Prince of the City (1981)

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writers:

Robert Daley (book)
Jay Presson Allen (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

21 August 1981 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

A cop is turning. Nobody's safe.

Plot:

A New York City narcotics detective reluctantly agrees to cooperate with a special commission investigating police corruption. However, he soon discovers that he's in over his head, and nobody can be trusted.

Plot Keywords:

Police | Corruption | Reference To John Wayne | Perjury | Vulgarity

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 3 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Treat Williams	...	Daniel Ciello
Jerry Orbach	...	Gus Levy
Richard Foronjy	...	Joe Marinaro
Don Billett	...	Bill Mayo
Kenny Marino	...	Dom Bando
Carmine Caridi	...	Gino Mascone
Tony Page	...	Raf Alvarez
Norman Parker	...	Rick Cappalino
Paul Roebling	...	Brooks Paige
Bob Balaban	...	Santimassino
James Tolkan	...	District Attorney Polito
Steve Inwood	...	Mario Vincente
Lindsay Crouse	...	Carla Ciello
Matthew Laurance	...	Ronnie Ciello
Tony Turco	...	Socks Ciello

Runtime:

167 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Australia:M | Canada:14+ | Argentina:18 | Chile:18 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 (1982) | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:12 | Canada:A

Filming Locations:

La Isla Restaurant - 1439 Myrtle Avenue, Bushwick, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Orion Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Brian De Palma who had originally been slated to direct, had worked on the script for over a year before being replaced by Sidney Lumet

Goofs:

Continuity: Near the start of the film when Dan is pushing his brother Ronnie around, there's a large crack on the wall (probably from a previous shot). After he pushes Ronnie near the wall, another large crack appears but Ronnie is never shown hitting the wall.

Quotes:

Rick Cappalino: Are you threatening me?
Daniel Ciello: Absolutely

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Saalis (2007)

Soundtrack:

Love Will Keep Us Together

One of Lumet's best!

Prince of the City is probably Sidney Lumet's best film to date. It is better then Serpico because it shows how dirty police corruption can get. Everyone is guilty in this film to some degree, there are no hero's. The viewer is taken inside the world of drug addicts and drug dealers, cops, lawyers and judges and is shown how easy it is for them to sell out and how sad it is when they do sell out. While "Prince of the City is a very long film and sometimes gets a little slowed down, it is a great story that is worth watching.