Tagline: Git Back JACK--Give him no JIVE...He is the BAAAD'EST Cat in '75

What the sleeve say’s…

“They say he’s candy sweet. A family man by day, and Los Angeles coolest pimp by night, his wife and two children know nothing about his double life. Everyone wants to cut the baron out; Police, rival pimps and the mob, but he’s got an answer for every question, a block for every attack. Until someone tries to break in on his private life, that is when the candy man turns from sweet to sour.”

Made in 1975 and directed by Matt Climber, CTM is an amazing piece of Blaxploitation cinema, worthy of a space in anyone’s collection. You might have to hunt it down, but I promise you will treasure it.

The film opens with pageantry pimp “Baron” (John Daniels) driving his customised two tone red and yellow Rolls Royce around down town - night time L.A. His “ladies” have been coming up short lately and he wants to know why. Turns out that two L.A.P.D. cops - Dempsey and Gordon (who have been after Baron for some time now) have resorted to rousting his girls every chance they get. Indeed in the next scene they have set Baron up with a copper in drag to entrap him with procurement of prostitutes. Of course the Baron is wise to their ploy and ends up grabbing the copper by the short and curlies.

[The tongue in cheek theme of this film is apparent right from the start. Dempsey and Gordon excel as the stereotypical dim witted, overweight, bumbling cops. Turning in an incredibly exuberant over the top performance. Baron is like a father figure to his hoe’s. Loved and respected by gals, hated and resented by guys. He never looses his cool and always has an answer for everything.]

Next stop is Bella’s place where he learns that one of his girls - “Pepper” has been busted and yet another (Denise) is having trouble with her ex husband. To cap i
t all “Dusty” (a rival pimp) has acquired a new young Indian chick.

Having sent his right hand man “Maurice” to go bail out Pepper, Baron goes to sort out Denise’s problem. Arriving at her flat he finds her ex and two goons waiting for him. Quick as a flash we get to see Baron’s nasty side as he BUMP! Throws the first guy out of the window. CLUMP! Throws a switchblade into the throat of the ex husband. THUMP! Throws a rolled up garden hose around the third and kicks him into the pool where he drowns. Baron is the Man!

With hardly a pause for a scratch, we are whisked to the “Horse and Coaches”, where Dusty is shooting some nine ball. Now Dusty is one of my favourite characters in this movie. He gets some great lines (thanks to the penmanship of George Theakos), which he delivers, with suitable gusto. But even better are the clothes he gets to wear! Outrageous – why can’t I get away with clobber like that? Anyway, Baron tells Dusty that he wants the new girl. Dusty doesn’t want to sell her because he reckons she’s worth 10,000 big ones before she “wears her slot out”. Baron puts ten grand on the table and Dusty accepts. From the break Dusty clears the table with just the last ball remaining. He puts that one down as well and we think it’s all over for the Baron. But then the white ball follows into the hole. Baron has won and takes the girl and the money. Leaving Dusty to curse, “Ain’t that some shit! Oh Shit! You damned white, honky, mother-fu--ing ball!” - Classy :)

As Baron and the girl are about to drive away, a van pulls up and blocks their path. Inside are hoodlums belonging to local mobster Vincent Denunzio? (Owner of the Horse and Coaches) They open fire, but Barons car has a secret. The indicator lights flip up to reveal machine guns (ala Lady Penelope, do all Rolls come with this as standard?) The goons have no hope and the
van bursts into flames. Baron drives off leaving the fuming Vincent shaking his fist and swearing revenge.

Showing his caring side Baron escorts the Indian girl to a bus depot, gives her some money, and tells her to go home, find a nice man, settle down, have some kids. Ah! The big softie.

Talking of going home, that’s exactly what Baron does next, but halfway there he stops, swaps his “threads” for a suit and the Roller for a sedan to become…Ron Lewis – Mr everyday Joe. Wife, kids, neighbours, mortgage – the lot! If only it could happen like that for me. Oh mamma! (Johnny Bravo).

His missus (Claurice) gives him a hard time about his salesman job and how the last three years have been lonely for her. Robbie (his son) has been bouncing a ball off Mrs Terrence’s wall (the neighbour), Doris (the daughter) won’t come when she’s called, and the idiot boy next door keeps ogling her. Ah, the reality of it all. Cue Bavarian Oompah music, as next day big Ron mows the lawn. Later add some dreamy music as he plays with his kids and the picture is complete.

