BADass SINema Unearthed - Blu-ray 4K UHD Review

I’m not going to mince words here. Truck Turner is one seriously badass flick. It is the type of B-movie that gets me so excited for the unlimited possibilities of low budget cinema. It is sooo much better than Shaft and the countless other Blaxploitation films offered up in the wake of 1971’s Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song. Fans of the genre should bow down and kneel before the feet of Kino Lorber for putting Truck Turner back into the public sphere with this blu-ray release. It is a cinematic masterpiece straight out of the ghettofabulous gutter.

Starring Isaac Hayes and Yaphet Kotto, the 1974 film is as ruthless as it is engaging with its steely eyed gaze fixed on revenge and righteousness. Full of smartass dialogue designed to keep you on your toes and massively quotable one-liners, it is a movie as ruthless as it is funny and, for the record, its streetwise humor is as honest and as soulful as its leading man. It’s a shame that Hayes couldn’t springboard from this into a better leading man filmography.

Mack “Truck” Turner, a one-time football legend, is now a bounty hunter roaming from one bounty to the next with his partner Jerry (Alan Weeks) in tow. They work for Nate (Sam Laws), a bail bondsman who keeps them well-fed with plenty of bounties throughout Los Angeles, but sometimes they have to go where their collective skills take them. After being hired for $1000 each by another bail bondsman (Dick Miller), the two men go after a pimp named Gator (Paul Harris) and tangle with his brutally poisonous girlfriend/madam, Dorinda (Nichelle Nichols) and her den of prostitutes.

When the job doesn’t go cleanly, the two men suddenly have contracts out against them that all sorts of dangerous men are hell-bent to collect on, including Harvard Blue (Yaphet Kotto). Truck might be having the time of his life but his partner, who winds up in a hospital, and his thieving girlfriend (Annazette Chase) are not. Truck has to turn up the violence and his street smarts if he’s going to survive this one.

Directed by Jonathan Kaplan (White Line Fever, The Accused), Truck Turner displays the late Hayes’ talent for larger than life theatrics. He’s charming, hilarious, and ruthless in a role he seems born to play and a film he was definitely born to compose. Riding the popularity of his score for Shaft, it seemed only fitting that he get his own Blaxploitation flick to headline. America was ready, too, because both the film and the score earned high marks. And it’s little wonder, too. The cast – also featuring Scatman Crothers – is remarkable.

It is a film that was rewritten when its original all-white cast dropped out. As a result, it has never actually stood on its own. Which is a shame. Released to accompany Foxy Brown in theaters, Truck Turner cranks up the charm and blistering violence as bullets, bodies, and well-placed kicks fly out from the screen. There is one extended car chase that ends on foot and looks as if it was a hell of a lot of fun (and work) to orchestrate and an extremely memorable death scene, notable for its composition, and a whole lot of humorous domesticated stuff as Truck desperately struggles to care for his girlfriend’s free-peeing feline.

Simply put, Truck Turner is the Blaxploitation film that SHOULD be the standard ALL films from the genre are held to. Its action is solid. The humor is effortless. And, well hell, Lt. Uhura from Star Trek turns out an unhinged performance as she swears and slaps like a sailor throughout it. All kidding aside, the film is a slice of cinematic joy that just doesn’t give up. From the humble beginning to the ending ride out of LA, it’s a solid piece of raw and honest American filmmaking. It is probably the finest film American International ever released.

There is no trick to Truck Turner. THIS is badass cinema.  And, thankfully, Shout Factory has included it in Volume One of their ongoing Blaxploitation Classics release.

