King of New York (1990)

Did you people see the same film I saw?

Absolutely the worst movie.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

Fabulous, fast and furious whilst looking wonderful with bright lights, dark shadows and a lot of violence. Abel Ferrara may talk about not wanting arty lighting and fancy camerawork to get in the way but he either makes sure he has people doing this for him or he just can't help himself. However many involved in a shoot out, however many cars racing across a bridge, however complicated the street or big restaurant scene is and however much blood is spilt, it always looks good. Just about ever frame is perfect and if we can't always make out the dialogue for the noise of the traffic, the soundtrack or or buzz of a bunch of diners, it is a joy to look at. Not much of a story but the director brings together many people who would go on to work with the likes of Tarantino and produces a film that looks and sounds 'real' even if as Abel might have his doubts. Christopher Walked is magnificent, worrying, likeable, crazy and child like, he dominates the film, which has to accommodate his illogical seeming logic.

When the drug kingpin Frank White (Christopher Walken) is released from the prison, his gang under the command of his henchman Jimmy Jump (Larry Fishburne) and he murder the competition. Frank and his girlfriend Counsellor Jennifer (Janet Julian) frequent political parties and he decides to modernize the hospital of his old neighborhood using part of his profits dealing drugs. But the rogue cops under the leadership of Dennis Gilley (David Caruso) and Thomas Flanigan (Wesley Snipes) decide to eliminate Frank White and his gang simulating an attack by a rival gang despite the protest of their leader, Detective Roy Bishop (Victor Argo). "King of New York" is a crime film directed by Abel Ferrara with a great cast, with names such as Wesley Snipes, Laurence Fishburne and Steve Buscemi in the beginning of career. Christopher Walken performs an interesting character, a drug lord that believes he is a businessman and a sort of modern Robin Hood trying to benefit his former poor neighborhood before he dies. The showdown in the conclusion is expected and fits perfectly to the story. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "O Rei de Nova York" ("The King of New York")

(Originally reviewed: 24/02/2017) An alleged crime drama; more like a cheap action film disguised as a gangster picture; which sounds more appropriate. Christopher Walken is very good as drug lord Frank White and if the film were based on his performance alone I would have liked this film; but the truth is he's a one man show here; as the film lacks a well-structured story and a lot of over the top laughable supporting performances. Janet Julian (Jennifer/Lawyer), is adequate and I think she did very well when on screen but everyone else was just either average or absolutely terrible. David Caruso (Dennis) played a cop who hates Frank and wants him back behind bars but did he have to constantly shout and overact every scene in a laughable fashion; his performance is camp and silly; a bit like Snipes (Thomas/cop) who I also like as an actor but his performance is ridiculously bad here as well. Fishbourne (Jimmy) is also bad but his performance is unlike the other two; he is actually cringeworthy; playing Frank's right hand man and his character is annoying; including a crappy laugh or whatever that noise was later on in the picture; his acting is utter shambles here. Steve Buscemi also features but his character is given nothing interesting and no depth. While watching I constantly asked who are these gangs, near the first half an hour; have they any actual story, or maybe character development? but no they just get shot for entertainment purposes. Another howler is the dialogue, some of its horrendous; including lines such as "I like my s**t cold, just like my ball", and another where Jimmy is talking about soda. The story has plenty of stupid scenes including one where Walken is confronted while feeling up his girlfriend on the train, and they come at him with a knife and he shows them a gun and says here 'gives them money' and says " come by the hotel I have work for you, ask for Frank White". Yes because when someone comes up to you with a knife you immediately want to help them as best you can; it's stupid as hell. Another is when the police pick up Frank and tell him he needs to go with them and while they drive away with him, they drive recklessly the wrong side of traffic for no particular reason; they were in no serious hurry and just decided that the public's safety is not as important as questioning a man they really dislike. There's even a scene midway through the film where a mindless shootout takes place and a rival Chinese gang get slaughtered; this is a disorientating mess of a scene; the director keeps the lighting dark and unfocused so when the shootouts start; I couldn't tell who was getting shot. Sure there's more lame scenes with shootouts that are forgettable and a lot of people get killed; but without story and without character development; I really didn't care. I did however at the least think Ferrara's direction is decent whenever he is showing New York nightlife and the final sequence which was well filmed and well shot. Nicolas St. John's writing is the main problem, his dialogue isn't very good more times than it is actually good and he has made characters that are mostly lacking in actual development. King of New York is a poor piece of filmmaking that ultimately relies on a brilliant Walken to try and compensate for its mess of a plot and it may be extremely violent but it's certainly not extremely memorable.

Crime lord Frank White (Christopher Walken) is released from prison, and on his long drive back to New York City, witnesses the filth his city has descended into since his incarceration. His old friend Jimmy Jump (Laurence Fishburne) has just wiped out a Colombian drug operation and welcomes Frank back with a suitcase full of money and cocaine. Eager to win his city back, and also help fund the saving of an inner city hospital through his drug operation, he sets the wheels to his crowning in motion. But cops Roy Bishop (Victor Argo), Gilley (David Caruso) and Flanigan (Wesley Snipes) are on his case, but after struggling to bring Frank in under regulations, resort to more illegal methods of getting him off the streets.King of New York was booed upon its initial screenings, with mass walk- outs and cult director Abel Ferrara being bombarded with uncomfortable questions. Audiences were apparently appalled by the films seemingly glamorous depiction of man who was essentially a homicidal maniac, encouraging violence and sleaze wherever he went. The film is certainly guilty of that, but the character of Frank is a little different to the likes of Tony Montana or Henry Hill. He seems to style himself as a champion of the lower-classes, using his influence and vast wealth to push a councilman to put forth the money to save a hospital in a poverty-stricken area, and then fund it himself when that fails. He and his girlfriend Jennifer (Janet Julian) are robbed on the subway by inner-city youths. Frank shown them his gun, and they back off, but Frank throws them a wad of money and tells them there is work for them if they want it. A crime-lord he may be, but is he any worse than the fat politicians that soak up the city's money, or the bent cops that are on his back?In Walken's hands, White is a charismatic, unconventional crime boss, and is in turns charming, strange, and deranged. It's a fabulous performance, but for me it was Laurence (here still credited as Larry) Fishburne that steals the show, as the swaggering, loud-mouthed gun-man Jimmy ("yo, where the chicken at?" he says after killing a cop), a man of such ridiculous posturing that he almost becomes a cartoon character. And this is one of the main reasons I loved this film. It is, at times, so outlandishly over-the-top that it should betray its gritty roots, but its so steeped in atmosphere and that key element, grime, that it becomes a fantasy-laden, insane ride amongst a decaying city and one its most colourful characters.For anyone who has seen the work of Abel Ferrara, especially two of his most popular films, The Driller Killer (1979) and Bad Lieutenant (1992), will know what they are in for. His New York is not the one you see in the earlier works of Woody Allen, but one of whacked-out prostitutes, cocaine-sniffing criminals, inner-city poverty, and angry, sweaty, middle-aged detectives. We do glimpse the glitzier side of the city in King of New York, as Frank often mingles with the politicians and power- players, but it is a world of black suits and orange lighting, and a world that shares the same depravity and sleaze as the lower-classes. It's a grim thing to see through Abel Ferrara's gaze, but boy is it brimming with atmosphere. This will always play second or third fiddle to the likes of Scarface (1983), but King of New York is the film the former could never be, and in its own depressing way, is a much better film. Undoubtedly Ferrara's finest, and most 'polished' work.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com