Product Description

Sultry Robin Givens (HEAD OF STATE) heats up the screen with Forest Whitaker (PHONE BOOTH), Gregory Hines (ONCE IN THE LIFE), and Danny Glover (THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS) in this cool, sexy thriller about a gangster's girlfriend and the trouble she stirs for the fellas in her life! When Imabelle (Givens) hits Harlem with a trunkload of stolen gold, she's on the run and looking for a place to hide. So when shy and naive Jackson (Whitaker) appears, Imabelle thinks she's met the perfect patsy ... but she forgets to protect her heart! As the chase again takes off and the intrigue mounts, you'll find that unexpected twists are all the rage in this stylish thriller!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #28037 in DVD
• Brand: Disney
• Released on: 2003-09-02
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 108 minutes

Customer Reviews

Fun Entertainment, not for Kids
This is a nice period film in the "Cotton comes to Harlem" style. It's a kind of 50's gangster action comedy, with a southern twist. The film has high quality production values, and Danny Glover, Robin Givens, Forrest Whitaker, and Gregory Hines all turn in great performances. As an added bonus,when you see Robin Givens in that Red Dress (They had to sew it on her for the movie), you'll finally understand Mike Tysons' infatuation with her. So for some good entertainment rent this film. P.S. Watch out for the line "Pop goes the Weasel."

Robin Givins is a star!
I was in college when this came out and Robin's character taught me everything I needed about being sultry.

She is a bad ass bitch in the movie, in the vein of a Pam Grier character. The setting is Harlem, where only the feisty, the sly, and those with panache survive. Robin's portrayal of Immabel as slow-slurring, smooth as butter, carefree but calculating seductress is deftly-done.

She carries the movie well and it's hard to take your eyes off her. This is crucial, because if Immabel wasn't captivating the movie would fall flat. All the drama hinges on the girl and the gold.

There is some annoying, raunchy comedy from some satellite undertakers in the movie. But that's to entertain the droll.

Mostly, this movie is a bodacious gangster caper made lovable by the Harlem bravado and attitude turned in by actors Givens, Badja Djola, Danny Glover, Gregory Hines, et al.

Badja, as Robin's boyfriend, plays a tough as nails, no-mercy crime boss and is purely riveting in his hard-core masculine portrayal. He will make you quake.

Glover gives his best performance ever because we rarely get to see him play a bad ass and he was goood at it! The tension between him and Badja .. and Givens was palpable.

Whitaker was OK too.

The directing by Bill Duke is outstanding. The style and atmosphere he creates in the movie is perfect. He is responsible for making sure Robin comes off as the siren she is because the camera angles shoot her as a goddess.

Lastly, I'm a huge Robin Givens fan. She was on her way to becoming a topshelf star when Rage in Harlem came out and then was trailed by Boomerang a year later. (She gives another kick ass performance in that).

Why Halle blew up and Robin didn't is perplexing. In everything I've seen Robin in, including Brewster's Place, she's been outstanding. What a beautiful, intelligent, confident chocolate specimen! She was blackballed for no good reason and we definitely need to see her more.

Outrageously funny
A Rage In Harlem is probably one of the most slept-on comedy/action features of all time. It had an all-star cast and didnt waste them and under the direction of Bill Duke, it succeeded in what it needed to be.

The story: Imabelle is a pretty female crook that leaves for Harlem after taking the money with her. She meets up with a naive milksop named Jackson(Forest Whitaker)and uses his naivete' to her advantage. She later ends up falling for him but things get worse when her gang shows up to his apartment.

A Rage In Harlem is interesting when its funny and is interesting when its not being funny. Its funny without trying too hard and it captures the 1930s era of Harlem. Plus it has nightclubs where people actually perform(hell, Harlem Nights didnt even have that). Forest Whitaker is good as the naive Jackson and Gregory Hines(RIP) is also good as his cousin Goldy. Robin Givens is great as the gorgeous but deceptive Imabelle. They have a little chemistry with each other even though I could do without the scene where Jackson licks her buns(YUCK!). Too raunchy for my taste. At any rate, A Rage In Harlem is one hell of ride from start to finish and is definitely worth being in your collection. Two thumbs up.

Also recommended movies by director Bill Duke: Hoodlum, Sister Act 2 and Deep Cover.