Cleopatra Jones

Tamara Dobson stars as Cleopatra Jones, a female version of James Bond and drug agent for the United States government. She wears sleek clothes, drives a fast car with a submachine gun compartment in the front door and travels all over the world to stamp out drugs at their source, including Turkey to oversee the destruction of poppy fields owned by drug dealer Mommy (a very camp Shelley Winters) who becomes upset at their loss. Our first ‘blaxploitation’ film, Cleopatra Jones was made following the success of the Shaft series. It opened at a time when the Black Arts Movement and an increasingly growing black feminism were all prevalent. From this social context emerged the desire for a black heroine who appealed to women through a combination of alluring femininity, female strength and combat skill. The character of Cleopatra would later serve as the inspiration for Foxy Cleopatra, played by Beyoncé in Austin Powers: Gold Member.