" White – Sweet Pea
Thommy Pollard – Eugene T. Lawson
Hazel Spears – Linda (as Hazel Spear)
Donovan Womack – Jesse Amos
Floyd Chatman – Hezzikia ‘ Seldom Seen’ Jackson (as Floyd Chatman)
Gloria Delaney – Peaches
Badja Djola
– ‘Half Dead’ Johnson
Chuck Mitchell
– Lieutenant Arnsworth
Cepheus Jaxon – Poindexter
Dwaine Fobbs – Lying Latney Winborn
Ernest Wilson – Cheese
Will Richardson
– Magilla Gorilla
– Producer/Writer
Alicia Dhanifu – Co-Producer
Robert Edelen – Executive Producer
Irving Parham – Co-Producer
William Anderson
– Music
Andre Douglas – Music
Frankie Gaye
– Music
Marty Ollstein – Cinematographer
Betsy Blankett Millicevic – Film Editor
Adel A. Mazen – Art Director
Gregory Lewis – Makeup
and rates as one of the 'blackest' pictures to come along since the Blaxploitation
trend waned.”
“The bargain-basement production values add an air of gritty credence to the film, but the uneven acting is irksome. The only characters that seemed at all three-dimensional were Lt. Arnsworth and Seldom Seen. Chuck Mitchell seemed right at home as the cigar-chomping guard. It's no wonder that he would be one of the few actors go follow the film with any sort of distinction, even if his claim to fame was as the titular owner of a strip club in the teen sleazefest classic, Porky's. Floyd Chatman only has one other credit listed at the Internet Movie Database, and it's certainly a shame that he was not a mainstream actor. Seldom Seen is the elder statesman of the cellblock, a wise old man who has spent most of his life behind bars...He isn't as harsh, but has the same tough-but-loving charm...The movie's biggest disappointment is Leon Isaac Kennedy. Despite the film's success, his career never took off. It's no wonder. His mugging and smirking do not seem to match the character at all, and when he does express rage and anger, there is no conviction behind the emotions.”
Eugene: "But I happen to be Jesse's property; as you gathered last night."
Too Sweet: "Property? Is that what you think of yourself: somebody's property?"
Eugene: "Aw, come on, man. You know what's happening. Everybody knows what's happening. I've been, as they say, 'tampered with.'"
Though this might seem like simple discourse, the dialogue brings to mind the ideology of previous decades which held that African Americans were simply property, and therefore had no rights. That idea was a precursor to the later segregation period of American History and the director was wise enough to introduce this aspect of American History into the dialogue of a movie based in prison. Another more obvious Blaxploitation
element is the fact that all of the prisoners in this movie are of African American
descent. The fact that all the cons are African Americans coincided with many of the harsh realities of that time, for it was true that most cons in American prisons where African American. With an increase of African Americans in prisons it is not surprising to see films like “Penitentiary” reflecting this theme on the widescreen. More important than the reflection of the trend on the widescreen are the things that go on behind the scenes, which Fanaka clearly demonstrated in the film (though certain attributes are strictly fictional, like early parole by winning the fights).
There's only one way out, and 100 fools stand in the way!”
Blaxploitation
Blaxploitation or blacksploitation is a film genre which emerged in the United States circa 1970. It is considered an ethnic sub-genre of the general category of exploitation films. Blaxploitation films were originally made specifically for an urban black audience, although the genre's audience...
film starring Leon Isaac Kennedy as Martel 'Too Sweet' Gordone that deals with the wrongful imprisonment of a black youth.
