Drug dealing gangster Frank White (Christopher Walken) gets released from Sing Sing. Lance (Giancarlo Esposito) and Jimmy Jump (Laurence Fishburne) are two of his loyal lieutenants. They kill the Columbians and steal their drugs. Frank kills an Italian mob boss on his way to take over the drug trade. Frustrated narcotics detectives Roy Bishop (Victor Argo), Dennis Gilley (David Caruso), and Thomas Flanigan (Wesley Snipes) are desperate to stop him.
Indie filmmaker Abel Ferrara injects this crime drama with over-the-top performances and characters. The most ridiculous is Fishburne. Walken is doing a nice quietly crazy gangster although his character's motivation is a bit confused. He seems to see himself as Robin Hood but he doesn't actually do much Robin Hood work. The characters and the story are all hard-boiled pulpy neo-noir. The directing lacks the polished style. The writing is simplistic. The story telling is rather jagged. Overall, I like Walken's performance and the movie tries very hard.
Indie filmmaker Abel Ferrara injects this crime drama with over-the-top performances and characters. The most ridiculous is Fishburne. Walken is doing a nice quietly crazy gangster although his character's motivation is a bit confused. He seems to see himself as Robin Hood but he doesn't actually do much Robin Hood work. The characters and the story are all hard-boiled pulpy neo-noir. The directing lacks the polished style. The writing is simplistic. The story telling is rather jagged. Overall, I like Walken's performance and the movie tries very hard.