Original Gangstas (1996)

The 'stas of the title are a trio of '70s blaxploitation stars — Fred Williamson, Jim Brown, and Pam Grier — who star in this contemporary shoot-'em-up with a conscience. The three play middle-agers in a crime-ridden area of Gary, Ind., who are sick and tired of being bullied by local gang-bangers. Director Larry Cohen is no stranger to B-movie mayhem — this is the guy who did Hell Up in Harlem, among others. As usual, Cohen adds ironic subtext to the gunplay: Our heroes are the victims of a gang they themselves founded decades before. Original Gangstas works as an action flick, but also as an effective lament for a lost generation of inner-city African-American youth doomed to violent ends. B+