Synopsis
Gordone had been wandering aimlessly through the desert when he is finally picked up by an African American woman (Linda) driving a van dubbed the “Shaggin’ Wagon”. The woman that picks him up is actually a prostitute on her way to some clients. On the way to the diner where the two parties are to meet Linda and Gordone (Too Sweet [called so because of his uncontrollable addiction to Mr. Goodbars) spark a few interests between each other, but Linda decides to wait until after she has finished with her clients, “You know honey it’s got to be business before pleasure, and I’m sure you’re a real pleasure.”. They reach the diner and Linda meets with her clients, but when Gordone doesn’t like how she is being treated, he decides to confront the two for their unruly behavior. The confrontation does not bode well for Gordone, for after a little tousling he is knocked out and falls to the ground. He wakes up to find that he has been charged for the murder of one of the bikers whom he had confronted earlier.Gordone is sent to jail and becomes cellmates with a man that goes by the name of “Half Dead”. While in his cell Gordone has to defend himself from constant advances from his cellmate and after a couple more advances Gordone decides to defend himself from the brute. The two battle it out in the cell until the walls are covered with sweat and blood and Gordone rises triumphantly. The wailing and begging of the prisoner who Gordone beats up attracts a lot of attention, and as it just so happens there is an illegal boxing tournament that goes on within the prison led by Lieutenant Arnsworth. The winner of the tournament is allowed to leave the prison on early parole because Lieutenant Arnsworth can pull a few strings on the parole board, and Gordone feels as though he would be able to win it. The only thing that stands in his way is a man by the name of Jesse, who is in charge of everything within the prison and is the leader of the prisons’ strongest gang.
The first half of the movie doesn’t actually show any boxing, but after getting to know a few of the characters, like Eugene, a nice young fellow who attempts to prove his manhood in the ring with the encouragement of Too Sweet, Seldom Seen who has spent fifty years in prison who also happens to speak in rhymes, the boxing is initiated. Gordone goes on to win his boxing matches and successfully breaks the hold of the strongest gang within the prison, and has one final showdown with Jesse. Jesse had grown wearisome of Gordone and had actually sent a hit squad, but loyal Eugene intercepts the group and pays the ultimate price to save Too Sweet. Gordone goes out on his last fight, with revenge in his veins, and emerges victorious, and unbeknownst to him Linda is one of the prizes for having won the fight. Another aspect of the movie that Gordone does not know about is the fact that Linda had actually been the one that killed the biker, after having stabbed him with a chef’s knife. Gordone eventually finds this out, but he decides to sleep with Linda before he tells her that he knows what she had done.
Cast
Leon Isaac Kennedy – Martel ‘Too Sweet’ GordoneWilbur "Hi Fi" White – Sweet Pea
Thommy Pollard – Eugene T. Lawson
Hazel Spears – Linda (as Hazel Spear)
Donovan Womack – Jesse Amos
Floyd Chatman – Hezzikia ‘ Seldom Seen’ Jackson (as Floyd Chatman)
Gloria Delaney – Peaches
Badja Djola
Badja Djola
Badja Medu Djola was an American actor. D’jola appeared in 47 films and TV shows during his career. His best role was as Leon Isaac Kennedy’s cellmate in the movie "Penitentiary." D’jola played the bad guy character "Half Dead." He showed exceptional acting talent in the movie, which lead to more...
– ‘Half Dead’ Johnson
Chuck Mitchell
Chuck Mitchell
Chuck Mitchell was an American actor, known for his role as "Porky" in the raunchy 1982 cult classic movie Porky's...
– Lieutenant Arnsworth
Cepheus Jaxon – Poindexter
Dwaine Fobbs – Lying Latney Winborn
Ernest Wilson – Cheese
Will Richardson
Will Richardson
Will Richardson is the author of the highly ranked and read edublog Weblogg-ed and author of the book, Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts, and other Powerful Web Tools for Classrooms. Richardson is also active on the web, he has both a twitter and Youtube channel....
– Magilla Gorilla
Production/Crew
Jamaa FanakaJamaa Fanaka
Jamaa Fanaka is an American filmmaker. He is best known for his 1979 film, Penitentiary and is one of the leading directors of the L.A. Rebellion film movement.-Early life and education :...
– Producer/Writer
Alicia Dhanifu – Co-Producer
Robert Edelen – Executive Producer
Irving Parham – Co-Producer
William Anderson
William Anderson
-Arts and entertainment:*Bill Anderson , American country music singer, songwriter and game show host*Wil Anderson , Australian comedian*William Alonzo Anderson , known as Cat Anderson, American jazz trumpeter...
