09/18/06 King Of New York

King Of New York (1990), directed by Abel Ferrara

watched solo; DVD (personal copy) @ home

Director Abel Ferrara is well known for his many gritty dramas (including the controversial "Bad Lieutenant") that show the seedy underbelly of urban life and sexual desires. This early 90's installment is right in line with the rest of his body of work, and is recognized as one of his most successful projects. Ferrara has, what seems to me, a sort of street credibility in his filmmaking that is reminiscent of Scorsese. And just like Scorsese, Ferrara is able to liven the already gritty script/plot up with plenty of star-powered talented and hardcore acting skills. Some of the best examples in his work come through here with the roles of Christopher Walken, Laurence Fishburne and Wesley Snipes (all three men who are capable of portraying the lowliest of hardened street thugs to the most charismatic of academic intellectuals). The story here revolves around drug lord Frank White (Walken) who is recently released from a Sing-Sing prison after serving many years convicted on drug trafficking charges. Upon his return to the city, White reunites with members of his gang, led by murderous Jimmy Jump (Fishburne) and involving his lover/legal advisor Jennifer. When White sees the terrible state that his beloved hood is in upon his return, and the many other thugs/gang lords that have taken over the turf, he sets out on a vigilante mission to clean up (see eliminate by lethal force and persuasion, not necessarily taking the drugs out of the ghetto) the wanna-be's and take their money in order to finance a South Bronx hospital for the needy. Such a humanitarian that Christopher Walken...but you wouldn't want to come across him in a dark alley...hell, even a lighted one. A particular group that is none to happy to see White's face back in town is that of the local law enforcement, where a band of revenge-seeking cops look to take down the again-powerful drug lord. The cops are led by the wise old timer Bishop, and his two hot-headed young guns Gilley (David Caruso) and Flanigan (Snipes). Hell-bent on taking out crime at any cost, the men find themselves in a tangled web of deceit and murder of epic proportions. Even though they take matters into their own hands, the cops have nothing to pin on White...and White has nothing but hatred to spew back at all of his enemies from the past. It's this vicious venom that pushes the fast-paced action forward, and it's an edgy interpretation on the "Robin Hood" theme of stealing from the rich (and corrupt) to give back to the poor (and corrupt). I want to delve further into Ferrara's body of work, if nothing more than to understand the controversy that swirls about most of his movies...and further appreciate this stylized gem of a gangster flick that flies under the radar of bigger brutal epics of Scorsese's ilk.

4 out of 5 stars