Dazzling, highly stylized, excessively violent and brimming with sex, blaxploitation films enjoyed a brief but memorable period in motion picture history. Never before - and never since - have so many African American performers been featured in films, not in bit parts, but in name-above-the-title starring roles. These pictures continue to captivate film fans, and Blaxploitation Cinema: The Essential Reference Guide is the first truly comprehensive examination of the genre, its films, its trends and its far-reaching impact, covering every blaxploitation film in detail.