2000, 1 hr 38 min., Rated R for strong violence and language.�Dir: John Singleton. Cast: Samuel L. Jackson (John Shaft), Jeffrey Wright (Peoples Hernandez), Vanessa L. Williams (Carmen), Christian Bale (Walter Williams), Toni Collette (Diane Palmieri), Busta Rhymes (Rasaan), Dan Hedaya and Richard Roundtree.

• Who's the black private dick that's a sex machine to all the chicks? SHAFT! Damn right!

Shaft is a lot of fun, and a true crowd-pleaser, so be prepared to have a good time.

Heck, right off the bat the music is enough to get you going, which is done right from the start. What a kick it is to hear those cool sounds and with Isaac Hayes providing the vocals to bring to life the coolest cat ever to wear a badge. That classic 70s ryhthm will play in your head for days afterward.

• Who is the man that would risk his life for his bother man?

The best character, though, is a baddie named Peoples Hernandez, played by Jeffrey Wright. Hernandez rules the poorer neighborhoods in New York's boroughs through the drug trade, but has ambitions to expand to the uppity rich customers.

That's where the very evil Walter Williams (Christian Bale) comes in. First coming to Shaft's attention by killing a black man over a stupid and racist act, Walter is trying to get out of jail by using his connections and corrupt authority figures. This, of course, really pisses off Shaft.

Wright performs a delicate and incredible balancing act between being a believable character that threatens to go to over-the-top in his mannerisms vs. a strong emotional pull in dealing with the situations in the film. Wright blew me away and you won't find any better performance this summer.

Bale, on the other hand, is just a whiny brat with a killer temper. The only instance in which we're given insight into Walter's character is when pops gives Walter's stepmother his mother's jewelry. Of course, Walter only wants to pawn said jewels in order to have someone murdered; thus, the character's potential depth is flushed down the toilet.

• Who's the cat that won't cop out when there's danger all about? SHAFT! Right On!

There's plenty of violence through fists and guns, as Shaft is most definitely a bad mutha, kickin' tail of those who dare cross his path with their wicked ways.

Nothing says "What's my name!" like a big Whack! to the side of the head with a pistol. Oh, yeah, his name is John Shaft. Jackson had a lot of fun with this, and it shows.

• They say this cat Shaft is a bad mother... SHUT YOUR MOUTH! I'm only talkin' 'bout Shaft. THEN WE CAN DIG IT!

As mentioned before, the violence runs rampant, and the language fast and furious, but the only vice glazed over was the sexual prowess of our hero.

While Roundtree walks home with two hot chicks in fur coats, his nephew makes do with the bartender. We know that he beds his share of hot women, but we never really get to see any of them women. The R rating is purely off language and violence. What gives? Let's flesh out (pun intended) this hero flick.

Which gets us to...

• He's a complicated man but no one understands him like his woman.

Toni Collette merely has to look frightened the entire movie (no doubt after plenty of practice in The Sixth Sense), and Vanessa Williams speaks when spoken to and contributes to the plot only once. This is a waste of talent, but in the end this is a movie for guys who like movies. Thus, it will be a big hit on TBS in three years.

• Can you dig it?