Cotton Comes to Harlem

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Cotton Comes to Harlem

R

1970

1h 37m

Comedy

Drama

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5 Reviews

66%

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1,000+ Ratings

Harlem's African-American population is being ripped off by the Rev. Deke O'Malley (Calvin Lockhart), who dishonestly claims that small donations will secure parcels of land in Africa. When New York City police officers Gravedigger Jones (Godfrey Cambridge) and Coffin Ed Johnson (Raymond St. Jacques) look into O'Malley's scam, they learn that the cash is being smuggled inside a bale of cotton. But the police, O'Malley and lots of others find themselves scrambling when the money goes missing.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

Dec 27, 2025

3/4

One of the most successful of all blaxploitation flicks.

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Brian Orndorf

Blu-ray.com

Sep 27, 2014

B+

Harlem is mostly about the ride, with chases and barbed banter urging the movie along, keeping the whole endeavor light on its toes.

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Carol Cling

Las Vegas Review-Journal

Oct 31, 2003

4/5

Ken Hanke

Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Nov 5, 2002

4/5

One of the earliest and best Blaxploitation films.

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Philip Martin

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Jul 31, 2002

3/5

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thiago s

@Thiagostone Oct 12, 2025

Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom

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Scott R

@ScottR Oct 5, 2025

NYT 1000 movies list. As cheesy a Blaxspoitation film as there is. It was a struggle to get through. Saw on Pluto.

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DG M

@RT78207714 Jul 13, 2025

Across the board success great story acting music and Ms. Pace is gorgeous

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Will G

@Wgoodeve Jun 6, 2025

A great noir movie. It was mostly about African Americans in New York. There were cops and criminals. There was an interesting theater performance towards the end.

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Darrell S

@RT37459315 Mar 28, 2025

Solid cop blaxploitation movie. Godfrey Cambridge is perfectly cast as Gravedigger Jones. Redd Foxx always entertains.

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Todd V

@RT92651320 Feb 26, 2025

A Great movie,always relevant because the subject matter always goes in.

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Ossie Davis

Director

Godfrey Cambridge

Gravedigger Jones

Raymond St. Jacques

Coffin Ed Johnson

Calvin Lockhart

Rev. Deke O'Malley

Judy Pace

Iris

Redd Foxx

Uncle Bud

"Monster House" & "Nightmare Before Christmas" Make 3-D Returns

Ossie Davis: 1917-2005

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Synopsis

Harlem's African-American population is being ripped off by the Rev. Deke O'Malley (Calvin Lockhart), who dishonestly claims that small donations will secure parcels of land in Africa. When New York City police officers Gravedigger Jones (Godfrey Cambridge) and Coffin Ed Johnson (Raymond St. Jacques) look into O'Malley's scam, they learn that the cash is being smuggled inside a bale of cotton. But the police, O'Malley and lots of others find themselves scrambling when the money goes missing.

Director: Ossie Davis
Producer: Samuel Goldwyn Jr.
Screenwriter: Ossie Davis, Chester Himes, Arnold Perl
Distributor: United Artists
Production Co: Formosa Productions
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): May 27, 1970, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 16, 2008
Runtime: 1h 37m
Sound Mix: Mono

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