dvd review: disco godfather

[ToyMan]

With a whole generation of filmgoers being familiar with the works of Quentin Tarantino, it's disappointing that so few of them look into the films that inspired his sensibilities. For those that do, it's only a matter of time before they come face to face with "The Godfather of Rap", Rudy Ray Moore.

Moore plays Tucker Williams, a popular disco club DJ. The scenes depicting Moore spinning vinyl for his adoring patrons are full of over-the-top fun. From Moore's Elvis-esque costumes, bad dancers flailing about in the crowd, and Moore's proto-rap poetry, it's hard not to have fun.

The plot comes together when we meet the nephew of our protagonist, Bucky. He's a promising young basketball player who starts to squander his talent when one of the disco patrons introduces him to drug use, in the form of angeldust.

Moore's character vows to come down hard on the criminals that have caused all of this, and he returns to his old crimefighting ways.

The scenes where we see from Bucky's perspective while he's high on PCP are incredibly bizarre. For some reason, he's followed by some sort of kabuki-styled demoness with a sword, and sees those around him as though they were listless zombies, standing around in foggy darkness.

Original radio ads, trailers for a number of Rudy Ray Moore films, and a trivia game are presented here as extras. A quickly produced location tour is also included, but the audio often drops out a little, as it was recorded with a camera microphone from some distance.