THE MACK is a film about a true anti-hero, as a "mack" is a pimp. When Goldie gets out of prison, he's determined to be the #1 pimp--no matter what gets in his way. His brother, however, is full of Black pride and urges Goldie to do something positive with his life. Unfortunately, Goldie is more than willing to make it big off his own people--and, while the film presents both messages, the overwhelming message through the first 90% of the movie seems to be that Goldie's way is the right way! Over the course of the film, it was very interesting to see the evolution of Goldie. At first, he seemed like a nice guy--sort of a "pimp with a heart of gold"--a social worker pimp, of sorts! However, over time, he becomes harder and badder and colder--so that you really can't like him or justify his life.
At the same time, two crooked and racist White cops are shown throughout the film. Their job, it seems, is to make life tough for Goldie and prove to the audience that White cops are devils--and they do a good job of this! They are the stereotypical blaxploitation cops--even going so far as killing the only good cop (a Black one, naturally) in the film.
Eventually, Goldie becomes so big, so violent and creates so many enemies you aren't sure which one will eventually kill him--the Fat Man, the two psycho cops or one of the other pimps. This leads to some amazing action--though you are left rather cold because every single one of them are dirt and it's hard to care at all about them. Heck, I just wanted to see them all die!
The bottom line is that for the genre, this is a pretty good film but has rather horrible values. Unlike more positive films like HAMMER, COFFY and FOXY BROWN, this one tends to glorify, to a degree, a societal leech. If you like this style film and want to root for a low-life, also try SUPER FLY.
FYI--Years ago, when I watched I'M GONNA GIT YOU SUCKA, I laughed at Fly Guy and the section on the "Pimp of the Year" competition--not realizing that character was taken straight from THE MACK.
At the same time, two crooked and racist White cops are shown throughout the film. Their job, it seems, is to make life tough for Goldie and prove to the audience that White cops are devils--and they do a good job of this! They are the stereotypical blaxploitation cops--even going so far as killing the only good cop (a Black one, naturally) in the film.
Eventually, Goldie becomes so big, so violent and creates so many enemies you aren't sure which one will eventually kill him--the Fat Man, the two psycho cops or one of the other pimps. This leads to some amazing action--though you are left rather cold because every single one of them are dirt and it's hard to care at all about them. Heck, I just wanted to see them all die!
The bottom line is that for the genre, this is a pretty good film but has rather horrible values. Unlike more positive films like HAMMER, COFFY and FOXY BROWN, this one tends to glorify, to a degree, a societal leech. If you like this style film and want to root for a low-life, also try SUPER FLY.
FYI--Years ago, when I watched I'M GONNA GIT YOU SUCKA, I laughed at Fly Guy and the section on the "Pimp of the Year" competition--not realizing that character was taken straight from THE MACK.