The synopsis claims, `It's a classic Romeo and Juliet story of forbidden passion, Harlem style, when AARON LOVES ANGELA.' If the idea was to remake Shakespeare, director Gordon Parks Jr. (the same Parks from Superfly fame) failed miserably. There is no tragedy, or forbidden love, and no one vital to the story dies. If the idea was to make a film about growing up and those choices we make when we're young that help us to grow, it succeeds fairly well. Aaron (Kevin Hooks) is a talented basketball player who lives with his father (played convincingly by Moses Gunn), a former All-American who never made it and is living out his dreams through his son. We know nothing about Angela's (introducing Irene Cara) family other than she lives with her mom. Aaron lives in Harlem, Angela in Spanish Harlem, and naturally they must meet in seclusion; the one time Aaron tries to walk her home he gets chased away. Aaron's friend finds him a room where the two young lovers can go and be in private. Unfortunately, the rundown apartment complex they stay in winds up being the exchange point of a drug deal with some heavy cheese switching hands. Anything else would be spoilers, but Aaron finds himself in a situation where he has to make some major decisions in a short amount of time. Worth a watch if it's ever on TV, but I wouldn't rent it. It's a shame that Gordon Parks Jr. died after only a few films, he showed a unique talent, but never had the budget to really make a splash. Rating : 24 out of 40
7 Reviews
An interesting film with almost too much going on
rdoyle2927 November 2022
Kevin Hooks is a pretty damn good high school basketball player with dreams of becoming a pro player. This dream is heavily encouraged by his dad Moses Gunn, a former football player left to raise Hooks on his own when his wife ran out on him. He operates a neighborhood bar, drinks heavily and lives vicariously through his son.
Hooks has a crush on Irene Cara. It's reciprocated. They start seeing each other, but can only do it in secret since he's black and she's Puerto Rican.
This is an odd film. There's almost too much going on it. There's the love story. There's Hooks' ambitions to play sports. There's his dad's frustrated life. There's a small time pimp played by Hooks' dad Robert Hooks, who is tasked with finding heroin to sell to some generic mafia thugs. This last plot line quite unexpectedly takes over the film, and the fairly sweet character-driven love story becomes a crime flick.
It's far from a bad film. Hooks is not a great actor, but Cara is much better, and she kind of pulls him up to her level in their scenes together. It feels of a piece with films like "Cooley High" that attempted to pull the Blaxploitation craze into new areas ... stories about people living normal lives in the inner cities. That makes it all the stranger that it reverts to fairly typical crime action in the last act.
Sadly it was Gordon Parks Jr.'s last completed film. He died in a plane crash during the filming of his next one.
Hooks has a crush on Irene Cara. It's reciprocated. They start seeing each other, but can only do it in secret since he's black and she's Puerto Rican.
This is an odd film. There's almost too much going on it. There's the love story. There's Hooks' ambitions to play sports. There's his dad's frustrated life. There's a small time pimp played by Hooks' dad Robert Hooks, who is tasked with finding heroin to sell to some generic mafia thugs. This last plot line quite unexpectedly takes over the film, and the fairly sweet character-driven love story becomes a crime flick.
It's far from a bad film. Hooks is not a great actor, but Cara is much better, and she kind of pulls him up to her level in their scenes together. It feels of a piece with films like "Cooley High" that attempted to pull the Blaxploitation craze into new areas ... stories about people living normal lives in the inner cities. That makes it all the stranger that it reverts to fairly typical crime action in the last act.
Sadly it was Gordon Parks Jr.'s last completed film. He died in a plane crash during the filming of his next one.
A huge mess of a movie
stevenfallonnyc11 November 2005
This film is a disaster.
The big plus here is Kevin Hooks, who plays high school basketball player Morris Thorpe in one of the greatest shows ever, The White Shadow. He even plays school basketball here!
However, this is an extremely lightweight film where nothing much ever goes on. There are many scenes for instance of the young couple just walking and playing around, all that sort of thing, whether they are alone or with Aaron's friend and her friend, who seem to end up as a couple themselves later on, but that's simply not explained at all. But plenty of other things aren't explained either.
