Outlaw Johnny Black

Good movie!

Good movie!

What happens when you take Black Dynamite, remove 50 percent of the humor and fun, and set it in the old west? You get The Outlaw Johnny Black. I know this is supposed to be a spiritual sequel to BD and not directly related, but even that is a bit of a stretch. This movie is much more grounded. Doesn't feel like the 70's in its style. And takes itself a little too seriously. Now if I'm being fair and not comparing Johnny Black to the previous film, all you're really left with is a light comedy/drama focusing on religion and forgiveness. Its dramatic, heartfelt elements are well done, but not enough material there for a two and a half hour film. Yes, not only is this movie long, but it feels that way too. While it's not shot or directed in any way that seems retroesque, Michael Jai White does a solid job as a first time director while also starring as the lead. Some nice looking wide shots of landscapes, zoom ins and close ups to heighten the drama of tense scenes, and White is often made to look like a million bucks as the character. Nothing mind blowing or anything, but does get the western feel down well enough. Similarly the performances across the board are solid. The cast know the tonal line to draw in not being too silly while making the humor work, while being dramatic enough without taking it too seriously. And while the style fails in that regard, the music is excellent in capturing the old 60's - 70's western feel. Great soundtrack. If you go into The Outlaw Johnny Black, don't expect a sequel to Black Dynamite. That might help temper your expectations and look at the movie more fairly. But even then, it's a pretty average film.

What happens when you take Black Dynamite, remove 50 percent of the humor and fun, and set it in the old west? You get The Outlaw Johnny Black. I know this is supposed to be a spiritual sequel to BD and not directly related, but even that is a bit of a stretch. This movie is much more grounded. Doesn't feel like the 70's in its style. And takes itself a little too seriously. Now if I'm being fair and not comparing Johnny Black to the previous film, all you're really left with is a light comedy/drama focusing on religion and forgiveness. Its dramatic, heartfelt elements are well done, but not enough material there for a two and a half hour film. Yes, not only is this movie long, but it feels that way too. While it's not shot or directed in any that seems retroesque, Michael Jai White does a solid job as a first time director while also starring as the lead. Some nice looking wide shots of landscapes, zoom ins and close ups to heighten the drama of tense scenes, and White is often made to look like a million bucks as the character. Nothing mind blowing or anything, but does get the western feel down well enough. Similarly the performances across the board are solid. The cast knows the tonal line to draw in not being too silly while making the humor work, while being dramatic enough without taking it too seriously. And while the style fails in that regard, the music is excellent in capturing the old 60's - 70's western feel. Great soundtrack. If you go into The Outlaw Johnny Black, don't expect a sequel to Black Dynamite. That might help temper your expectations and look at the movie more fairly. But even then, it's a pretty average film.

This movie has a great and deep storyline. It keeps you on edge the whole movie. I personally feel like you have to be a fan of when Michael Jai White played Black Dynamite to really get the full humor of this movie because if not there's parts in the movie that will go completely over your head. The cast did well adding to the humorous side of things everyone played a good part in it to bring it to life. I like the fact that this shows a different time in life more of a western style so if your into cowboy style this will definitely be a great watch for you. It's giving Black Chuck Norris. Very well played Johnny.

What happens when you take Black Dynamite, remove 90 percent of the humor and fun, and set it in the old west? You get The Outlaw Johnny Black. I know this is supposed to be a spiritual sequel to BD and not directly related, but even that is a bit of a stretch. This movie is not over the top. Doesn't feel like the 70's in its style. And takes itself a little too seriously. Now if I'm being fair and not comparing Johnny Black to the previous film, all you're really left with is a modern western drama with light moments of levity every now and then. Its dramatic, heartfelt elements are well done, but not enough material there for a two and a half hour film. Yes, not only is this movie long, but it feels that way too. While it's not shot or directed in any that seems retroesque, Michael Jai White does a solid job as a first time director while also starring as the lead. Nothing mind blowing or anything, but does get the western feel down well. Similarly the performances across the board are solid. The cast knows the tonal line to draw in not being too silly while making the humor work, while being dramatic enough without taking it too seriously. And while the style fails in that regard, the music is excellent in capturing the old 60's - 70's western feel. Great soundtrack. If you go into The Outlaw Johnny Black, don't expect a sequel to Black Dynamite. That might help temper your expectations and look at the movie more fairly. But even then, it's a pretty average film.

