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| Saturday December 16, 2006 |
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Empire (2002),
90 minutes, Rated R |
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© 2002 Arenas Entertainment |
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News & Reviews |
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Pfolio Pforty™
The streets are mean whether in SoBro or SoHo - a not so subtle
message gleaned from Franc Reyes' Empire. In Empire, John Leguizamo
delivers a credible performance as Vic Rosa - a street pharmacist who
controls his turf with a silver tongue and the beat down. Tired of
plying drugs in the 'hood with his homies, Vic tries to flip the
script and go legit with Wall Street investments. But without any
Enron-type connections and his crew to watch his back, Vic gets
hustled by a million-dollar joe (Peter Sarsgarad playing Jack Wimmer).
Rubén Blades opening score sets off the contemporary urban drama
nicely with a mix of
salsa, hip hop and
soul. Although Empire's tale
of a drug thug who trades in baggy jeans, Timbs and a leather bomber
for a sports coat, Dockers and penny loafers has potential, the film lacks a unique
directorial vision to advance its promising start. Nevertheless,
Vincent Laresca shines as the "shoot first/ask questions
later" Jimmy in an otherwise mediocre film. (Ramona Prioleau,
Pfolio: November 2002)
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Synopsis |
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Victor
Rosa (John Leguizamo) is all about the mighty dollar and fashions
himself as a businessman on par with Rockefeller, Carnegie, and Bill
Gates. With an iron fist, he runs a successful "street
pharmaceutical" business that peddles a heroin mix he has named
Empire. His beautiful fiancée, Carmen, a Baruch College student,
befriends a classmate with an investment-banker boyfriend, Jack Wimmer.
Victor meets Jack, and they instantly connect. Both are hard-core
businessmen from two different sides of the legal fence. When Jack
offers Victor a piece of the action on the stock market, he sees his
ticket out of the violent streets of the South Bronx and jumps at the
opportunity. But there is a bigger price to be paid than clean money
for his gorgeous new Soho lifestyle. For the first time, Victor is
confronted with a price tag that he will find difficult to pay (from studio).
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Genre |
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Crime/Gangster; Drama
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Daniel
Bigel |
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Producer |
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Michael
Mailer |
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Producer |
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Jill
Footlick |
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Co-producer |
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John
Leguizamo |
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Co-producer |
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Chris
Connolly |
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Associate producer |
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John
Leguizamo |
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Vic
Rosa |
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Granville
Adams |
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Detective
Jones |
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Rafael
Báez |
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Jay |
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Sonia
Braga |
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Iris |
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Rob
B. Campbell |
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Detective
O'Brien |
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Delilah
Cotto |
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Carmen |
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Anthony
'Treach' Criss |
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Chedda
(as Treach) |
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Stracy
Diaz |
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Gina |
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Fat
Joe |
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Tito
Severe |
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Vincent
Laresca |
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Jimmy |
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Denise
Richards |
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Trish |
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Isabella
Rossellini |
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Joanna
Menendez |
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Peter
Sarsgaard |
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Jack
Wimmer |
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Nestor
Serrano |
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Rafael
Menendez |
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Derrick
Simmons |
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Tito's
Boy |
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Félix
Solis |
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Jose |
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Kramer
Morgenthau |
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Cinematographer |
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Peter
C. Frank |
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Editor |
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Chip
Signore |
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First
Asst. Director |
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Larry
Zience |
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Second
Asst. Director: Second Unit |
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Alyson
Latz |
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Second
Second
Asst. Director |
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Rubén
Blades |
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Music |
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Jamie
H. Zelermyer |
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Production
Manager |
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Andy
Schefter |
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Production
Manager: Miami |
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Sig
De Miguel |
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Casting |
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Ted
Glass |
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Production Design |
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Frank
White |
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Art Direction |
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Jacqueline
Jacobson |
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Set Decoration |
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Jacki
Roach |
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Costume Design |
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Francesca
Buccellato |
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Makeup
Artist |
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R.
Deanna |
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Key
Hair Stylist |
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Nuria
Sitja |
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Key
Makeup Artist |
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Michael
Jortner, Linda Krantz, Bill Lehne, Wayne T. Leonard, Daniel Mendible,
Gus Papadopoulos, Brett Pransky, Steve Scanlon, Nicholas Scott, Larry
Steinberg, Greg Sullivan |
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Art Department |
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Antonio
L. Arroyo, John Gutierrez, Ken Hahn, John Hassler, Raymond
Karpicki, Dow McKeever, Marsha Moore, Tony Pipitone, Tony
Slocum, Mark Weber |
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Sound Department |
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John
Stifanich (uncredited), Thomas Viviano (uncredited) |
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Special
Effects |
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Danny
Aiello III, Stracy Diaz, Tony Rhune |
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Stunts |
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Distributor |
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Arenas
Entertainment (USA)/Universal Studios Inc. (USA)
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Filming
Location(s) |
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New
York, New York and Miami, Florida
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RLP Ventures, LLC and/or its
suppliers. All rights reserved.