King of New York

For the 1957 film, see A King in New York.

King of New York
Theatrical release poster
Directed byAbel Ferrara
Written byNicholas St. John
Produced byAugusto Caminito
Mary Kane
Starring
CinematographyBojan Bazelli
Edited byAnthony Redman
Music byJoe Delia
Production
companies
  • Reteitalia
  • Scena International
  • Penta Film[1]
Distributed byCarolco Pictures (through New Line Cinema)
Release date
  • September 28, 1990 (1990-09-28)
Running time
103 minutes
Countries
LanguageEnglish
Budget$5 million[1]
Box office$2.6 million[3]

King of New York is a 1990 neo-noir[4] crime film[1] directed by Abel Ferrara and written by Nicholas St. John. It stars Christopher Walken, Laurence Fishburne, David Caruso, Victor Argo and Wesley Snipes, with supporting roles played by Giancarlo Esposito, Steve Buscemi, Paul Calderón, Janet Julian and Theresa Randle. Walken portrays Frank White, a New York City drug kingpin rebuilding his criminal empire after his release from prison, while also attempting to go legitimate.

The film was released by Carolco Pictures (through New Line Cinema) on September 28, 1990. It received mixed reviews from critics, with several criticizing the film's violence and dark tone.[5] Retrospective reviews have been much more positive, and the film has been described as one of Ferrara's best.[6]

  1. ^ a b c d King of New York at the AFI Catalog of Feature Films
  2. ^ "King of New York". British Film Institute. London. Archived from the original on August 2, 2012. Retrieved December 19, 2012.
  3. ^ "King of New York (1990)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved July 27, 2018.
  4. ^ "KING OF NEW YORK". American Cinematheque. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  5. ^ "Abel Ferrara's King of New York Continues to Reign". Arrow Films. February 14, 2022. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
  6. ^ "Iain Sinclair on Abel Ferrara's King of New York". BFI. Retrieved February 29, 2024.