– Music
Andre Douglas – Music
Frankie Gaye
Frankie Gaye
Frankie Gaye was a singer and the younger brother of the more famous singer Marvin Gaye. Born the son of minister Marvin Pentz Gay, Sr. and domestic Alberta Cooper in Washington, D.C., Frances watched as Marvin became a superstar...
– Music
Marty Ollstein – Cinematographer
Betsy Blankett Millicevic – Film Editor
Adel A. Mazen – Art Director
Gregory Lewis – Makeup
Critics
“A tough, disturbing and relatively uncompromising look at contemporary prison life, Penitentiary is a solid third feature for Jamaa FanakaJamaa Fanaka
Jamaa Fanaka is an American filmmaker. He is best known for his 1979 film, Penitentiary and is one of the leading directors of the L.A. Rebellion film movement.-Early life and education :...
and rates as one of the 'blackest' pictures to come along since the Blaxploitation
Blaxploitation
Blaxploitation or blacksploitation is a film genre which emerged in the United States circa 1970. It is considered an ethnic sub-genre of the general category of exploitation films. Blaxploitation films were originally made specifically for an urban black audience, although the genre's audience...
trend waned.”
“The bargain-basement production values add an air of gritty credence to the film, but the uneven acting is irksome. The only characters that seemed at all three-dimensional were Lt. Arnsworth and Seldom Seen. Chuck Mitchell seemed right at home as the cigar-chomping guard. It's no wonder that he would be one of the few actors go follow the film with any sort of distinction, even if his claim to fame was as the titular owner of a strip club in the teen sleazefest classic, Porky's. Floyd Chatman only has one other credit listed at the Internet Movie Database, and it's certainly a shame that he was not a mainstream actor. Seldom Seen is the elder statesman of the cellblock, a wise old man who has spent most of his life behind bars...He isn't as harsh, but has the same tough-but-loving charm...The movie's biggest disappointment is Leon Isaac Kennedy. Despite the film's success, his career never took off. It's no wonder. His mugging and smirking do not seem to match the character at all, and when he does express rage and anger, there is no conviction behind the emotions.”
Historical Significance/ Importance
Throughout the film there are several references to people as “property”, as in the dialogue between Eugene and Too Sweet:Eugene: "But I happen to be Jesse's property; as you gathered last night."
Too Sweet: "Property? Is that what you think of yourself: somebody's property?"
Eugene: "Aw, come on, man. You know what's happening. Everybody knows what's happening. I've been, as they say, 'tampered with.'"
Though this might seem like simple discourse, the dialogue brings to mind the ideology of previous decades which held that African Americans were simply property, and therefore had no rights. That idea was a precursor to the later segregation period of American History and the director was wise enough to introduce this aspect of American History into the dialogue of a movie based in prison. Another more obvious Blaxploitation
Blaxploitation
Blaxploitation or blacksploitation is a film genre which emerged in the United States circa 1970. It is considered an ethnic sub-genre of the general category of exploitation films. Blaxploitation films were originally made specifically for an urban black audience, although the genre's audience...
element is the fact that all of the prisoners in this movie are of African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
descent. The fact that all the cons are African Americans coincided with many of the harsh realities of that time, for it was true that most cons in American prisons where African American. With an increase of African Americans in prisons it is not surprising to see films like “Penitentiary” reflecting this theme on the widescreen. More important than the reflection of the trend on the widescreen are the things that go on behind the scenes, which Fanaka clearly demonstrated in the film (though certain attributes are strictly fictional, like early parole by winning the fights).
Sound Track
“Kissy Face” – Written, Produced and Performed by Mark Gaillard and The Slim and Trim BandMaking
This film was the third movie directed by Jamaa Fanaka. Fanaka filmed this movie while he was still a student at UCLA thanks to government grants. These grants were not substantive enough to allow Fanaka to film in more than a few locations which consisted of the UCLA campus, a derelict prison, and a few parks. Aside from the limited locations, there was also a limited amount of talent that could be afforded by Fanaka. Despite these limitations Penitentiary was still the top-grossing independent film of that year.Catch Phrases
“All that stands between him and freedom is the ring.”There's only one way out, and 100 fools stand in the way!”
“He's Too Fast, Two Fisted, ‘Too Sweet’!”