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Prince of the City (1981)

R  167 min  -  Drama | Thriller   -  21 August 1981 (USA)
7.6
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Ratings: 7.6/10 from 2,734 users  
Reviews: 46 user | 21 critic

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.

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writers:

Robert Daley (book), Jay Presson Allen (screenplay), and 1 more credit »
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Cast

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

New York City cop Daniel Ciello is involved in some questionable police practices. He is approached by internal affairs and in exchange for him potentially being let off the hook, he is instructed to begin to expose the inner workings of police corruption. Danny agrees as long as he does not have to turn in his partners but he soon learns that he cannot trust anyone and he must decide whose side he is on and who is on his. Written by Josh Pasnak <chainsaw@intouch.bc.ca>  

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

Police | Corruption | New York City | Mink Coat | Racial Slur  | See more »

Taglines:

A cop is turning. Nobody's safe.

Genres:

Drama | Thriller

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »
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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

(USA) See more »

Also Known As:

O Príncipe da Cidade See more »

Box Office

Budget:

$8,600,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$64,713 (USA) (23 August 1981) (3 Screens)

Gross:

$8,124,257 (USA)
See more »

Company Credits

Show detailed company contact information on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
See full technical specs »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was budgeted at $10 million but Lumet completed it for under $9 million. At a Guardian Lecture at London's NFT shortly before the film's UK release, he revealed that the studio were furious with him for doing so since it created a major book-keeping problem for them. See more »

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. See more »

Quotes

Santimassino: Gino, you and I know you're a whore. Just a poor old whore who bellies up for any crook with two bucks. A whore and a thief. As far as I'm concerned you only have two options. You cooperate with us, you make the calls, or you go to jail with the other thieves. I don't even want to think about the third option.
See more »

Connections

Referenced in The Catch (2007) See more »

Soundtracks

"Love Will Keep Us Together"
Performed by Captain & Tenille See more »