Everything that was right with the original "Super Fly" is wrong here. The original was the true definition of "independent film making;" very small budget, humble, and passionate. Nobody involved was famous, or a "big shot," and that gave the movie a kind of innocence that is lost on this showy sequel.
The biggest mistake was taking the action out of New York City, as the ghetto backdrop played such a major role in the story, and it defined exactly who the character, Priest was. For this sequel the action is moved to more exotic settings of Italy, and later Africa. Thus the connection to the first film is lost. Everything here is bigger, more expensive, and everyone involved is more self-important due to the success they found with the first movie; thus the heart is lost as well.
This is typical example of what goes wrong with sequels of great movies. The same thing happened with the "Penitentiary" franchise. The first one was an excellent piece of independent cinema, made with no money by a team of unknowns, and it was followed by an awful sequel, devoid of passion or artistic value. As far as Ron O'Neal, the man who made Priest such a fascinating character; he wasn't given the kinds of roles that he should have gotten. But he truly redeems himself after "Super Fly TNT," a few years later, with the excellent grindhouse classic "The Hitter," a film that received no attention, but is a million times better than this shallow vanity piece. I would encourage any fan of "Super Fly" and Ron O'Neal to skip this lame sequel and search out "The Hitter" instead.
Review of Super Fly T.N.T.
