King of New York (1990) Reviews

• A crime kingpin re-enters the underworld upon his release from prison!

  DanLives19802011-10-04

  This film for many will be too much and by that I mean in every way possible; the amount of grim and grime in Abel Ferrara's portrayal of New York City at the turn of the '90's, the perpetual display of crime and gang activity, the almost impenetrable bad language, the shocking violence and the in-your-face portrayal of hard life and sudden death from the perspectives of both criminals and cops. Saying that, this is one of the first and few greats from writer and director Abel Ferrara, notorious creator of schlock-horror trash 'Driller Killer' and I love it for all the reasons that people tend to hate it. The inimitable and irreplaceable Christopher Walken plays Frank White, whose Lieutenants - led by intimidating and possibly demented Jimmy Jump played by Laurence Fishburne - have been guarding his territory, awaiting his return from prison. But when he gets out and goes back home to see that the streets have become every man's nightmare and every crackhead's dream, he decides that through rebuilding his empire, he will clean up the streets and give back to the community what the gangs have taken. What results of this new resolution is the start of an unprecedented bloodbath in White's attempt to rid the streets of these crack dealing gangs and this catches the attention of Roy Bishop - White's nemesis, a jaded New York cop - who proceeds to chase the kingpin with the help of his toughest men Gilley and Flanigan, played with integrity and even a clever hint of villainy by David Caruso and Wesley Snipes. Ferrara's distinctive independent style of filmmaking truly comes to fruition in this one, as it did with 'Bad Lieutenant', giving the audience a glimpse of everyday life on the grimmest streets of New York, while allowing his characters to run wild. There seems to be no clear line in the sand designating who is supposed to be the villain here as both Frank White and Roy Bishop seem to be corrupted characters with little redeeming features, the same not exactly applying to their supporting characters. White is a man with no qualms in spilling blood for what he sees as the greater good because he targets only the lowest of the low throughout the film until the cops' war with him becomes personal. Bishop's war with him is nothing but personal however and the only thing that suggests he isn't the true villain of the film is the fact that he's a cop. Fishburne's character, Jimmy Jump, is a devil with no need for disguise, a loyal animal that never questions the man he works for because the only kick he needs is to kill who he sees as the bad guys, even though he is possibly the most intimidating face in 'King...' And Gilley and Flanigan, as straight and clean-cut as they seem throughout the film, are in fact corrupted. Corrupted by hate, by the need for revenge and through the grudges that they bear. If anything, Ferrara's crime thriller is a film study applying an old philosophy to modern social politics. That philosophy being, "he who fights monsters should see to it that he too does not become a monster in doing so..." The film relies on the talents of its actors as physical and emotional forces of nature, as their performances run along on little comprehensible dialogue in relation to the plot but this is strengthened by a simplistic plot with easily picked out references to classic crime thrillers and although we see where the film is headed from the start, personally found myself excited and in awe of how it got there and honestly didn't see the end coming. It goes far beyond where others dare to go and still keeps it real. In the end I find myself thinking, this is the kind of film 'The Untouchables' and 'Carlito's Way' didn't have the balls to be!

• A Monster

  codchops2010-07-26

  Abel Ferrara created a monster here and Christopher Walken grabbed it by the neck and made it one of the best gangster movies ever made. A truly faultless performance by Walken. The scene where his crew first see him after his release from prison is superb, he may try to act as one of the boys but his unnerving manner is there for all to see. Considering this film was released in 1989, the cinematography is highly impressive. The shots of Walken as he looks cold-eyed into the night are tremendous, as are many of the New York shots. This movie has a very dark feel and edge to it and I thought the score complemented this superbly. Larry Fishburne also does an excellent job as a drug-fuelled punk and the drug deal scene is one of the films many highlights. What impressed me most about this film is that not one scene is wasted. It is short, sharp, action packed and to the point and it is one of those rare gems that actually has a fantastic ending. Well done Ferrara, this movie is one of the greats.

