The Human Tornado Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		3.0
Extras		4.5
Overall		4.5

The Human Tornado Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Brian Orndorf June 7, 2016

Emerging from the wreckage of 1975’s “Dolemite” with a hit movie, Rudy Ray Moore wasn’t about to let a franchise opportunity pass him by. Quickly regrouping, adding director Cliff Roquemore to the mix, Moore revived Dolemite for 1976’s “The Human Tornado,” continuing the adventures of a nightclub comedian who does battle with white people and gangsters during the day, often breaking his routine to sleep with willing women. The formula hasn’t been rethought, but the sequel is a far stranger feature than expected, finding the production taking some genuine risks with tone and abstraction to balance out issues with a limited budget. Moore’s making this one for himself, indulging interests in club performance and martial arts, arranging a parade of silliness where he’s the grand marshal, welcoming onlookers with heaps of violence, nudity, and comedic rhymes. It’s not a better film than “Dolemite,” but it never really tries to be, content to mastermind its own peculiarities and lean heavily on its moviemaking limp.

After making his mark in the L.A. underworld, Dolemite (Rudy Ray Moore) returns to the stage, content to perform for excited crowds at his club, The Total Experience. However, instead of peace, Dolemite’s world is turned upside down when he’s framed for the murder of Sheriff Beatty’s (J.B. Baron) cheating wife, with the racist cop determined to kill a powerful black man. On the run, trouble doubles down for Dolemite when pal Queen Bee (Lady Reed) is squeezed out of her club by mafia stooge Cavaletti (Herb Graham), who’s in deep with his superiors and needs a successful business to restore financial comfort. Refusing to bow to threats, Dolemite and his gang (including Ernie Hudson) roll into action when two of Queen Bee’s top ladies are taken hostage and dumped into a torture chamber. Using his martial art skills, wit, and ability to seduce anyone he chooses, Dolemite marches into battle, ready to restore illegal clubland dealings for the masses.

“The Human Tornado” had me at hello. The main titles kick off the feature with a blast of Crayola-colored credits and Moore on a dirt road, showcasing martial art moves that suggest Dolemite’s sensei is actually a petulant toddler. It’s a wild display of flapping arms, half-speed kicks, and exaggerated grimaces, capturing the spirit of the picture with shocking immediacy. Who needs the rest of the movie when there’s the sight of Moore wearing his starring credit as a cape?

“The Human Tornado” never manages to top its introduction, but it’s comforting to see Moore working to shape an even bigger valentine to his talents. The story doesn’t actually begin for quite some time, electing to showcase Dolemite at his happiest: playing around with crowd work at his home club, razzing the overweight and overdressed, while informing one patron that he looks like a guy who would “fart in a bathtub, quickly turn around and eat the bubble.” It’s only one of many incoherent lines from Moore, who truly makes it up as he goes, reviving his “rat-soup eatin’” put-downs, while adding “sea-sapping” to his warped glossary of comebacks. Still, Moore’s enthusiasm is infectious, moving from club comic to superhero, though one with a particularly grim foe in Sheriff Beatty -- a southerner who’s never met a racial epithet he didn’t enjoy. The other villain offered in “The Human Tornado” is Cavaletti, a low-level goombah with a mob debt he can’t pay back, subjecting two of Queen Bee’s employees to Edgar Allan Poe-style torture contraptions and a dash of witchery.

There’s more defined evildoing for Dolemite to combat, as the production enjoys the benefit of hindsight, keeping to the basics of rhyming Moore-isms and potential disasters. Grit is gone, replaced with cartoon shenanigans, including an amplification of Dolemite’s sexual prowess, which for this round involves key ladies in the criminal network, with Cavaletti’s “main woman” easily seduced by an undercover Dolemite, who uses erotic art to hypnotize his target, introducing a dreamscape encounter featuring a bevy of naked men, climaxing with literal house-quaking sex between the comic and his prey. Granted, Moore treats his female co-stars like they all have cooties during lovemaking scenes, but the moment is hilarious, going all the way with an absurd idea.

The Human Tornado Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The AVC encoded image (1.85:1 aspect ratio) presentation for "The Human Tornado" hasn't been subjected to an exhaustive restoration. The fine folks at Vinegar Syndrome are working uphill with tattered source materials, keeping the viewing experience lively with vertical scratches, blotches, and rough reel changes. Personally, I found the grindhouse qualities very appealing and appropriate, adding to the filmic look of the feature, which is deepened by tasteful grain management. This isn't a pristine version of the picture, but it's satisfactory, eased along by welcoming detail, picking out facial particulars and textured fabrics when focus allows, while distances and set decoration are easy to survey. Colors are secure throughout, best with nightlife events littered with bold costuming and stage lighting. Skintones are natural. Delineation is crisp.

The Human Tornado Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The 1.0 DTS-HD MA sound mix deals with some extensive wear and tear, which muffles dialogue exchanges to a degree, while quality is erratic throughout the feature. Intelligibility isn't completely sacrificed, but clarity can be challenging at times. Music is also restrained by age, but spirit comes through as intended. Sound effects are thick and cartoony, supporting the picture's broad tone. Hiss and pops, along with some minor damage, are detected.

The Human Tornado Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Commentary features Rudy Ray Moore biographer Mark Jason Murray and co-star Jimmy Lynch.

• Audio Interview features director Cliff Roquemore and martial arts champion Howard Jackson.

• "I, Dolemite: Part II" (17:46, HD) continues the exploration into Moore's big screen career, this time focusing on "The Human Tornado," which had the unenviable task of following "Dolemite." Interviews with Moore and Murray fill in necessary information, highlighting Roquemore's vision and professional amiability, but the real treat is time spent with co-star Ernie Hudson, who discusses his scattered time with the production, which was also spent managing a play in Minneapolis during the L.A. shoot. Hudson also points out appearances by his brother, who doubled for him when he wasn't available.

• "Der Bastard" (84:34, HD) is a German-dubbed version of "The Human Tornado."

• Still Gallery includes 24 images from publicity efforts, VHS releases, and movie theater marquees.

• Radio Spot (1:00) permits Moore to rhyme himself silly while promoting the R-rated release.

• Soundtrack delivers original tracks from the film.

• And a Theatrical Trailer (2:45, HD) is included.

The Human Tornado Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

"The Human Tornado" sets aside all interest in storytelling for the last act, content to spotlight Moore and his martial art abilities, which are ornamented with goofy grunts and spins, along the occasional moment of flight to best evade capture. The battle royal between unsavory types explodes with fury and substantial length, growing a bit tedious long before the production finds a conclusion worth sticking with (and that's debatable). "The Human Tornado" doesn't try to out maneuver "Dolemite" or play the sequel card with authority. It remains in its own orbit, encouraging Moore's attitude but not his first-film panic, allowing the effort to wind through ridiculousness and experimentation without breaking a sweat. It's still a cheap fix for blaxploitation fanatics, but it's also sequel that doesn't really care what you think of it.