Rent King of New York (1990)
3.4 of 5 from 176 ratings
1h 39min
- General info
- Available formats
- Synopsis:
- After years inside, drug lord Frank White (Christopher Walken) is fresh out of jail and back on the streets of New York City. Seeing himself as half Scarface, half Robin Hood, Frank and his enforcers brutally take back control of the city, turf by turf - with starry dreams of using the millions to benefit the community and save a local hospital. Before Frank can fulfil his ruthless lust for power, though, he's got to get past the crooked cops determined to take him down, and the criminal competition that won't bend to his will.
- Actors:
- Christopher Walken, David Caruso, Laurence Fishburne, Victor Argo, Wesley Snipes, Janet Julian, Joey Chin, Giancarlo Esposito, Paul Calderon, Steve Buscemi, Theresa Randle, Leonard L. Thomas, Roger Guenveur Smith, Carrie Nygren, Ernest Abuba, Frank Adonis, Vanessa Angel, Frank Aquilino, David Batiste, Michael Battin
- Directors:
- Abel Ferrara
- Producers:
- Mary Kane, Augusto Caminito
- Voiced By:
- Anthony Redman
- Writers:
- Nicholas St. John
- Studio:
- Carlton Video
- Genres:
- Classics, Drama, Thrillers
- Collections:
- Top 10 Films By Year, Top Films of 1990: Vol. 1
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 25/06/2012
- Run Time:
- 103 minutes
- Languages:
- English DTS 2.0, English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 1.78:1 / 16:9
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Audio Commentary with Director Abel Ferrara
- Audio Commentary with Composer Joe Delia, Producer Mary Kane, Casting Director Randy Sabusawa and Editor Anthony Redman
- Brand New Interview with Director Abel Ferrara
- Interview with Producer Augusto Caminito
- Abel Ferrara: Not Guilty: Documentary on Abel Ferrara from the French TV Show Cineastes de Notre Temps
- A Short Film about the Long Career of Abel Ferrara: This Documentary looks at Abel Ferrara's career including interviews with his key collaborators
- 2 Exclusive Trailers
- BBFC:
- Release Date:
- 16/11/2020
- Run Time:
- 103 minutes
- Languages:
- English DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0, English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
- Subtitles:
- English Hard of Hearing
- DVD Regions:
- Region 2
- Formats:
- Pal
- Aspect Ratio:
- Widescreen 1.85:1
- Colour:
- Colour
- BLU-RAY Regions:
- B
- Bonus:
- Audio commentary by director Abel Ferrara
- Audio commentary with composer Joe Delia, producer Mary Kane, casting director Randy Sabusawa and editor Anthony Redman
- Interview with director Abel Ferrara
- Interview with producer Augusto Cammito
- Abel Ferrara: Not Guilty, a documentary on the director from the French TV show Cineastes de notre temps
- A Short Film About the Long Career of Abel Ferrara, a documentary looking back at the director's career, including interviews with his key collaborators
- Original Theatrical Trailers and TV Spots
- Image Gallery
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Reviews (2) of King of New York
SO GOOOOOOOD - King of New York review by EM
Why have I only seen this for the first time?? Wow, just what I needed. I normally go on and say a lot more but I'm just keeping it short and sweet ??
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.
Classic pioneering crime drama - King of New York review by MB
King of New York was a film that was ahead of its time, that is now rightly regarded as a classic.
Featuring a stellar cast that includes great performances from Christopher Walken, Laurence Fishburne, Wesley Snipes, David Caruso amongst others, the film of full of good performances from the supporting cast. Fishburne in particular plays a fantastic part as Jimmy Jump, the sidekick and assassin for Walken's Frank White character.
White is a powerful New York gangster with connections in high places, he is released from prison where he has spent a lot of his life. In the film he surrounds himself with gang members from the streets of New York. This was one of the first mainstream films, if I remember correctly, that featured hip hop culture (Boyz N The Hood came out a year later), there is a great soundtrack from pioneering rapper Schoolly D that features throughout the film, alongside that powerful and atmospheric score based on Vivaldi.
The film looks fantastic, great cinematography and lighting, with the scenes having a great atmosphere, something that Director Abel Ferrara talks about in the commentary (which is definitely worth listening to, there is also some great extras and interviews on the disc, which are worth watching), he also sings an acoustic version of Schoolly D's title track!
I watched this on Bluray and it looked great, the only criticism I have is that you need to check the audio settings and make sure you select the DTS-HD 2.0 version rather than the 5.1 version, first time I watched it I found the sound to be tinny and the dialogue hard to hear, but after changing it I was happy so its not a massive criticism.
An all time classic this one which ended up having a big influence on hip hop culture, Biggie Smalls even used to check in to hotels under the pseudonym Frank White, highly recommended.
0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.