New Jack City (1991)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Mario Van Peebles

Writers (WGA):

Thomas Lee Wright (story)
Thomas Lee Wright (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

8 March 1991 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

They're a new breed of gangster. The new public enemy. The new family of crime.

Plot:

A crime lord ascends to power and becomes megamanical while a maverick police detective vows to stop him.

Plot Keywords:

Gang | Drugs | Police | Undercover | New York

Awards:

1 win & 3 nominations

Cast

Wesley Snipes	...	Nino Brown
Ice-T	...	Scotty Appleton (as Ice T)
Allen Payne	...	Gee Money
Chris Rock	...	Pookie
Mario Van Peebles	...	Stone
Michael Michele	...	Selina Thomas
Bill Nunn	...	Duh Duh Duh Man
Russell Wong	...	Park
Bill Cobbs	...	Old Man
Christopher Williams	...	Kareem Akbar
Judd Nelson	...	Nick Peretti
Vanessa Williams	...	Keisha
Tracy Camilla Johns	...	Uniqua
Anthony DeSando	...	Frankie Needles
Nick Ashford	...	Reverend Oates

Runtime:

97 min | UK:101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Singapore:M18 | Iceland:16 | Australia:MA (cable rating) | Australia:R (original rating) | Canada:18A | Finland:K-18 | France:-12 | Germany:16 (cut) | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | Norway:18 (video premiere) (1991) | Norway:(Banned) (1991-2003) (cinema release)

Filming Locations:

Grant's Tomb - 122th Street & Riverside Drive, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Jacmac Films

Trivia:

Story is largely based on real-life Detroit gang, The Chambers Brothers. Writer Barry Michael Cooper got the idea for the film after visiting Detroit and learning about the gang's exploits.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Nino's home is raided, it's supposed to be morning, but during one of the break in shots, it's night time (you can even hear crickets).

Quotes:

Nino Brown: You gotta rob to get rich in the Reagan era.

Movie Connections:

Featured in 1992 MTV Movie Awards (1992) (TV)

Soundtrack:

NEW JACK HUSTLER (NINO'S THEME)

New Jack City

As British TV is so bad at the moment I'm re-watching many of my DVDs. I dug this out. Wesley Snipes is a very underrated actor just like his peer Laurence Fishburne. He is excellent in this, and as another user has commented, you see especially in the trial scene that his character isn't quite the dumb-head he appears to be just misguided. It has a fine cast. I dug the film out to watch Judd Nelson's performance again in it as I've just re-watched the Breakfast Club and wanted to compare. I can't remember who directed NJC but it's very reminiscent of a Spike Lee film and just as hard hitting. It is just as relevant today as it was back in 1991 in fact more relevant here in Manchester, United Kingdom as we have seen over the past 7 years some serious divisions within the black community.