Product Description

You've been Coffy-tized, Blacula-rized and Superflied. Now prepare to be glorified, unified and filled-with-pride with this "breakthrough film" (Variety) that delivers "enough solid laughs forany audience" (Boxoffice)! With "a combination of seriousness and warmth that is rare in anyfilm" (Players) and a sense of family that anyone can relate to, "Five on the Black Hand Side" is "a wisely entertaining film" (New York)! In the Brooks family, Papa may rule with an iron fist but Mama's about to slap him down with her open hand! Tired of being told what to do and when to do it, she goes to war! Swapping her old housedress for army green duds and combing her tidily coiffed head into a ceiling-scraping 'fro, she takes to the roof on strike until her browbeating, penny-pinching, gas-passing husband agrees to meet her bill of rights!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #63611 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-10-16
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Letterboxed, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Spanish, French
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 96 minutes

Customer Reviews

A Soul Cinema Classic
The summary of the movie on the back of the video cover says it all--glorified, unified, and filled-with-pride. "Five on the Black Hand Side" portrays an African-American family going through changes during the 1970s. The older brother Booker T. Washington Brooks is a socialist who talks the talk, but doesn't walk the walk. His younger brother Gideon, is a black revolutionary who defies the father and everyone around him. Their sister is getting married and the mother, Mrs. Brooks has had it with her husband. She doesn't really want out of her marriage but she wants some change in their marriage, which not only means her, but her husband. Mrs. Brooks goes to war with help from her neigbors and children. Mr. Brooks wants the best for his children but he is too controlling of how they should live their lives which creates a friction between Gideon and him. He is also resistant to change.
This movie during its period dealt with the issues of gender within the African-American community as well as racism and socialism. I wonder if "Barbershop" got their idea from this movie!

A True Film Classic
This is a true film classic. Comedy or not. It was written by Charlie Russell, who also was a counselor in the S.E.E.K. college program at City College in New York. His brother is the Basketball star Bill Russell. All this to say that, Charlie may have surprised many people who did not know he was a writer and who eventually made such a classic true comedy. It is based on the trials and liberation of 'Mrs Brooks' from 'Mr Brooks'. All of this is done without exploiting the lifestyle of Black folks. You just must see this film to see what a true comedy is like, Black or White...it is a true "Classic".

An AfroAmerican Classic !!!!....A Must See For All Races!
I can remember seeing "Five On The Black Hand Side" as a teenager in Los Angeles California at the Baldwin Hills Movie Theater in 1973. This movie gave me a sense of being very proud of my blackness, It gave me hope in being who I am...To walk with dignity and hold my head and not be ashamed of who I am. Every human being on this planet earth regardless of race, color or creed should be proud of their heritage and most of all, be very proud of THEMSELVES and to go for your positive dreams..This movie represents just that.I strongly suggest this movie to be purchased from AMAZON and add it to your movie collection.