For instance, the local drug dealer/pimp ("Bo"), in some scenes he's pushing Aaron against a wall in his building being tough (why?), and in another he's in Aaron's dad's coffee shop giving the dad a very hard time and making fun of him (why?). Then in other scenes, Bo saves Aaron from Puerto Rican toughs, offers to take his hooker around the world when he doesn't have to, and gives Aaron a suitcase full of money (as Bo is dying). What's his story? Who knows? There is a supposed plot line in the film where there is trouble between the blacks and Puerto Ricans because Aaron (black) is dating Angela (Puerto Rican, or "Latina" for today's PC audience). A few times early on, when Aaron talks to his buddy about liking Angela, there's some talk about how she's "one of them." But after a scene where Aaron takes Angela home (not to her door, just the street outside a little down the block she insists, for his safety), and he gets chased and a slight beatdown from some Puerto Ricans ("we don't want outsiders with our girls"), there is then nothing more between any conflict between the blacks and Puerto Ricans. As a matter of fact, Aaron even waits for Angela in her doorway with no problem and no fear from any Puerto Ricans. The whole conflict is completely forgotten about.
Aaron and Angela also hide their relationship from their parents. Why? We see Aaron's father a bunch of times, and never once does he mention that he hates Puerto Ricans, or even against Aaron having any girlfriend. There's never a single reason shown why Aaron should hide Angela from his father. Same thing for Angela and her mother, who we never even see. So that whole thing is unexplained.
But all that is pretty much how this mess of a movie goes. Despite all this, there are a few good points of curiosity, mainly cameos from Walt Frazier and Jose Feliciano. Frazier is very unnatural and speaks as if he is reading off cue cards, but seeing him in full 1975 "rich basketball player" regalia complete with cheesy fur and an old Rolls Royce (where he found a parking spot right outside the Garden's stage door) is a blast. Feliciano sings at a club, and he also does a number of songs for the movie, which haven't really lasted over time that well but are pretty good nonetheless.
The actual locations of filming are great to see if you are into gritty 1970's New York City films. NYC was a mess in the 70's and Harlem especially wasn't pretty. There are some good character actors you may recognize in the film. And as far as Irene Cara goes, she's a little less than OK, a little pretty, but she doesn't deliver a knockout punch on screen or anything. She's obviously not as good on screen as the actor playing Aaron. Her friend who you sometimes see may have been a better choice for the role.
The film picks up just a little bit in the last 15 minutes, as the drug dealers are searching for their suitcase full of cash. There's a great scene where they run down Bo's buddy, a great piece of stuntwork done before stupid computer effects came long. It's a great shot that adds the the grittiness even more. The "livery" plates on the drug dealer's limo is a funny thing.
One funny thing is Aaron's buddy telling the drug dealers where Aaron is at that moment, after they beat it out of him. Aaron was at Grant's Tomb waiting for Angela. Grant's Tomb? Even though it was the truth, how fake did that sound? And the drug dealers bought it immediately? If it was that easy, why didn't Aaron's buddy just lie, and say "The Empire State Building" or "The 4-5-6 subway station at 125th and Lexington?" Seeing Aaron's good buddy reveal where Aaron was, was a letdown.
The end of the film seems to be a cop-out, what exactly happens? Did they run off? Do they go home? Angela warns Aaron that unless he returns the drug dealer's money, they'll be chased down forever all over the world until they are finally found. So what good did throwing the money into the crowd do? Are the drug dealers going to forget about it then, and not search for Aaron? Like everything else in this film, it makes no sense.
The romance, you never get the feeling that their feelings for each other are simmering. Part of it is Cara's wooden acting, but it really never materializes into anything, especially a "Romeo and Juliet" thing, because no one really cares if they are together or not. Another unexplained thing (of so, so many) is how in one scene, Aaron and Angela are in the abandoned building, scared from hearing gunshots, and they run from the building together after Bo, dying, gives Aaron the suitcase of money. But then, right afterwards, Angela isn't taking Aaron's phone calls anymore. Why?? Unbelievable.
So really, there may be a few reasons to watch this film out of curiosity, but this movie is a huge mess.
The big plus here is Kevin Hooks, who plays high school basketball player Morris Thorpe in one of the greatest shows ever, The White Shadow. He even plays school basketball here!
However, this is an extremely lightweight film where nothing much ever goes on. There are many scenes for instance of the young couple just walking and playing around, all that sort of thing, whether they are alone or with Aaron's friend and her friend, who seem to end up as a couple themselves later on, but that's simply not explained at all. But plenty of other things aren't explained either.
