When The Man kills his brother, floods the local orphanage with smack and slips an insidious penis-shrinking drug into the malt liquor supply, it’s up to Black Dynamite (action star White) to put things right. Yeah, it’s like that.

CineVegas 2009

Black Dynamite

Michael Jai White, Salli Richardson, Tommy Davidson.

Directed by Scott Sanders

Black Dynamite

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Dynamite is an over-the-top kung-fu comedy overflowing with sex, drugs, violence and language about as politically incorrect as modern movies get. Director Sanders and his crew have ostensibly made a spoof of ’70s blaxploitation films, but instead of offering a wink and a nudge, they’ve opted to be as authentic as possible. They arguably do a better job of lampooning Shaft and Superfly than Jay Roach and Mike Myers did with ’60s spy movies in the Austin Powers series.

Star and co-writer White delivers a possible breakthrough performance. Perhaps best known for Spawn and the Universal Soldier movies, he displays not only his already apparent athleticism, but also surprising comedic skills and considerable (if purposely smarmy) charm. He and Sanders can’t quite keep the funk going for the entire running time, and it’s essentially a one-joke premise, but he’s one righteous dude.