Just because she's beautiful and buxomed doesn't mean that she doesn't have a heart, and in fact, having heart is what this is all about. Coffy (Pam Grier) is a nurse, truly upset that her sister has become a victim of local drug pushers and sets out to take down everybody in the organization. Yes, this is exploitation, the epitome of what made blaxploitation in the 1970's great. In fact, if you mention blaxploitation to any film student, chances are that this will be one of five films that they mention. You know that she is one tough cookie the minute she pulls out her sawed off shotgun and literally blows the head off of a pusher, then frames one of his henchmen for the killing in a most unique way. She then manipulates her way into an organized prostitution ring so she can get to the big boss. One thing you can say for Coffy, she is determined.

I was familiar with the famous party fight scene where she arranges for one of the other working girls to pull on her hair with not so surprising results. What I didn't realize was actually how full of integrity that Grier's character is, risking her life not only to settle the score but to get evil dealers off the street and destroy the big main man.

Unlike Cleopatra Jones (Tamara Dobson the same year),Coffy isn't dealing with a clown like Shelley Winters. The men are cutthroat and prepare to deal with any barricade to their business. They are not buffoons like Shelley's boys. So that removes the camp element but there are definitely moments that are very funny. Coffy is also a character much respected in her real profession so that makes her more identifiable. Her character is desired by white men who genuinely love her as well as black men.

Why then is this considered blaxploitation? Simply because that genre advanced black characters in cinema and gave black actors the opportunity to be the heroes while exposing the powerful white men in charge of these mob like organizations. Black and white characters with the same goals and ethics are not segregated in these films either so that gives them a much more realistic view of society which showed a more well-rounded side of these friendships. It's just that characters like Coffy, Cleopatra Jones, Shaft and others get to show that they are just as formidable, ethical and loyal, and when they go up against the bad guy, it doesn't matter what color they are. You may go into this looking forward to see Grier bare her breasts, but you will come out of this seeing her as a real woman who is commanding and thus worthy of knowing and deserving of respect.

Coffy is a classic low budget blaxploitation revenge flick. You can tell how Quentin Tarantino would be mesmerised by such as a Grindhouse type picture and the audience will be mesmerised by Pam Grier who certainly lays out her assets bare.

Grier plays Coffy, a regular nurse with a boyfriend who is climbing the greasy political ladder. However her younger sister fell prey to drug addiction and she is out to get revenge but wants the kingpin not the minnows.

The film has all the beats of revenge pictures. Coffy is doing well at first gaining vengeance but the tables soon turn as she is becomes a damsel in distress and then finds herself betrayed.

Grier is sensational in her role. Sexy, tough and also vulnerable. Robert DoQui has a whale of a time as the super-pimp King George and Sidney Haig is sleazy henchman with the hots for Coffy.

The film might now look dated yet its oddly progressive. Apart from an aspiring black politician, there is black cop, an old mate of Coffy who refuses to go on the take and puts his life at risk.

There are better known revenge films from that era such as Death Wish. This is still a classic of its kind.

This is a film that can definitely be considered a guilty pleasure! On one hand, the film is very poorly made--with some terribly over the top performances and lots of gratuitous nudity and violence. On the other, it's so gosh-darn entertaining that you can't stop watching!!

Pam Grier is the title character. She is on a private mission to kill those she feels are responsible for hooking her much younger sister on heroin. The first ten minutes of the film are probably the best--with an amazingly silly but highly entertaining pair of killings. Seeing the shotgun scene is something you WON'T soon forget! Also, seeing the "cat fight" scene is a real hoot--particularly Coffy's creative use of razor blades!

However, just killing low level pushers isn't all that satisfying to Coffy, as she's determined to work her way up to "Mr. Big". So much of the film consists of her doing undercover work so she can find and kill this man. Now here's the funny part--to infiltrate the mob, Pam Grier pretends to be Jamaican yet her accent is atrocious when she actually remembers to use it! Much of the time, she totally forgets and the director doesn't even seem to notice this omission--nor do the bad guys! The leader of the mob is a real piece of work. This White guy falls for Coffy but also takes great pleasure in demeaning her and treating her like garbage because she's Black--a great metaphor for the Black American experience that must have made quite an emotional impact on audiences of the time. However, before she can kill this creep, she is captured and it looks like Coffy is going to die. See the rest of the film to see the twists and turns and violent (yet satisfying) ending. After all, once she is captured, the film shifts into high gear and it doesn't let up until the frenzy of blood-letting is complete.

On a totally non-intellectual level, this movie is practically non-stop action and seeing the slimy devils die is very satisfying on a very basic level--seeing bad guys die and lots of naked women will appeal to the Bevis and Buttheads in the audience! However, at the same time, there are bad acting, silly plot devices and a general trashiness of the film (with the rough language, copious amounts of very gratuitous nudity and silly dialog). This is a film you can enjoy but it still is essentially a stupid movie with practically no redeeming value.

By the way, Pam Grier made three very, very similar movies in successive years--COFFY(1973),FOXY BROWN (1974) and SHEBA BABY (1975). COFFY is the best and the movies steadily declined in quality and excitement.