Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
JJ, aka John Shaft Jr., may be a cyber security expert with a degree from MIT, but to uncover the truth behind his best friend’s untimely death, he needs an education only his dad can provide. Absent throughout JJ’s youth, the legendary locked-and-loaded John Shaft agrees to help his progeny navigate Harlem’s heroin-infested underbelly.
Shaft (2019) leans heavily into a generational clash comedy dynamic between the MIT-educated son and the old-school, street-wise father, which provides some entertaining moments but ultimately feels like a formulaic buddy-cop/legacy sequel. The plot is predictable — drug lords, corrupt figures, and a mystery that resolves without many surprises. The acting is serviceable with Samuel L. Jackson clearly having fun reprising his role, giving the film its main energy. Cinematography is generic action-movie fare with nothing visually distinctive. Novelty is low — it's a reboot/sequel that recycles familiar Shaft iconography and the fish-out-of-water comedy setup without adding much new to either the franchise or the genre. The ending wraps up neatly but without particular impact or memorability.