Renny Roker Movies

In this involved send-up of two American icons -- the automobile and the tourist trap -- the tiny Florida town of Ticlaw strives desperately for success after it has been denied the most essential of all tourist amenities -- a freeway exit. The insane, and mostly successful, schemes of the mayor (William Devane) and other distinctly unbalanced citizens interrupt, often hilariously, the lives of various eccentric travellers forced into a place they never intended to be. Critics disagree violently on whether this is a neglected classic or sophomoric nonsense. The winning record of director (John Schlesinger) (Midnight Cowboy, Marathon Man, Cold Comfort Farm, etc.,) and first-class performances by William Devane, Beau Bridges, Beverly D'Angelo, Hume Cronyn, JessicaTandy and a plethora of great character actors -- not to mention the water-skiing elephant and the wild rhino -- argue that it's worth a look. ~ Michael P. Rogers, All Movie Guide

Joey originated as a 30-minute episode of the TV religious anthology Insight. The title character (Danny Martin) is on the verge of juvenile delinquency. His life is turned around when, in suitably dramatic fashion, he becomes acquainted with God. In a non-sugary, logical fashion, Joey tries to undo bad deeds of past. Joey adroitly utilizes the talents of Juanita Moore and Roxie Roker, two of America's most gifted black actresses. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

With Lamont (Demond Wilson) away on a fishing trip, Fred (Redd Foxx) seizes the opportunity to grab a quick buck by renting out Lamont's room. His new tenant is a lonely -- and very pregnant -- young woman. This being a 1970s sitcom, it must needs be that the woman will go into labor, with only Fred in the vicinity to help with the emergency delivery. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Johnny Tough is a "blaxploitation" film tempered by a social consciousness. Dion Gossett plays a young urban African-American. Gossett continually rebels against the white establishment, as represented by his teacher. The boy finds he can expect no back-up of his attitude at home, where his parents wallow in self-indulgence, so he feels that a show of force is his only option. Renny Roker and Sandy Reed also appear in this film. Not quite as violent as most films in its genre, Johnny Tough was consigned to the Late Late Show circuit as soon as it finished its initial theatrical run. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

In this blaxploitation flick, a supercool deejay, stuck on himself, decides to get revenge after his girl friend is slaughtered in his apartment. He enlists the help of a friend to investigate the death. He then finds a tape that shows that implicates a mobster in the murder of a union leader. His girl died because she had the tape. Violence and martial arts action ensues. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide

When Jimmy Price (Jim Brown) wins an upset victory for sheriff, he becomes the first black man ever to hold the job (or any elective office) in anyone's memory in his rural southern county. He also sets off an ominous rumblings as the entire county seems split apart by his presence -- Mayor Parks (Fredric March) offers him the support of his office, but many whites aren't prepared to accept a black man as sheriff, while most of the whites that can accept him aren't saying so too loudly; a lot of older black residents, remembering decades of Jim Crow laws that only lately disappeared, are more confused than encouraged by Price's victory, while younger, more radical black citizens like George Harvey (Bernie Casey) have little use for Price's straight-arrow personality; they expect him to show them favoritism, and when he doesn't, they suspect him of being an nothing but a white man in black skin. Even Price's own wife (Janet MacLachlan) wonders if the cost of his being sheriff is too high. He finds himself alone, walking a tightrope between all of the forces pulling at him, and then the whole situation threatens to explode when he arrests the good-for-nothing son (Bob Random) of a wealthy man from the next county, who has killed a child while driving drunk. Soon the local klavern of the Ku Klux Klan is planning a meeting, and a lynch mob seems to be gathering across the county line to break the prisoner loose and take care of the sheriff. Price finally gets some unexpected help from his embittered predecessor, John Little (George Kennedy) -- Little would like nothing more than to sulk over losing his longtime job, but with his wife's coaxing he realizes that he can't let Price fail without the risk of destroying everything he worked for years to build. ~ Bruce Eder, All Movie Guide