Movies - King of New York

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	Movies - King of New York

King of New York is an ultraviolent 1990 motion picture depicting Frank White, a recently-released drug lord who, in a modern-day retelling of the Robin Hood legend, returns to New York City to retake control of the illegal drug trade and use the profits to fight poverty.

The film stars Christopher Walken, Laurence "Larry" Fishburne, David Caruso, Wesley Snipes, Victor Argo, Steve Buscemi, and Giancarlo Esposito. It was directed by legendary independent filmmaker Abel Ferrara and written by his long-time partner Nicholas St. John.

Synopsis

The film opens with Frank White (Christopher Walken), a wealthy and powerful crime boss, leaving Sing Sing and riding by limousine into New York. As he makes the long journey into the city, we see Emilio El Zapa (Freddy Howard), a Colombian drug dealer, enter a phone booth, where he is almost immediately gunned-down by three assailants. As the hit men leave, one of them drops a newspaper onto Zapa's lap, the headline of which announces Frank White's release.

Across town, Zapa's partner, King Tito (Ernest Abuba), sits in a hotel room with Jimmy Jump (Larry Fishburne) and Test Tube (Steve Buscemi), a pair of gangsters who are negotiating the purchase of several kilograms of cocaine. Finally, the two agree to pay Tito $100,000 up front, plus 10% of the street value (transportation costs, Tito quips). When Tito opens the suitcase ostensibly containing the money, however, he discovers that is full of tampons ("They're for the bullet holes, puta!"). Jump and Test Tube then draw pistols, shoot Tito and his bodyguards to death, and steal the cocaine.

A few hours later, in the presidential suite at the Plaza Hotel, Frank White steps out of the shower to discover that Jump, Test Tube, and the three phone booth killers are waiting for him. They are revealed to be the core members of his gang, and they welcome him home with a gift of champagne and Zapa's briefcase full of money. After an exchange of pleasantries, Frank leaves to meet two of his many lawyers, Joey Dalesio (Paul Calderon) and Jennifer (Janet Julian), for dinner.

After the dinner, during which Frank proclaims himself "reformed," expresses his desire to be elected mayor, and asks Dalesio to set up a meeting with Mafia boss Arty Clay (Frank Gio), he and Jennifer leave to take a ride on the subway, where it is revealed that she is one of his many mistresses. Upon being confronted by three muggers, Frank first brandishes his gun, then gives them a wad of money, telling them to ask for him at the Plaza Hotel if they want work.

In Little Italy, Dalesio attempts to set up Frank's meeting with Arty Clay, but the crime lord refuses to accept. Referring to Frank as a "nigger-lover" in front of the black Dalesio, Clay proceeds to urinate on the messenger to drive his point home. Upon hearing of this, Frank, Jump, and several other members of the gang arrive at Clay's social club, where Frank tells Clay that he wants a percentage of all Clay's profits. When Clay refuses and insults him to his face, Frank draws his gun and empties it into the mafioso. As he makes his way out, Frank announces to Clay's henchmen that they can all find employment at the Plaza.

The next night, after watching an avant-garde play, Frank confronts a city councilman about the city's failure to continue the funding of a hospital in a poverty-stricken area of the Bronx. When the councilman explains that there wasn't enough money in the budget, Frank vows to fund the facility himself. Moments later, he is confronted by Detective Roy Bishop (Victor Argo) and his right-hand men, Dennis Gilley (David Caruso) and Thomas Flanigan (Wesley Snipes), three members of the NYPD's narcotics squad, who tell him that they are taking him to police headquarters for questioning. Instead, the three drive him to an abandoned lot, where they show him the body of Emilio El Zapa in the trunk of their car. When Frank refuses to confess to the crime, Gilley and Flanigan beat him. The cops then drive off, leaving Frank to find his own way home.

Apparently unfazed by Bishop's warnings, Frank sends Dalesio to Chinatown to make contact with Larry Wong (Joey Chin), a Triad gangster who possesses 220 pounds of cocaine worth over $15 million on the street. Wong, however, is leery of dealing with Frank, especially after the demise of Arty Clay. He demands that Frank meet him alone on neutral ground to discuss the deal. As the meeting is being scheduled, however, Jimmy Jump and several of Frank's top lieutenants are arrested by Gilley and Flanigan, who reveal that one of King Tito's bodyguards is still alive and willing to testify against them.

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