• The Cinema of Abel Ferrara: King of New York.

  Captain_Couth2005-08-15

  King of New York (1990) was Abel Ferrara's return to the his favorite style of film making (the urban street drama). Over the past fifteen years, this movie has achieved a cult status that one would have never imagined. During it's initial release on video, this film was a word-of-mouth hit. I remembered watching this in high school. Although the movie was never a major box office hit, film found an audience when it was released on tape. But the movie's popularity grew even more when rappers made numerous of references to it in music and song. Christopher Walken stars as a crime lord who has done a stint in prison. Upon his release he begins to rebuild his fledging empire through violence and strong arming. Whilst he rotted in prison, his rivals became strong as they gobbled up his business. With time on his side, Frank launches a plan that'll make him KING OF NEW YORK. Can Frank do it by himself? How will the local authorities re-act to his new found activities? Will his soldiers remain loyal? What will his rivals do? To find out you'll just have to watch it!! I found this movie to be very good. Abel Ferrara has found his niche audience and he should cater to it. He has a style that a director like Martin Scorese once had. Highly recommended.

• Style Over Substance

  jack_thursby2005-10-13

  This is a strange movie. The IMDb trivia notes for the movie state that the director and writer spent five years working on the script, yet the story is disjointed and doesn't have a strong plot. The story basically follows the life of drug kingpin Frank White (Christopher Walken) after he is released from prison and re-enters the criminal world to reclaim his drug empire. However, there's not much character development and many of the characters are one dimensional. And the movie could be called over-stylized. Yet, somehow it all works and this movie, while not a classic, could be considered a cult classic for its great cinematography, superb acting performances, tense action sequences, its cinematic risk taking and its outright coolness. For a movie shot in the late 80's (released in 1990) its ahead of its time. Christopher Walken gives a great performance as Frank White. Many viewers who may only know Walken from his more recent appearances as "the weird but cool guy" will be surprised by the multifaceted performance he gives here. The late Victor Argo's performance as White's nemesis on the police force, Roy Bishop, should also be noted. Argo gives a note perfect, yet nuanced portrayal, of a weary, "seen it all" cop who is determined to get his man. Wesley Snipes and Laurence Fishburne were still early in their film careers while appearing in this movie, but you can clearly see the qualities that would make them stars. Both bring depth and realism to their otherwise stock characters. David Caruso also does a great job with his character. One of the shortcomings of the movie is that there's no strong female lead... Frank White has a relationship with one of his attorney's, Jennifer (Janet Julian), but the script leaves out a lot of details (e.g., why they are together in the first place). In fact, all the women in this movie look like models which only adds to the stylized unreality the movie creates. Finally, I have to mention the oldschool rap soundtrack which fits the proceedings to a "t". If you are a fan of crime/action movies, "King of New York" comes recommended, but fair warning, its not your typical gangsta flick.

• King of the Genre

  Doctor_Bombay1999-02-11

  Do you like Christopher Walken movies? The good, the deep psychological studies, the creepy pseudo-underworld /misfit characters that have unfortunately typecast one of America's greatest and multi-talented contemporary actors? Do you like Abel Ferrara movies? The down in the muck, inner-city examinations of the seedier motivations and lifestyles-the side of life many of us would like to ignore, but are intrigued by nonetheless? Low budget and a lot of conjones are trademarks of Ferrara's films (Fear City, The Addiction, The Funeral) and this is no exception, but the term stylish is defined here..You see, you hear, you FEEL the environment-the nasty low morality hustlers of the five burroughs………….Much congrats to Alex Tovoularis' production design. King of New York may not be as famous as Ferrara's Bad Lieutenant in the world of the cinema-geek, but maybe it should be. Joe Delia's haunting soundtrack is a perfect compliment to Bojan Bazelli's moody visuals-Walken's confrontation scene of the old-style Mafiosos is as classic as it is intense. Man, do I love this movie.