Isaac Hayes, who died Sunday at age 65, was a cultural icon who left his mark on movies as well as music.

One of the more successful cross-platform performers, Mr. Hayes found fans with his deeply soulful music and his film roles, which often played off his larger-than-life persona. Whether penning tunes for Stax Records acts such as Otis Redding, performing in front of a staid Oscar audience in gold chains or lending his talents to classic blaxploitation fare such as Truck Turner, he was an American original. Here are five of my favorite Hayes films.

SHAFT (1971): The funky, syncopated theme song Mr. Hayes wrote for this bare-knuckled detective classic might be better known that the movie itself. It is the perfect musical personification of a certain time and place. Mr Hayes was originally considered for the role of John Shaft (which went to Richard Roundtree), but was found to be more useful in the composer's role. He did take a cameo as a bartender.

THE BLUES BROTHERS (1980): Although Mr. Hayes was not among the galaxy of music notables who took cameos in this comedy, it is one of his songs that serves as the centerpiece of the fictitious Blues Brothers' raucous live show.

Soul Man.

Never a hit for Mr. Hayes, the up-tempo ode to all who live by the code of soul was written by him during his tenure as a writer and musician at Stax Records.

ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK (1981): This goofy but thoroughly enjoyable post-apocalyptic thriller casts Mr. Hayes as the villain, a crime lord who runs the action in a New York City turned into a maximum security prison. His nemesis is Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell), a man of action with a questionable past who must rescue the American president from the Duke's wicked -- although soulful -- grasp.

WATTSTAX (1973): A concert film shot at an all-star bash in the Watts neighborhood in Los Angeles, Wattstax is both a social document and a thrilling, visceral music experience. Although the film features astonishing performances by the Bar-Kays, the Staples Singers and Rufus Thomas, the show really belongs to the headliner, Mr. Hayes. From the moment he removes his hat to proudly display his shaved pate to the final note, he demands attention. It's the sort of performance every musician strives for -- and few attain.

SOUTH PARK: BIGGER, LONGER & UNCUT (1999): There is a generation of Isaac Hayes fans that became familiar with his deep, brassy voice without ever hearing him wax poetic about John Shaft. Instead, the introduction came through South Park, first the series and then movie, a wicked, wanton and wonderful satire of Hollywood musicals, war, censorship and anything else that might stick when thrown at a wall. Mr. Hayes played Chef, the libidinous cook at a Colorado elementary school, with a real sense of comedic timing and bravado.

Reach Steven Uhles at (706) 823-3626 or steven.uhles@augustachronicle.com.