King of New York 4K 1990 Ultra HD 2160p

Leaving prison, gangster Frank White (Walken) announces that one will take control of the entire drug trade in New York and destroy everyone who gets in his way.

King of New York 4K Review
With its detective component and surrounding gloom, 'The King of New York' is as much reminiscent of the works of Simenon as the chief detective of this film is reminiscent of Maigret. He is principled and honest, despite the lawlessness around him from both antagonists and cops, unless he is amazingly perceptive.

The film is a benefit performance by Christopher Walken, and nothing else. He is quite good for himself and, definitely, very atmospheric, but the game of this Master overshadows both the plot and the rest of the characters (although there are a lot of them here, colorful and interesting future stars (Fishburne, Buscemi, Snipes)). I think that not a single viewer will worry about justice or fairness, loyalty to a badge or something else, but wishes good luck and many years to the main gangster. This is not because of the way Walken's character is written, not because of the dialogue or morality, but simply because he plays just great, beautiful and perfect. Many epithets can be found for his talent, but it's better to just see. Christopher Walken does not need to try hard, grimace or practice facial expressions, his acting with only his eyes and charisma, plus his classical dances speak for themselves. He should not go out of his way so that the viewer understands who is worthy of sympathy or, at least, understanding here. He is the one on whom this rather worthwhile film rests, the one whose character is truly believed to exist, the one from whose acting you can get real aesthetic pleasure. Surprisingly, he often shows his talent to the fullest in such films, in films of essentially category B (consider anti-mainstream), be it this very 'King' or 'Prophecy', 'Kings of Suicide' and much more.

Be that as it may, with a clear conscience, I recommend this movie for viewing, at least for its atmosphere, a kind of romance of New York slums, acting and great soundtrack. No pathos and gloss - just distant realism and its own gloomy, but beautiful, unique charm. Bravo, Ferrara. Bravo, Christopher Walken.

Info Blu-ray
Video
Codec: HEVC / H.265 (94.61 Mbps)
Resolution: Native 4K (2160p)
HDR: Dolby Vision, HDR10
Original aspect ratio: 1.85:1

Audio
English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
English: Dolby Digital 5.1

Subtitles
English-PGS, English-SRT