Jimmy Bones(Snoop Dogg) was one bad-ass mother fucker in the ’70s; a true gangster’s gangster that ultimately was betrayed by a friend and met his demise in a deal gone south.
Flash forward to the ‘mazing future year 2001, and Bones’ ol’ crib is purchased by a group of young entrepreneurs who hope to turn it into a nightclub. This causes the spirit of Bones to rise, and he immediately sets his sights on getting powerful enough to enact his supernatural revenge plot on those that did his ass oh-so wrong back in the disco days… and woe be to any mother fucker that gets in his way!
I’m not here to mince words with you cats n’ creeps, so let me just say that Bones is a huge amount of frightful fun! It’s deft blend of blaxploitation and horror movie tropes is an entertaining winner, and while some of the effects are quite shit (I’m looking at you cheap-ass early millennium CG), director Ernest R. Dickerson (Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight) along with writers Adam Simon, Tim Metcalfe deliver plenty of laughs, lacerations, and everything in-between as we follow our haunting “hero” on his journey of revoltin’ revenge.
Now, Snoop Dogg naturally goes all-in in his role as the titular ghoulish gangster as one would expect, but the film also includes some other rock-solid performers as well with the stand outs for me being scream queen Katharine Isabelle (Ginger Snaps, Freddy vs. Jason), and exploitation legend Pam Grier (as Bones’ old flame).
As for special features on this Blu-ray release from Scream Factory, the selection is robust to be sure! For starters we get a host of brand new interviews featuring conversations with Dickerson, Simon, director photography Flavio Labiano, and special make-up effects artist Tony Gardner.
Also are included are materials from previous releases of the film including a great audio commentary featuring Dickerson, Simon, and Snoop Dogg himself, as well as a duo of featurettes, deleted scenes (with optional commentary from Dickerson), a music video, the film’s electronic press kit, and trailers.
If you love blaxploitation and horror, and dig on seeing them mashed-up, then Bones will provide you with a healthy dose of the horror biz that will surely satisfy (especially if you love preternatural pictures such as Blacula or Petey Wheatstraw the Devil’s Son-in-Law).
