They Cloned Tyrone

This eccentric, stylised, satirical, sci-fi-conspiracy comedy/thriller homage to the Blaxploitation films of the 1970s will certainly not be for everyone – but I guarantee you’ve not seen anything else quite like it.

Premise:  In an unnamed city in present day America, drug dealer Fontaine (John Boyega), sex worker Yo-Yo (Teyonah Parris) and her pimp Slick Charles (Jamie Foxx) stumble onto a conspiracy when Slick Charles witnesses a murder … but the victim doesn’t stay dead.

Review:

This is a film that’s so not a mainstream movie, I’m really glad that it actually got made.  First-time director Juel Taylor brings an eccentric flair to this film (which he also co-wrote), and it starts off looking like one kind of movie, before morphing into something else entirely.  In that respect, it called to mind From Dusk Till Dawn (a film that I adore), because both films start out as relatively grounded (if stylised) crime thrillers, but end up fully embracing more far-fetched genres.

I almost don’t want to say too much about where They Cloned Tyrone goes after it’s opening act, as I knew very little about the plot before I saw it, and so some relatively early developments really took me completely by surprise.  What I will say is that although the film starts off looking like a simple tale of ghetto life, following the day-to-day lives of a young drug dealer and an aging pimp, it soon becomes something much more ‘out there’, like a cross between The X-Files and Black Mirror, shot through with a hefty dose of Shaft.

“…the story is told through the prism of the Blaxploitation genre, with a strong vein of dark humour…”

The whole film, from its relatively grounded opening section to the unexpected final act, is shot in the stylised tone of a 1970s Blaxploitation film – so we have everything from the raw, grainy quality of the film stock, to the heightened language and attitudes of the characters.  It’s a film where no one looks twice at a pimp called “Slick Charles” who dresses in outfits that even Huggy Bear would think twice about.  But that’s half of the charm of They Cloned Tyrone – the idiosyncratic way in which the story is told through the prism of the Blaxploitation genre, and run through with a strong vein of dark humour, is what makes it such an enjoyable ride.

That’s not to say that it’s an out-and-out comedy (although it is funny throughout) – some scenes have real weight and emotional impact, and the film as a whole has some important things to say about American social politics, albeit that it makes those points in a satirical, entertaining and allegorical way.

“…deftly plays with multiple genres & tones…”

The main three leads are all fantastic, clearly having fun playing in this heightened reality.  John Boyega plays small time drug dealer Fontaine, and his performance here reminds me of his breakthrough role in Attack the Block, as he brings a level of menace to Fontaine when it’s needed, but he also brings out the character’s humanity in spades.  Jamie Foxx, meanwhile, seems to be having a blast playing down-on-his-luck pimp Slick Charles, in what’s arguably his most fun role since Bats in Baby Driver.  But then Teyonah Parris comes close to stealing the movie as sex worker Yo-Yo, a character whose energy brings every scene she’s in to life.

The fact that Juel Taylor’s directorial debut so deftly plays with multiple genres and tones is an incredible achievement, and marks him out as a talent to look out for in future.  They Cloned Tyrone is a film that’s no doubt destined to become a cult classic in time, ironically taking its place alongside the great Blaxploitation films that it’s paying homage to.