Issac Hayes carrying the whole weight of an action film alone? A film starring HIM??? At first I thought it's ridiculous. Well, he is a great singer, but .... Then I watched this film, and twice, and am convinced. He should do that more!! Yes, I acknowledge he cannot act like DeNiro or Pacino, and the story of his love interest is as convincing as love between Josh, Ben, and Kate in "Pearl Harbor." But given a right material like this, his towering physical presence makes up for anything single-handedly.Truck Turner is an ex-football player, and now a bounty-hunter. With his partner Jerry, nothing can stop them. Nothing. If you are disliked by him, pray it ends soon -- because his huge fists are flying to you right in the face! But one day his botched job getting a guy named Gator leads to his being THE most wanted man for the gangsters. They attack him, his office, and his room even, but now it's Turner's turn to pay back!!!Frankly, the film is too violent, and one scene made me cry "Oh, PLEASE! DON'T HANG THAT!" But Hayes is well-cast and credible as a no-nonsense bounty-hunter, and actions are good. But the most memorable is Nichelle Nichols's "madam," whose foul-mouthed acting completely shatters the good old memory of "Star Trek" fans. (Where did our Uhula go? Or, is this what she really wanted to do?) Another impressive point is director Jonathan Kaplan, who sometimes gives strong emphasis to darker nuance of his direction (maybe overdirection, some say) later seen in his Jodie Foster film "The Accused." The fate of Yaphet Kotto is captured in a very bleak way, which reminds us of Christopher Walken in a very violent noir "The King of New York."Though I don't share the enthsiastic praise of other reviewers, "Truck Turner" is a great action film, which is raised higher one notch above than average blaxploitaion films. If there should be a sub-genre like "bounty-hunter movies," this comes to the top alongside with more comical "Midnight Run."If you don't know the details of bounty-hunting and bailbonding, you may not enjoy the film fully. In that case, you might as well see Trantino's "Jackie Brown," in which another icon Pam Grier showcases her great talent as the title heroine.