4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray Edition

Home Video Distributor: Shout Factory
Available on Blu-ray - May 20, 2025
Screen Formats: 1.85:1
Subtitles: English; English SDH
Video: HDR - Dolby Vision, HDR10
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 Mono
Discs: 4K Ultra HD;  Blu-ray Disc; Twelve-disc set
Region Encoding: 4K region-free; blu-ray locked to Region A

He's a skip tracer, the last of the bounty hunters, living on blood money and borrowed time. Isaac Hayes (Escape From New York, South Park) is Truck Turner – a football star turned bounty hunter who's tracking a sadistic pimp on the mean streets of Los Angeles. But when a tragic accident changes all the rules, suddenly the hunter finds himself being hunted by the city's deadliest hired killers! Truck strikes back in a series of wild car chases, shootouts, and bone-crushing fistfights, knowing that the battles can lead to only one place: an intense struggle to the death against the brutal leader of L.A.'s crime syndicate, Harvard Blue (Yaphet Kotto, Live And Let Die).

Featuring an outstanding score by Hayes, riveting performances by Nichelle Nichols (Star Trek) and Scatman Crothers (The Shining), and direction by Jonathan Kaplan (Over The Edge, Unlawful Entry), Truck Turner is an explosive force that can't be stopped!

VIDEO

Presented in 1.85:1, Shout Factory gives audiences a great look at Truck Turner.  It is, in fact, much better than any previous release of this cult classic.  The detail and clarity of the picture is impressive and the color grading, which really makes the deep reds pop off the screen, does well in really showing off the atmospheric grime of a version of a city which no longer exists.  Black and brown levels are solid throughout.

AUDIO

Blasting away at the walls, the 2.0 Mono (Dual Mono) gives us a strong sense of the power of grindhouse cult classics.  It won’t win any awards, mind you, but the front-loaded power on display is far from weak.

Supplements:

From the drive-in to 4K and Blu-ray, the heavy-duty action of the '70s subgenre known as 'Blaxploitation' has thrilled and captivated audiences for decades. Shout Select is proud to present an explosive six-film collection of some of the coolest movies to ever hit the streets. Featuring genre legends Pam Grier, Fred Williamson, Isaac Hayes, and Yaphet Kotto, these tough-as-nails and unbelievably hip classics of the subgenre — presented here on both Blu-ray and 4K Ultra High Definition — are a tremendous entry point into the world of Blaxploitation for newcomers as well as must-haves for discerning fans of genre cinema.

Commentary:

• See Special Features for the details.

Special Features:

From the drive-in to 4K and Blu-ray, the heavy-duty action of the '70s subgenre known as 'Blaxploitation' has thrilled and captivated audiences for decades. Shout Select is proud to present an explosive six-film collection of some of the coolest movies to ever hit the streets. Featuring genre legends Pam Grier, Fred Williamson, Isaac Hayes, and Yaphet Kotto, these tough-as-nails and unbelievably hip classics of the subgenre — presented here on both Blu-ray and 4K Ultra High Definition — are a tremendous entry point into the world of Blaxploitation for newcomers as well as must-haves for discerning fans of genre cinema.

DISC ELEVEN: TRUCK TURNER (1974 - 4K UHD):

• NEW 4K Scan/Restoration From The Original Camera Negative
• Presented In Dolby Vision (HDR-10 Compatible)
• Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio Mono
• Audio Commentary With Director Jonathan Kaplan

DISC TWELVE: TRUCK TURNER (1974 - BLU-RAY):

• NEW 4K Scan/Restoration From The Original Camera Negative
• Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio Mono
• Audio Commentary With Director Jonathan Kaplan
• Trailer

	Movie
	Video
	Audio
	Extras
Composite 4K UHD Grade

Truck Turner

MPAA Rating: R.
Runtime: 91 mins
Director: Jonathan Kaplan
Writer: Oscar Williams
Cast: Isaac Hayes; Yaphet Kotto; Alan Weeks
Genre: Action | Crime
Tagline: Skip tracer - but not the fuzz; he's tougher.
Memorable Movie Quote: "Anybody ask you what happened, tell 'em you been hit by a truck: Mac 'Truck' Turner!"
Theatrical Distributor: American International Pictures
Official Site: https://shoutfactory.com/products/blaxploitation-classics-vol-1
Release Date: June 26, 1974
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: May 20, 2025.
Synopsis: While tracking a strong-armed pimp who has skipped bail, a bounty hunter discovers a contract has been put out on him and must go on the run.