Directed By Paul Maslansky
SYNOPSIS
When Sugar Hill's (Marki Bey) boyfriend refuses to sell his nightclub to a bunch of gangsters, they beat him to death. Sugar turns to an old voodoo queen (Zara Cully) for help and thanks to Baron Samedi (Don Pedro Colley,) she gets an army of the undead to help her exact revenge.
A great mix of a blaxploitation and a zombie film.
Rare for both genres, Sugar Hill managed a PG rating. It lacks excessive violence, nudity, strong language or gore that are commonplace for those films... and still manages to be exciting, tense and a lot of fun.
Also lacking was a big budget... but the filmmakers made due with what they had. The zombie makeup was low-tech but creepy as hell... especially the shiny brass eyes.
Plot-wise, the film is very simple... just your typical revenge story, without any unnecessary sub-plot. It gets right down to the story, tells it, and finishes it. Great economic storytelling.
B-movie giant American International was one of the leading studios making blaxploitation films in the '70s, most notably those starring Pam Grier (Foxy Brown, Coffy, etc.) I wonder why she wasn't cast in this. Marki Bey is fine as Sugar, but I think Grier would have been a better choice because she has a stronger screen presence.
The acting is not the strongest overall, but you don't look for master thespians in a film like this.
American International also was responsible for the 2 Blacula films (far better known blaxploitation/horror combos) but this film is far better than either.
Sugar Hill is a fun, well-made film that would definitely impress and entertain fans of both horror and blaxploitation.
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