Hell's Kitchen NYC Movie Review 1997

Ex-con Johnny Miles (Phifer) returns home to New York's notorious Hell's Kitchen after serving five years for a crime he did not commit. More or less a redemption drama, the film benefits from a good cast, especially Jolie as a revenge-driven street urchin and Arquette as her drugged-out mom. Despite the trappings of his "convict-into-street angel" role, Phifer exudes a quiet strength that never seems out of place, even when the action gets hysterical. Director Cinciripini scores points in creating scenes of drug addiction that invoke a kind of horrific absurdity, guiding seemingly over-the-top moments with a sure hand and a rock-solid purpose. It's in the more preachy aspects of his script where he loses control, the rising saccharine quotient potentially diluting the potency of his worthwhile message.

Distribution

Image Entertainment, 20525 Nordhoff St., Ste 200, Chatsworth, CA 91311, Phone: (818)407-9100, Email: inquiries@image-entertainment.com, URL: http://www.image-entertainment.com

Available on DVD
Running time 101 minutes.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Urban Drama, Drug Use & Abuse, Ex-Cons, Boxing, Second Chance, Drug Use & Abuse, Revenge

Screenplay

Tony Cinciripini

Cast

Rosanna Arquette, William Forsythe, Michael Spiller, Angelina Jolie, Mekhi Phifer, Johnny Whitworth, Michael Nicolosi, Ryan Slater, Sharif Rashed

Cinematography

Derek Wiesehahn

Director

Tony Cinciripini

Music

Tony Cinciripini, Nat Robinson