When I stumbled upon this 2023 Western titled "Outlaw Johnny Black" here in 2023, I had never heard about the movie. But seeing that the movie had Michael Jai White on the cast list was more than sufficient to make me stop and take notice. Needless to say that of course I opted to watch the movie solely because Michael Jai White was on the cast list. Writers Byron Minns and Michael Jai White put together a rather enjoyable and entertaining script and storyline. It is a script that combines both good storytelling, action, comedy, and good old fashioned Western. And I have to admit that I was more than genuinely entertained throughout the course of the 130 minutes that the movie ran for. The acting performances in "Outlaw Johnny Black" were good, and Michael Jai White definitely carried the movie quite nicely. It was a good cast ensemble, with the likes of Barry Bostwick, Chris Browning and Randy Couture as the only familiar faces for me. But I will say that the likes of Anika Noni Rose, Erica Ash and Byron Minns also were great in the movie. "Outlaw Johnny Black" looked and felt like a Western, and the added light action and comedy elements were sprucing up the movie quite nicely, making it all the more of an enjoyable movie to sit through. My rating of "Outlaw Johnny Black" lands on a seven out of ten stars.

The film is a spoof of other Westerns. The plot is immaterial and one should watch it for the individual scenes. Possible Plot spoilers. We see Johnny Black wearing Billy Jack's hat as he reenacts the famous park scene where he fights multiple people with his feet. He was the pocket watch from "Only a Few Dollars More" except it doesn't play music. Being shot down by hanging was done in too many films to mention. One of his crimes was eyeing white women, reminding me of something from "Blazing Saddles" as well as the town destruction fight in the end. The soundtrack even made me laugh as he rides through the desert hopping up and down to 1970's music like a Fred Williamson film. The Wedding scene was perhaps from Little Big Man or maybe Squaw Man. The tear rolling down the face is from a famous "Crying Indian" ad. And the jail escape scene is none other than a redo of a famous Trinty bar scene. If you haven't seen these films you will be watching the film on a different level and may not enjoy it half as much as I did. I did laugh out loud at the two sisters confronting Johnny. Erica Ash's overreaction was funny. I know more scenes were spoofed that I missed such as the horse death scene. Guide: No swearing or nudity.

This movie was everything you could want from this man and more! I love that this movie has that certain B movie cheese to it like Black Dynamite, the humor just never ends it seems. The casting was so good I basically laughed every time they introduced another character (even more funny because I had no idea who was in the movie). There's was also a whole lot of references to classic Westerns that were slipped in quite humorously as well, but if you didn't understand the reference then it might not have been as funny. I actually thought there runtime was just fine, I enjoyed the whole cliche show. Again, it's Michael Jai White comedy so it's obviously hilarious.

"Outlaw Johnny Black" is the latest movie from Michael Jai White and his team that brought us the amazing "Black Dynamite". (If you have not watched "Black Dynamite" yet, you are missing out on what would be the funniest movie to come out in the last 20 years had "Tropic Thunder" never been made. It is that good.) Being that it is the same crew, you will see many of the same faces returning to the party. Johnny Black is a man driven by vengeance that leads him on a journey to finding himself. I will leave it at that to not spoil anything as the plot is actually more in depth and with more twists and turns than would be expected from what is a concept that has existed as long as stories have been told. Where BD was a *chefs kiss* spoof of a Blaxploitation film, OJB is more a comedic western along the lines of "Blazing Saddles". More Mel Brooks than Sergio Leon, MJW does a good job of bringing the laughs while also having a good bit of character growth and life lessons thrown in. The only issue I had with the movie is that it is fairly long, and some parts are there to expand on the plot and not hit you with the comedy. Whereas BD was nonstop zingers from start to finish, OJB is more spaced out with the comedy at the beginning and picks up a bit in the later half. Some people make take issues with how some characters are portrayed, but just remember that it is all done deliberately to mimic a style of the past and how things were done then. I could understand what the intent was and thought everything was hilarious. As this is a *follow up* (for a lack of better term) to BD, you may be wondering if you need to see BD beforehand. The answer is no. This is a completely standalone movie that can be enjoyed by itself. However, you will miss out of several jokes that are direct callbacks to BD (hence my review title). While I would give BD a solid 10/10 due to the genre it is spoofing and the nonstop comedy from start to finish, I will give OJB a 7/10 for being a little longer, more sparing with the jokes and being of a genre that lends itself less to the full-on belly laughs. Definitely recommend the watch.