Black Shampoo (1976)

This sleazy slice of Blaxploitation introduces safari suit-wearing. Mercedes-driving, super-stud hairdresser Mr Jonathan (John Daniels) who wields a mean blowdryer and services his rich, blonde, obnoxious white clients at his Sunset Strip salon or their palatial homes.

Whatever delusions the movie has of ripping off Shampoo (1975) are polished off with the premise and the first five minutes of film. From then on, it is substandard macho racism that is particularly offensive in its sadistic, snide treatment of gay men.

Mr Jonathan becomes involved with his attractive receptionist, Brenda (Tanya Boyd), who has been hiding from her former lover, a shady businessman called Mr Wilson (Joe Ortiz), who sends three of his henchmen to retrieve his mistress.

They bust up the beauty shop and rough up Daniels’ gay assistant, Artie (Skip Lowe).

To prevent endangering Jonathan, Brenda returns to Mr WIlson’s tutelage but manages to steal his secret ledger – which contains a record of his illegal business transactions – and brings it to Mr Jonathan, who is taking some time off at his rustic mountain cabin (complete with a pool table, natch).

Wilson and his thugs return to the beauty salon searching for the ledger and obscenely assault Artie with a knife until he tells them where the cabin is located.

The four thugs arrive in the mountains, and the phlegmatic but gory final confrontation consists of deaths by chainsaw, hatchet and pool cue.

Alvin L. Fast and Greydon Clark’s script abounds in bad taste, dopey dialogue, failure to explain why anything is happening and cardboard characters. Their portrayal of two gay hairdressers is hysterical and insulting.

Scenes in the salon are particularly tacky – none of the beauty shop’s inherent narcissism – which was so well coveted in Shampoo – is present here. Only striped fuchsia wallpaper and endless bottles of hair conditioner.

Daniels – a fine and promising actor who was so fiery in The Candy Tangerine Man (1975) – has nothing to work with here.

Mr Jonathan
John Daniels
Brenda St. John
Tanya Boyd
Mr Wilson
Joseph Carlo (as Joe Ortiz)
Artie
Skip E. Lowe
Richard
Gary Allen
Maddox
William Bonner (as Jack Mehoff)
Jackson
Bruce Kerley
Chauffeur
Sheldon Lee (as Salvator Benissimo)
Mrs Phillips
Anne Gaybis
Mrs Simpson
Heather Leigh (as Diana St. Clair)
Freddie
Fred Scott
Peg
Marl Pero
Meg
Kelly Beau
Ruby
Ruby Williams
Manicurist
Helene Farber
New Receptionist
Jacqulin Cole (as Edith Wheeler)

Director
Greydon Clark