Detroit 9000

Detroit 9000 (1973)

It's the murder capital of the world. And the biggest Black rip-off of the decade.

After a fundraiser for a Black politician is robbed, Detroit police put two detectives, one white and one Black, on the case, who try to work together under boiling political pressure.

Date of release
1973-08-01
TMDB
5.5 / 10 (29)
Runtime
1h 46m
Genres
Action, Crime
Director
Arthur Marks

Casting

Interesting facts

Detroit 9000 is a 1973 American action film directed by Arthur Marks from a screenplay by Orville H. Hampton. Originally marketed as a blaxploitation film, it had a resurgence on video 25 years later.

Filming

Actor Alex Rocco was cast as a result of director Arthur Marks' positive experience working with him on their 1972 film Bonnie's Kids.

Unlike many films set in Detroit (such as RoboCop and Bird on a Wire), Detroit 9000 was mostly shot on location in downtown Detroit and close-in neighborhoods. A number of now demolished landmark buildings can be seen including the J.L. Hudson Company, and Fort Street Union Depot. Fort Street Station was already closed when filming was taking place and the approach tracks to the station were used for a chase scene.

The final shootout takes place in historic Elmwood Cemetery. Sacred Heart Seminary stands in for the "Longview Sanitarium", where Bassett goes to visit his institutionalized wife. The hospital is Detroit Memorial Hospital on St. Antoine St.

A number of local Detroit celebrities appeared in the film, such as disc jockey Dick Purtan, who plays the police detective who converses with Alex Rocco's character just prior to his boarding a police helicopter. Then-Detroit Police Chief John Nichols played himself in the TV station scene, and Detroit radio personality Martha Jean "The Queen" Steinberg played the host. The Soul Train dancer Pat Davis also made a cameo in the film.

The title is a reference to the Detroit Police radio code "9000", which means "officer down".

Read on Wikipedia · Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Data from Wikidata.

Recommended