For instance, the local drug dealer/pimp ("Bo"), in some scenes he's pushing Aaron against a wall in his building being tough (why?), and in another he's in Aaron's dad's coffee shop giving the dad a very hard time and making fun of him (why?). Then in other scenes, Bo saves Aaron from Puerto Rican toughs, offers to take his hooker around the world when he doesn't have to, and gives Aaron a suitcase full of money (as Bo is dying). What's his story? Who knows? There is a supposed plot line in the film where there is trouble between the blacks and Puerto Ricans because Aaron (black) is dating Angela (Puerto Rican, or "Latina" for today's PC audience). A few times early on, when Aaron talks to his buddy about liking Angela, there's some talk about how she's "one of them." But after a scene where Aaron takes Angela home (not to her door, just the street outside a little down the block she insists, for his safety), and he gets chased and a slight beatdown from some Puerto Ricans ("we don't want outsiders with our girls"), there is then nothing more between any conflict between the blacks and Puerto Ricans. As a matter of fact, Aaron even waits for Angela in her doorway with no problem and no fear from any Puerto Ricans. The whole conflict is completely forgotten about.
Aaron and Angela also hide their relationship from their parents. Why? We see Aaron's father a bunch of times, and never once does he mention that he hates Puerto Ricans, or even against Aaron having any girlfriend. There's never a single reason shown why Aaron should hide Angela from his father. Same thing for Angela and her mother, who we never even see. So that whole thing is unexplained.
But all that is pretty much how this mess of a movie goes. Despite all this, there are a few good points of curiosity, mainly cameos from Walt Frazier and Jose Feliciano. Frazier is very unnatural and speaks as if he is reading off cue cards, but seeing him in full 1975 "rich basketball player" regalia complete with cheesy fur and an old Rolls Royce (where he found a parking spot right outside the Garden's stage door) is a blast. Feliciano sings at a club, and he also does a number of songs for the movie, which haven't really lasted over time that well but are pretty good nonetheless.
The actual locations of filming are great to see if you are into gritty 1970's New York City films. NYC was a mess in the 70's and Harlem especially wasn't pretty. There are some good character actors you may recognize in the film. And as far as Irene Cara goes, she's a little less than OK, a little pretty, but she doesn't deliver a knockout punch on screen or anything. She's obviously not as good on screen as the actor playing Aaron. Her friend who you sometimes see may have been a better choice for the role.
The film picks up just a little bit in the last 15 minutes, as the drug dealers are searching for their suitcase full of cash. There's a great scene where they run down Bo's buddy, a great piece of stuntwork done before stupid computer effects came long. It's a great shot that adds the the grittiness even more. The "livery" plates on the drug dealer's limo is a funny thing.
One funny thing is Aaron's buddy telling the drug dealers where Aaron is at that moment, after they beat it out of him. Aaron was at Grant's Tomb waiting for Angela. Grant's Tomb? Even though it was the truth, how fake did that sound? And the drug dealers bought it immediately? If it was that easy, why didn't Aaron's buddy just lie, and say "The Empire State Building" or "The 4-5-6 subway station at 125th and Lexington?" Seeing Aaron's good buddy reveal where Aaron was, was a letdown.
The end of the film seems to be a cop-out, what exactly happens? Did they run off? Do they go home? Angela warns Aaron that unless he returns the drug dealer's money, they'll be chased down forever all over the world until they are finally found. So what good did throwing the money into the crowd do? Are the drug dealers going to forget about it then, and not search for Aaron? Like everything else in this film, it makes no sense.
The romance, you never get the feeling that their feelings for each other are simmering. Part of it is Cara's wooden acting, but it really never materializes into anything, especially a "Romeo and Juliet" thing, because no one really cares if they are together or not. Another unexplained thing (of so, so many) is how in one scene, Aaron and Angela are in the abandoned building, scared from hearing gunshots, and they run from the building together after Bo, dying, gives Aaron the suitcase of money. But then, right afterwards, Angela isn't taking Aaron's phone calls anymore. Why?? Unbelievable.
So really, there may be a few reasons to watch this film out of curiosity, but this movie is a huge mess.
A good idea is terribly wasted here
g-zimmerman15 September 2009
Warning: Spoilers
An interracial romance blossoms between an African-American boy and a Puerto Rican girl. Given some of the circumstances of the situation (it's 1975 in Harlem), you would think that this would turn out to be a deeply moving story of how true love can transcend racial barriers. As it actually turns out, there is no dissension whatsoever between Aaron and Angela's families and friends. At no point during this movie does their relationship become threatened by any kind of racially motivated hostility, and a close examination of the story as it goes along seems to reveal nothing at all that even stands in the way of Aaron and Angela having a relationship at all. Minorly interesting for its period atmosphere, and for Irene Cara's cute performance of the wise and level-headed Angela, but it's mostly not a very good movie, mainly because of the contrived (and often vague) plot, as well as the writers' seeming unwillingness to work with some of the elements necessary to make a good story from this particular premise.
