Good concept, poorly executed.

A film with more than the usual spoiler issues. Talking about it in any detail feels akin to handing you a gift-wrapped present and saying, "I hope you like it -- It's a thriller about a diabolical secret experiment."

The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

Mario makes great job in this movie, surely it must be one of his best movies so far. I haven't seen the rest of them, so I don't know. This is a true story of making the first "Nigga" movie, which to my opinion is still the greatest one of them, and one of the bravest and most interesting movies of all time. "Sweetback" alone makes Melvin one of the greatest (I haven't seen his other works yet). The portrayal of the movie world is really funny, and also I'm sure it's a quite realistic picture today also. The funding and everything: They never want to take too much risks. It's not about racism towards minorities, it's about fear of anything new or innovative. It's one of the best and most realistic and honest portrayals of artist's life and "creation" process, I can remember seeing only one of this level before; that was Ed Harris' "Pollock". And Melvin is really no god or saint here: He's a human being, although a very talented one, and he just "does what he has to do", brings home the bread. And he can also be a total a-hole. This film has some funny and interesting characters and scenes, that makes it possible to view it maybe even second time in the future. It's also a personal "trip" to Mario. The story is based on both Melvin's (=his book) accounts and surely also in Mario's own memories from his childhood. The films minuses are technical: It looks and sounds quite clinical and boring, I mean it's too professionally made. There has also been made some compromises in the script, maybe to "make it more accessible to big audiences". The irony of course is, that the original "Sweetback" proved, that an independent film made with no budget and no compromises can become a BIG time hit for big audiences. Anyways it tells entertainingly a story of an important event and of some events in an important man's life. Recommended.

I thought this movie really gave an insight to the black struggle in film and that Melvin and Mario are a credit to the film industry. Not only were they pioneers in the industry of indie film making, but they exuded that indelible American Spirit that you see faked out in so many other films. This film is real!!!! I also liked the persistence that came with it, this should inspire anyone with a vision or a dream to at all cost follow that dream and follow through to the very end, for the rewards are more than you can possibly imagine if you succeed in your goals. This is what great film making is all about, I implore anyone and everyone to see this movie!!!

I rented this thing tonight and was VERY disappointed. The reviews had this as one of the Top 10 films of 2004, but yet the story was disjointed, not very interesting and just overall not entertaining. I stuck through to see how it would end, not because I was tremendously interested but rather because I had made it through half the film and thought it might improve. Somewhat predictable -- you can pretty much figure out which character will "surprisingly" reveal themselves as gay, or guess that ***SPOILER ALERT*** BADASSSSS is going to pull in the crowds at the last minute**** It's a shame, though, because the acting in this film is really REALLY good. Van Peebles does a bang-up job as an auteur on a mission, his secretary and his producer friend Bill are played dead-on, and the kid in this movie is also really talented. It just didn't work for me.3 1/2 out of TEN

Badasss really shows the struggles independent filmmakers go through to get their visions up on the screen... Mario does an inspired job of portraying his father, Melvin van Peebles, as he goes through complete and utter hell to get his grand cinematic vision "Sweet Sweetback's Badasss Song" made. It turns out the behind the scenes story is a million times better than the original film! To top it off, a great supporting cast puts in some of their best and most memorable performances: Adam West, David Alan Grier, Vincent Schiavelli, Sally Struthers, Saul Rubinek... Lots of great characters pop up in this film!If you are a fan of independent film-making, or enjoy '70s black action cinema, you will LOVE Badasss! This film has a lot of truth in it about both subjects. I gladly give it a "10" and would watch it again. Kudos to everyone involved, and especially to Mario, who finally gets it right both as an actor and director! This film is so damn good it's a CRIME that more people won't see it. Rent or buy it NOW!!!