Black Chariot 10/26 Blu-ray (Rental)

In his first starring role, Bernie Casey (Brian’s Song) portrays Tuck, an irreverent young man living aimlessly in South Central L.A., where a Black militant group is organizing. Tuck joins the group under the persuasion of their outspoken recruiter, Sylvia (Barbara O., Daughters of the Dust). When one of the group’s members (Robert L. Goodwin, Jr.) betrays them to the police, a death warrant is issued, and Tuck must decide between loyalty to the organization and the inner voice of his newly awakened conscience. Television writer Robert L. Goodwin (1927-1983) conceived Black Chariot as a battering ram to break the color barrier that kept African Americans out of the director’s chair. Lacking studio support and commercial distribution, the renegade filmmaker launched an ambitious crowd-funding campaign and shot the film guerilla-style on the streets of Los Angeles. Told in an ambitious flashback structure and shot on a variety of film and video formats, Black Chariot challenged the stylistic conventions of Hollywood and provided an early example of what a 1970s Black cinematic voice might look like. Lacking commercial distribution, Black Chariot vanished after its initial run in Los Angeles, and remained clouded in mystery until it was restored by the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in cooperation with the National Film Preservation Foundation. Special Features: -Black Chariot: Hiding in Plain Sight, Featuring Interviews with Actor Robert L. Goodwin Jr. and Film Historian Rhea L. Combs -The Upper Chamber (1963, 52 Min.) Television Drama Written and Produced by Robert L. Goodwin -The Death of Simon Jackson (1969, 28 Min.) Episode of the TV Series Insight, Written by Robert L. Goodwin. Courtesy of Paulist Productions and the UCLA Film & Television Archive -Theatrical Re-release Trailer