Mostly a disappointment
Wizard-830 April 2020
Warning: Spoilers
I had wanted to see this movie for many years, since it was the first movie listed in Leonard Maltin's classic movie review book, and the book gave the movie a favorable review. Today I finally got to watch it after recording it off Turner Classic Movies, and I was pretty let down by it. I feel I should mention that though the movie advertises itself as a kind of updated urban Romeo and Juliet tale, surprisingly there is almost no feuding between any of the African Americans and Puerto Ricans showcased. It still could have worked as a drama or a romance, but these angles of the movie are also a letdown. I never really saw what the two youthful protagonists found attractive with each other or got a sense of their building (and challenging) relationship. For example, they actually seem to already know each other very well when they are shown talking to each other for the first time in the movie. Actually, there are tell-tale signs that the movie was cut down significantly in the editing room, since there are other plot points that are not seen, or are talked about long after they happened offscreen. Also, the very ending of the movie is kind of hard to believe considering who the two protagonists were struggling with (mobsters) just before the final few seconds. The movie does have some value in that it is kind of a time capsule, showcasing a pre-cleaned up New York City in the mid '70s, as well as showing the attitudes and fashions of the NYC citizens of the time. But other than that, there isn't much of substance here. It's easy to see why this movie has to date never received a home video release.
A few great moments don't make a great movie.
mark.waltz30 November 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Ill defined characters, rural stereotypes and an unfortunate lack of spark leads this movie to be a nearly complete disappointment. Kevin Hooks, playing Aaron, has potential, and strives to create a flesh and blood character that keeps changing gears thanks to inconsistencies in the script. He's basically a decent young man striving to be the next best thing in basketball, but more of the script shows him going between getting into trouble, dealing with a disappointed and bitter father (Moses Gunn, giving a great performance) and romancing the Puerto Rican Irene Cara (as Angela) who likes him in spite of racial differences (and threats towards him from Puerto Rican neighbors of hers. He makes a series of mistakes (treating her like a cheap trick in a moment of macho weakness) yet can't resist her when she finally comes around, affirming the fact that he is falling in love.
A subplot involves Aaron's prostitute neighbor (Ernestine Jackson) who is involved with obvious drug lord Robert Hooks (Kevin's real life father) and seemingly trying to get him out of the business. This is distracting from the main plot, only there seemingly there to add a bit of a "blaxploitation" element to the film and souring the romantic element of the main story. Cara is unfortunately a bland actress, only coming to life when she breaks down after his awkward attempts to seduce her in an abandoned building.
The 1970's location footage is superb, showing the graveyard like feel of all of Harlem and taking the viewer to the Bethesda Fountain, outside Madison Square Garden and to Lincoln Center with later scenes on the Brooklyn Bridge and finally at Grant's Tomb after some major violent twists. Gunn is particularly effective in a drunken scene where he takes out his frustrations on his son then breaks down to apologize. If the script had better focus on the positive elements of the story and better character development, this could have been a period black drama with purpose rather than the rambling mess it ends up being.
A subplot involves Aaron's prostitute neighbor (Ernestine Jackson) who is involved with obvious drug lord Robert Hooks (Kevin's real life father) and seemingly trying to get him out of the business. This is distracting from the main plot, only there seemingly there to add a bit of a "blaxploitation" element to the film and souring the romantic element of the main story. Cara is unfortunately a bland actress, only coming to life when she breaks down after his awkward attempts to seduce her in an abandoned building.
The 1970's location footage is superb, showing the graveyard like feel of all of Harlem and taking the viewer to the Bethesda Fountain, outside Madison Square Garden and to Lincoln Center with later scenes on the Brooklyn Bridge and finally at Grant's Tomb after some major violent twists. Gunn is particularly effective in a drunken scene where he takes out his frustrations on his son then breaks down to apologize. If the script had better focus on the positive elements of the story and better character development, this could have been a period black drama with purpose rather than the rambling mess it ends up being.
Aaron Loves Angela...Who Cares?!
alfredpr-696118 May 2020
This movie was so bad, terrible storytelling, inept acting all around, disjointed hodgepodge is the result. It seems like it was a black neighborhood play made with Goodwill workers. Tbe only redeemable thing in this entire mess was the gritty location filming of the dystopic NYC of the 70's.
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