Mario Van Peebles’ new film, Baadasssss!, (Sorry, but that’s the title!) is an account of what his father went through in making the first blaxploitation flick in 1971, Sweet Sweetback’s Baad Asssss Song. Melvin Van Peebles fought the studio system, financing the flick via a loan from Bill Cosby and filing for work-related injuries due to contracting gonorrhea from one of the actresses. Peebles efforts cleared the way for dozens of big afro, corrupt cop, slinky women and pimpmobile movies such as Shaft, Chocolate Jones and the Temple of Funk and Chunk, Private Investigator.