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King of New York (1990)

Dir: Abel Ferrra.

Frank White (Christopher Walken) is a ruthless gang boss who, after being released from prison, is taking over New York's drugs trade with the help of his psychotic 'crew'.
But a group of Cops, lead by the aging Roy Bishop (Victor Argo), frustrated at the legal system's failure to control White are hard on his heels...

 

A truly stunning piece of cinema. Abel Ferrara has given us a deep and multi-layered movie and yet one that moves along at a fast pace and reamains constantly exciting and ultra cool.

Ferrara delivers some great action/drama set pieces that are perfectly staged (as well as scored, by old school Gangsta rapper 'Schooly D' and some well used classical music and original compositions by Ferrara regular Joe Delia) and contain some wonderful dialogue, some of which is the work of razor sharp improvisation, especially by Larry Fishburne.
Highlights are too numerous to mention in full but standout moments include the chaotic shootout at Frank's gang's place, the night-time car chase/shootout, the fried chicken take-away scene, the spellbinding subway confrontation and most certainly the opening assassination montage, complete with some excellent blood squib work and the classic "Room service motherfucker's" line.
But despite all this it's actually in the characters that the film really shows it's power.

Frank White plays havoc with our feelings. He is a cold, calculated killer and a pusher of lethal drugs...and yet the script by Ferrara regular Nicholas St John (and Walken's simply breathtaking portrayal) makes us kind of like the guy. We know we shouldn't, but we do. Although the initial reasoning is counterfeit
His killing of the other Gangsters is a worthy deed to the audience (he gives us the background of the dead men in a later scene), as his desire to keep open the local hospital and these are all acts that at least seem to show that, though he is a criminal, he's the best of the bunch.

But let us look deeper...His killing of the rival Gangsters is simply a selfish act. He may indeed believe that they were scum, but this would never have bothered him. He killed them to take over the drugs trade and/or to consolidate his power base. Simple as that.

And the Hospital? Indeed a worthy ideal. And there is a genuine need in him to help the poorer community. But he is a drug dealer!
He sells the stuff that probably put a large number of the patients in the Hospital in the first place! Whether it be overdose victims, victims of warfare between rival dealers and victims of crime, like people mugged for the money in their pockets by Frank's addicts.
And of course....being the patron of an inner city Hospital does great things for your public profile.

The cops represent the most disturbing and clever twist in the screenplay though.
These are good men. Men who have had enough of Courts that fail to prosecute and of Judges that let criminals out after serving a small part of their term. They are pushed into taking White out illegally.
In any other movie, we would be on their side without a second of doubt. But here, the sheer power of White's personality, and the bleakness and hate that surrounds the Cop characters, make them dark to us...make them the opposite of the charismatic Frank White.
We almost see them as the enemies of the film's anti-hero! It's a very clever, complex and delicate bit of writing by St John.

Acting honours of course go to Christopher Walken, who strides like a great white ghost through the film...hip, clever, ruthless and yet dangerously charming.
But it would be criminal to forget the rest of the cast and in fact, except for the God of ensemble cast films "True Romance", this film is the most successful 'group' film around.
ALL the cast are perfect, both in looks and personality.

We have to single out the exceptional work done by David Caruso as Dennis Gilley (a much underrated actor in his early films) who has the most complex character out of Bishops group of Cops.
He's driven to the point of mania and is cold bloodedly ruthless in his quest to nail White. It's the kind of blisteringly angry performance Caruso used to do so well.

Wesley Snipes, here leaving his ego at the door, also gives a fine support performance as another of Bishop's men.

Larry Fishburne of course, who simply blisters the screen as Frank's #1 enforcer 'Jimmy Jump'. Hiis mainly improvised dialogue in the fast food ordering scene is brilliant, as is his violence drenched finale.

But it's the excellent Victor Argo who really does the business.
Bishop is a truly noble man. He allows his men to bend the odd 'legal right' in his pursuit of White, but will not, ever, go the way his men want to and simply murder Frank. He upholds the law, and despite the setbacks still believes in it.
He is a tragic character, time has past him by and he's now feeling old and ill. But this time that has worn him down has not even gained him the full respect of those around him.
The look on his face as he's slapped on the back and called "Pops" and the refusal of his men to follow him on the legal path to get White, all seem to erode whatever hope he has left.
The late Argo, in sadly his only real leading role, is quite simply superb, especially given that he has to go up against Walken and the mammoth character of Frank White.
Argo has been in some of the finest American films made in the last 30 years ("'True Romance", "Taxi Driver", "Bad Lt.", "Mean Streets") but his lesser films, small roles and later movie non-events mean he will forever be known only to film buffs.

Ferrara is at his best when he's on those mean big city streets and few Directors working in theatrically released movies today can capture that raw feel of 70's/early 80's Grindhouse cinema. Like all of Ferrara's best works ("Ms.45", "Bad Lt." and even his excellent "Crime Story" pilot) "King of New York" gains it's power by feeding off 'the streets' where their action is set. And in this case Ferrara, just as much as Frank White, is 'King of New York'.

So to sum, up what we have is a true modern classic of the thriller genre that works on many complex levels and yet still retains a punchy, cool, vibrant excitement.
A simply superb, pounding, violent, loud, ultra hip and stylish walk through the darker side of America.