King of New York

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.