John Shaft, private eye, aspires to be a steely black version of Sam Spade but more closely achieves an ironic, dimpled James Bond. Shaft's Big Score … clearly is no "Maltese Falcon" or even a "Goldfinger."… [However, the film is] a rousing and entertaining thriller, better than the original and far superior to all those imitations that Shaft's success has spawned….

The film is directed with style and vigorous pace by Gordon Parks, who celebrates an apparent affection for Hitchcock by appearing in the film (as a croupier in a casino called Mother Clyde's) and by imitating the airplane chase sequence in "North by Northwest" (Parks uses a helicopter). An excellent still photographer, Parks sometimes indulges his fondness for the camera—one lyrically filmed seduction scene would seem more appropriate as a mouthwash ad.

Arthur Cooper, "Black Eye," in Newsweek (copyright 1972 by Newsweek, Inc.; all rights reserved; reprinted by...