Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Extreme
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Graphic
- lurid
- violent
- sensational
- cult movie night
- exploitation cinema marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly condemned the film as incoherent, exploitative, caricatural, and intellectually shallow despite its sensational action.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The plantation narrative turns enslavement, sexual coercion, and rebellion into provocative exploitation spectacle.
Drum fights for survival, frees Blaise, and joins the slaves' uprising against Hammond's plantation.
The plot repeatedly links plantation authority, forced sexual access, interracial desire, jealousy, and punishment.
The antebellum setting is rendered through broad caricature, lurid incidents, fight spectacle, and heightened performances.
Films like Drum, and why
Mandingo
shared blaxploitation exploitation, racial violence, slavery subject matter, and heightened melodrama
The Legend of Nigger Charley
shared blaxploitation style, Black resistance, historical oppression, and violent action
Django Unchained
shared slavery-era setting, graphic brutality, sexual exploitation, and revenge-driven drama
Movie Details
- Director
- Steve Carver
- Release Date
- 1976-07-30
- Runtime
- 100 min
- Rating
- 5.2 / 10 (23)
Cast
- Warren Oates
- Pam Grier
- Ken Norton
- Isela Vega
- Yaphet Kotto
- John Colicos
- Fiona Lewis
- Paula Kelly
- Royal Dano
- Brenda Sykes
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- ScreenPix Apple TV channel, ScreenPix Amazon Channel
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Drum about?
- A fiercely heightened plantation melodrama follows a skilled enslaved fighter whose defiance ignites a violent revolt against sexual and racial tyranny.
- What is Drum like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Drum as brisk, its intensity as extreme and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Drum violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Drum as graphic.
- What did critics think of Drum?
- Critics broadly condemned the film as incoherent, exploitative, caricatural, and intellectually shallow despite its sensational action.
- Which films are like Drum?
- Films with a similar feel include Mandingo, The Legend of Nigger Charley, and Django Unchained.
- How long is Drum?
- Drum runs 100 minutes.
- Where can I watch Drum?
- In United States, Drum streams on ScreenPix Apple TV channel, ScreenPix Amazon Channel .
