Posse (1993)

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Premise: A Spanish-American War veteran robs a villainous colonel and heads to the American West with his friends, only to be hounded by the colonel & his goons as well as ghosts of the veteran's past.

Stars: Mario van Peebles * Stephen Baldwin * Tiny Lister * Billy Zane * Tone Loc * Blair Underwood * Big Daddy Kane * Richard Jordan

Story: Jesse Lee (Peebles) is a soldier under the command of Colonel Graham (Zane) in the Cuban field during the Spanish-American War. Graham orders Lee to rob a Spanish gold shipment, and then attempts to kill him after the robbery is successful. Lee survives the attack with the aid of his squad and they flee to New Orleans, hoping to lose Graham and his men.

In New Orleans, J (Baldwin) meets up with a fellow gambler, Father Time (Kane) and they both are forced to flee when Kane is discovered cheating at cards. They return to the other men, only to be confronted by Graham and his men. One squad member (Loc) dies, but the rest escape and head off to find Lee in the American West where Lee's family has roots. The gang (now calling themselves a posse - in the modern sense of the word, but not the legal term) reach Freemanville. It's a town settled by ex-slaves and other black folk, only it's constantly threatened by a neighboring white town and its sheriff (Jordan).

Lee and the posse get comfortable with the residents, and Lee rekindles an old love and a rivalry with a family friend. Lee has to deal with a former friend (Underwood) who has sold out to the whites for money and land. The sheriff and his deputies - the local KKK - as well as Graham and his henchmen all converge on the town, forcing a showdown with the gang and their new compatriots.

Review: A not-bad effort by Peebles, who is taking a political and historical stance with the film in order to promote the history of black cowboys and settlers who are often overlooked. The film is entertaining, but tries to put too many twists on a proven formula. There's the main character which is a take on Clint Eastwood's Josey Wales. There's the gang which is a take on any number of modern black films - the gamblers, the strong loyal man, the bookish black servant, the womanizer. There's the typical villain who is out for his gold and revenge. There's the KKK and the corrupt law in the West. There's the love affair with a half-Native/half-black woman. Any number of these could've been brought together to make a cohesive film. That Peebles tries to work them all in and bookend them with a historical perspective can be admired, but the film suffers for it.

Peebles himself is a successful character actor, but rarely does a film work well with his leaden acting. Several scenes occur that pull you out of the movie: all of the over-effected flashback scenes, extended shots where subtler effects could've produced a tighter film, and the heavy-handed dialogue by Kane and Baldwin (during moments of exposition or foreshadowing).

The movie is not horrible, but it's not really that good either. Watch it for a perspective that is not often presented, and do some more reading. Look for appearances by Isaac Hayes, Pam Grier, Melvin van Peebles and Nipsey Russell as town residents.

Overall: Mediocre