Empire (2002 film)

Empire is a 2002 American gangster film starring John Leguizamo and Peter Sarsgaard.

Empire
Theatrical release poster
Directed byFranc. Reyes
Produced byDaniel Bigel
Michael Mailer
Written byFranc. Reyes
StarringJohn Leguizamo
Peter Sarsgaard
Denise Richards
Delilah Cotto
Sonia Braga
Isabella Rossellini
Music byRubén Blades
Production
company
Arenas Entertainment[1]
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release date
  • December 6, 2002 (2002-12-06)
Running time
90 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$4 million[2]
Box office$18,591,272

Plot

Victor Rosa (Leguizamo) is a drug dealer in New York City who sells a specific brand of heroin called "Empire". His territory is located in the South Bronx, where his other rivals all maintain an uneasy truce maintained because they all purchase their drugs from the same supplier, drug lord Joanna "La Colombiana" Menendez (Isabella Rossellini). Victor is invited to a chic white collar party by his girlfriend Carmen (Delilah Cotto).

The party is being thrown by her friend Trish (Denise Richards) and her boyfriend Jack (Sarsgaard), an investment banker. He is then sent to assassinate local kingpin Tito Severe (Fat Joe). A shootout occurs, which results in Tito and his young son being killed. With a baby on the way, Vic decides to go straight, and begins to invest money with Jack, receiving significant returns. His friendship with Jack affords Vic a whole new lifestyle, and creates a rift between him and Carmen.

Jack offers Vic an investment opportunity for over 300% return, but there's a catch: the minimum buy-in is $4.5 million, $1.5 million more than Vic has. He approaches La Colombiana with an offer, in which she agrees to lend Vic the money he needs, if he gives her a 500% return and stops a feud between his best friend Jimmy (Vincent Laresca) and a rival dealer.

The feud escalates and Jimmy kills the dealer. Vic receives his money and gives it to Jack, who disappears the next day. Victor tracks him down and tries to get his money back, but kills Jack and Trish when they resist. He escapes with Carmen and her family to Puerto Rico and opens a bar on the south side of the island with what little money he has left.

At the end of the movie, Vic is heading to the hospital to see the birth of his child when Rafael, La Colombiana's younger brother, shoots him in the head. The movie ends with Vic lying dead.

Cast
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Production

Empire was the first release from Arenas Entertainment, a branch of Universal Studios specializing in productions for Hispanic audiences.[1][3]

Release

Universal picked up the film for US$650,000,[3] and released it on December 6, 2002 in 867 theaters.[2]

Reception

Empire received negative reviews, and carries a score of 21% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 99 reviews.[4]

See also

References
  1. "'Empire' crumbles under weight of its own cliches". Daily News of Los Angeles. Los Angeles Newspaper Group (MediaNews Group). December 6, 2002. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
  2. "Box office information for Empire". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
  3. Munoz, Lorenza (January 3, 2003). "Movies; Little pictures have a big year; Playing against type, 'Monsoon Wedding' and other niche films were very profitable for Hollywood in 2002". Los Angeles Times. p. E.1 (Calendar). Retrieved June 16, 2011.
  4. "Reviews for Empire". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixster. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
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