Meanwhile back in Baronsville some heavies hired by Dusty are leaning on Barons girls. It starts off in the same tone as the rest of the film but then takes a steep dive into depraved darkness as one of the men cuts “Dottie’s” tit’s off! Blinkin’ Heck! I didn’t see that coming. The camera pans away so thankfully we don’t have to witness the deed, but the screams are blood curdling. The other girls are forced to work for Dusty. When Baron turns up and finds out what has happened he is less than pleased and promises to kill the men responsible.

Next the character of “Maurice” is explored in more depth as he meets up with the Baron to do a deal over $250,000 of negotiable bonds. Maurice has his own background atmos music for when he walks – and it’s pretty cool. T
hink of a more laid back “Huggy Bear” from Starsky and Hutch and you won’t go far wrong. He is loyal to Baron so tells him of Bella’s ambitions to see him taken out - down and dirty. Baron says he has an idea as to how they can shift the bonds and the pair arrange to meet up later. For now Baron has only one thing on his mind – payback!

Dusty is entertaining a couple of ladies when Baron comes calling. Quickly disposing of the Neanderthal guarding the door, he asks Dusty who did the cutting. “I did,” booms a voice from behind. Baron slaps him about a bit then grinds his hand up in the kitchen disposal. He tells Dusty that he will see him again. Nice!

In order to shift the bonds Baron needs the assistance of “Sugar”, one of his girls and a stripper at a local club. One of her clients works in a bank and is easy to manipulate.

We find out why in the next scene as, in another of those genuinely dark moments, we see that he gets his kicks by masturbating whilst Sugar stands straddled above him giving a “Golden Shower”. Listen to him pant “Marvellous, marvellous – that’s marvellous” and you will see what I mean. A “Dirty Banker” in more ways than one. He agrees to shift the bonds.

Baron has no legitimate business to front the bond deal, so recruits the help of Bella, who has and will, for a 10% cut.

The next day whilst waiting outside the bank for the deal to go down, Baron is arrested and handcuffed to the steering wheel of his car by Dempsey and Gordon. They know about the bonds and want 10% each. He has been set up by Bella. Eventually he breaks free and goes to see Maurice.

At “The Institute of Oral Love”, Maurice has been badly beaten, but before passing out he tells Baron that the mob, Bella and Dusty plan to kill him. The guy whose arm he chewed up, now has a hook in its place, and is looking to ch
risten it. The banker panicked after a visit from Dempsey and Gordon and has topped himself with shame. The build up to the final face off is set.

When Baron turns up at Bella’s place he is surprised to find the young Indian girl he thought had left town on the bus. She tells him that Bella is at the Coach and Horses. He sets off, then, from behind the curtains, step Dempsey and Gordon. They want a war so they can pick up the pieces; it’s another set up. I mention this scene because as they are about to leave, the third dark moment occurs. One of them rapes the Indian girl whilst the other watches, laughing maniacally like Ming the Merciless. It’s truly macabre.

At the club everyone is preparing for Baron’s immanent arrival. One girl conceals razor blades between her fingers whilst the guys lock ‘n’ load various weaponry. All to no avail however, as Baron lets rip with a maelstrom of bullets, killing them all in a John Woo-esque slo-mo extravaganza.

As he leaves, the two bad cops show up and a car chase through the hills of L.A. ensues, culminating in the coppers car dangling over a cliff similar to “The Italian Job”. They plead for their lives as Baron goes to alter the fulcrum point. He promises to let them go if they tell him where Bella is. They do and he does – straight to the bottom of the ravine where the car explodes in a fireball.

Bella is hiding out at her mum’s farm and there they discuss keeping the money. Watch out for little dialogue gems like “Your right momma – bad assed right!”

Baron kicks the door in and calmly starts to take the money. But these are some sassy gals. On seeing his cool white suit one comments “You look like some kinda ice-cream cone with a liquorice twixt his legs!” then they attack him while Bella makes a break for it. In a moment of pure slapstick he fends them off with a yard broom.

He c
atches Bella outside where she tells him why she did it. Baron had introduced her to prostitution, but one of the John’s had turned nasty and that’s how she came by the scar on her face. “No man wanted me. I hated you. I hated all men. When I couldn’t make it with men I turned to girls – now I hate myself” He leaves her some money and heads for home.

The next time we see him he is weeding the flowerbeds with a hoe (a metal hoe:). His wife hands him a drink and tells him how happy she is that he’s given up the sales job. Baron is no more. Long live Big Ron.

The final scene shows Maurice in Barons old outfit, cruising the streets in the roller checking out his bitches. Long live the new Baron.

This is a film your friends will want to borrow – again and again. Make sure you don’t loose it.

Auntmavis