Blaxploitation Meets Horror in RZA’s One Spoon of Chocolate

At the Tribeca premiere of One Spoon of Chocolate, the atmosphere was filled with positivity and fun. It felt more like a block party than a traditional red carpet event. The energy was pure New York, laced with hip-hop, Black culture, and the love of cinema. After all, it was the premiere of a film directed by RZA, one of hip-hop’s most impactful and enduring cultural architects.

The film is a blend of Blaxploitation, horror, and real-world commentary, and it feels both necessary and timely. It’s Blaxploitation meets horror meets Kill Bill. That’s the simplest way to describe it. But One Spoon of Chocolate goes deeper than a homage, it draws from historical trauma and contemporary fears to create a film that feels rooted in the past yet urgently present.

The story follows Unique (Shameik Moore), an army veteran falsely accused of assault and sent to prison. After serving time, he ends up in a shelter for veterans in New York before returning to his hometown in Ohio. There, he reconnects with his only surviving relative, Ramsey (RJ Cyler), and tries to rebuild his life. But something’s off—young Black men are going missing, and the local sheriff and his crew seem to be hiding something sinister. What begins as a slow-burn mystery explodes into bloody retribution, complete with brains, brawn, and modified weapons. Hell hath no fury like a veteran scorned—and trained in combat.

The film’s pacing starts off a little slow, but it’s still engaging, especially with the opening scene, which feels straight out of a horror movie. Shot in a black-and-white palette, the only pop of color is the red letterman jacket worn by the first victim, played by Isiah Hill. It’s a great visual choice—and it comes back later in the film. Hill does an excellent job conveying fear and confusion as he’s ambushed and brutally beaten by a gang of masked attackers. It sets the tone and hints at the violence—and the message—to come.

By the third act, the pacing intensifies as the stakes rise, the action escalates, and the gore becomes more graphic. If you’ve got a weak stomach, bring some Tums—or maybe cover your eyes. Then again, the sound design doesn’t let you escape; it’s crafted so you feel every slash, every cracked bone. There’s even a moment when we see what the goons are made of—literally—at the hands of Unique.

What makes this horror story hit harder is that the fear it taps into isn’t fantasy—it’s rooted in real-world injustice. The film’s focus on missing Black men and the implications of organ trafficking nods to both urban legends and unresolved real-life cases, like that of Kendrick Johnson. Johnson, a 17-year-old found dead in a rolled-up gym mat in 2013, had his internal organs removed and replaced with newspaper by the time of a second autopsy. Though the funeral home claimed responsibility, suspicions of organ trafficking still haunt the case. It sounds like a horror movie, but this was real life.

These fears aren’t new. In Black communities, stories of people being abducted for their organs have long circulated. From rumors of waking up in a bathtub without kidneys to media underreporting of missing Black people, the fears are often dismissed, but they’re grounded in a painful truth. Disparities in healthcare, media coverage, and medical ethics—from Henrietta Lacks to the Tuskegee study—all fuel this collective unease. One Spoon of Chocolate doesn’t shy away from it. It stares it down.

RZA, who co-wrote and directed the film, sees it as a natural evolution of his artistry. When asked how this film fits into his creative arc, he said:

“Well, you know, of course I couldn’t predict this, but I think, and uh, once I did Ghost Dog with Jim Jarmusch… I just realized that film was what I was always trying to do. Listen to my early albums. It’s like I was trying to make movies while I’m making recorded movies… and now it is like I’ve fully developed. Fully evolved.”

For RZA, filmmaking is a tool of transformation:

“A film should entertain you, it should provoke thoughts inside you, and it should inspire you. And those are the three things that, at minimum, I’m going to do.”

When asked what Wu-Tang track matches the film’s energy? He didn’t hesitate:

“Bring the motherfucking ruckus!”

Moore, who plays Unique, delivers a solid performance that is grounded in both strength and, of course, violence. He spoke passionately about portraying a different kind of Black male identity:

“Representing Black men in another light, in a different angle. Just slightly… And then Unique, this one is like, he’s just protecting. Somebody’s got to stand up for what’s right. I read this script and I hit O and I was like, ‘Yo, you direct this the right way, I perform this the right way… what are we telling the brothers?’ Because… somebody gotta stand up for us.”

On the film’s weaponry, particularly the sword, Moore offered this:

“The mind weapons are just extensions of who you are… Whether I got something on me or not… It’s your mind. And Unique is a thinker, you know what I’m saying?”

RJ Cyler brings both charisma and humor to his portrayal of Ramsey, grounding the role in a profoundly personal and empathetic process.

“All of us talk to ourselves… I just give ’em a life, you know? Or I got friends that I’m really close to… I try to give the people in my life who are memorable a space to live outside their own body.”

On Ramsey’s role in the film:

“First of all, the thing of sticking up for your family… he really gives Ramsey a backbone. I got you. And so I’m the same way. Like, hey, you can do this.”

As for his dream role?

“I really want Static Shock. Alright, so look, James Gunn, I’m talking directly to you.”

One Spoon of Chocolate doesn’t sugarcoat the truth—it weaponizes it. It confronts generational trauma, systemic violence, and the terrifying ways Black lives are policed, erased, and devalued. But it also uplifts resilience, brotherhood, and the enduring power of the Black imagination.

This film has all the makings of a horror-action flick that echoes RZA’s signature style, gritty, political, and unafraid to spill blood. It channels the same energy found in his earlier work, like The Man With the Iron Fists. It’s violent, it’s pointed, and it has a bloody good time dishing out pain, justice, and even some dark humor in this one-man-army massacre. And yes—a lot of people die.

I have to give credit to the antagonists, from the corrupt sheriff (played by Michael Garney) to his son (played by Harry Goodwins), who leads the town’s racist goon squad. The citizens of Karensville, OH, are clearly afraid of them, and with good reason. The performances are exactly what you want from villains—you hate them and root for their downfall. Especially Goodwins, he feels like he stepped out of a ’90s action movie: disturbed, unhinged, inhumane, and terrifyingly well-trained in combat.

It was also refreshing to see Shameik Moore in a hero role. Like Marvel’s The Punisher, he’s out for retribution with brains, brawn, and an arsenal of tricks and weapons. At times, it felt like watching a video game with all the weapons he had at his disposal. His love interest, played by Paris Jackson, was decent, but honestly, not all that believable in the role.

RJ Cyler and Emyri Crutchfield had great chemistry as a lovable couple. From their intimate love scene (yes, there are full-on sex scenes) to their playful back-and-forth, they felt like that fun couple everyone enjoys being around.

The fight choreography was gritty and visceral, more street fighting with some martial arts thrown in, not stylized like The Matrix, but raw and physical. Expect punches, kicks, and chokeholds. What sells it even more are the practical effects, bloody noses, broken bones, and even some internal organs that looked disturbingly real. Overall, One Spoon of Chocolate is a solid watch. While it takes a little while to get to the action that genre fans might be expecting, it’s worth the wait. It’s the kind of film that sparks conversation and doubles as a gritty piece of art. I give it a 7/10.